Rule Text
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), an action for protection from abuse may be brought in a county in which
(1) the plaintiff resides, either temporarily or permanently, or is employed, or
(2) the defendant may be served, or
(3) the abuse occurred.
(b) If the relief sought includes possession of the residence or household to the exclusion of the defendant, the action shall be brought only in the county in which the residence or household is located.
(c) An action for indirect criminal contempt may be filed in, and heard by, the court in the county in which the order was issued or where the violation occurred.
Amendment history: The provisions of this Rule 1901.1 adopted January 25, 1991, effective July 1, 1991, 21 Pa.B. 614; amended May 2, 2006, effective May 9, 2006, 36 Pa.B. 2369. Immediately preceding text appears at serial page (242777).
Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)
This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.
If you need a protection from abuse order in Pennsylvania, you have several options for where to file. You can file in the county where you live (even if it's temporary), where you work, where the abuse happened, or where the person who abused you can be served with court papers. This gives you flexibility to file in the place that works best for your situation.
There is one exception to this flexibility. If you want the court to give you sole possession of your home and remove the abuser from it, you must file in the county where that home is located.
If someone violates a protection from abuse order, you can file a contempt complaint in either the county that issued the order or the county where the violation happened. This makes it easier to take quick action when an order is broken.
Committee Notes
Explanatory Comment—1991
The statute and rules governing actions for protection from abuse formerly contained no provision for venue. Recommendation No. 84 of the Civil Procedural Rules Committee proposed a new rule to fill that void and the rule has been adopted as Rule 1901.1.
Subdivision (a) provides for venue in the following counties: (1) the county in which the abuse occurred, (2) the county in which the defendant may be served, (3) the county in which the plaintiff resides, either permanently or temporarily, and (4) the county in which the plaintiff is employed. These are the counties with which the plaintiff has the most significant contacts and the greatest interest in remaining free from abuse. The county of temporary residence is included because an abused person may have to flee the county of permanent residence to escape further abuse.
The rule imposes limited venue when the relief sought includes the sole possession of the residence or household. In that instance, the action must be brought in the county in which the residence or household is located.
Explanatory Comment—2006
The 2005 amendments to the Protection From Abuse Act grant jurisdiction over indirect criminal contempt complaints in either the county in which the order was issued or the county where the violation occurred. This rule allows for flexible and immediate enforcement of protection from abuse orders. With this amendment, indirect criminal contempt jurisdiction is parallel to prosecution for stalking and harassment. 23 Pa.C.S.A. § 6114 (a.1).
