“Over there” in this context refers to the Orphans’ Court – theoretically a “division” of the Court of Common Pleas (the trial court) in each Pennsylvania county. Orphans’ Court matters include adoptions, name changes, will...more
On October 16, 2023, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court granted Tower Health’s Petition for Allowance of Appeal related to the Montgomery County hospital property. The Supreme Court is going to address the following two issues on...more
In an unpublished opinion from the Pennsylvania Superior Court handed down on August 31, 2023, a long-standing disagreement about the wording of Pennsylvania's Statute of Repose was finally resolved. In Pennsylvania, “a civil...more
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania (“Court”) addressed in an April 19th Opinion an issue involving the Pennsylvania Storage Tank and Spill Prevention Act. See Dr. Timothy and Debra Shrom v. Pennsylvania Underground Storage...more
The United States Supreme Court will soon consider whether the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits a state from requiring that a corporation consent to personal jurisdiction in order to conduct business...more
Senior Health Insurance Company of Pennsylvania (“SHIP”) was placed in rehabilitation in Pennsylvania in January 2020. On August 24, 2021, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania approved the Rehabilitation Plan (the “Plan”),...more
On November 10, 2021, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court struck down the Acting Secretary of the Department of Health’s Order Directing Face Coverings in School Entities (“Masking Order”) in Corman, et al. v. Acting...more
In many personal injury cases, including products cases, the most significant exposure is pain and suffering or similar damages that cannot readily be measured in dollars. Juries are usually constrained by specific testimony...more
A Pennsylvania federal court has again asked that the state’s Supreme Court clarify whether, and to what extent, medical device manufacturers are immune from strict liability claims by virtue of the “unavoidably unsafe...more
Nicole B. v. Sch. Dist. of Philadelphia, 237 A.3d 986 (Pa. 2020). The Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that, when a fourth-grade student alleged that he was sexually assaulted in school, the 180-day period to file a claim...more
It has been almost seven years since Tincher v. Omega Flex Inc. was decided by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. The Tincher court left much unanswered but called on Pennsylvania’s lower courts, the legal academy and the bar to...more
The Texas Supreme Court is set to determine whether Amazon can be considered a “seller,” and thus held liable, for a defective product sold through its website, in the case of McMillan v. Amazon.com, Inc., No. 20-20108, 2020...more
In September, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court agreed with the urging of the Superior Court to hear an appeal on whether the Pennsylvania Peer Review Protection Act (PRPA or the Act) shields from discovery the evaluations of...more
Carr v. PennDOT, 2020 WL 2532232 (Pa. 2020) (Pennsylvania Supreme Court sustains the termination of employment of a public employee for a social media post). Background - The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation...more
When the loan documents provide for confession of judgment and the collateral encumbered by the mortgage securing the loan is commercial real property, the foreclosure process in Pennsylvania is straightforward. The lender...more
Practicing law at a socially appropriate distance has forced many litigators to broadly consider the value of face-to-face interaction—and what may be lost in its absence. A recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court opinion...more
Although government shutdown orders are being challenged across the country, the one issued by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf appears to be receiving particular attention....more
In a recent appeal from the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court examined the enforceability of a commonly used automobile policy provision related to Independent Medical...more
On October 31, 2019, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania decided Yanakos v. UPMC, et al. and declared the seven-year statute of repose under the Pennsylvania Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error (“MCARE”) Act...more
In Yanakos v. UPMC, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, in a 4-3 decision, struck down the seven-year statute of repose in the Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error (MCARE) Act as unconstitutional. MCARE’s statute of...more
The Pennsylvania (PA) Supreme Court issued its unanimous decision on August 20 in PPL Electric Utilities Corp. v. City of Lancaster, invalidating a municipality’s efforts to impose annual fees on utilities to occupy public...more
Take a friendly lawyer to your local watering hole and ask him for a quick summary of annoying things that have occurred in the practice in the past 20 years. Chances are two strong subjects will come up. The first is the...more
In this era of social media, it has become quite common for employees to post information online about their personal lives, their political views, and information related to their jobs. Social networks have increasingly...more
In a landmark decision with far-reaching implication, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently held that employers have an affirmative duty to protect their employees’ personal information from criminal hacking. In particular,...more
A recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision demonstrates how easy it can be not to preserve, or even waive, error in a trial court’s jury instructions....more