Rule Text
If the defendant fails to appear in the action, the plaintiff shall file an affidavit regarding military service with the motion for appointment of a hearing officer, prior to a trial by the court, or with the plaintiff’s affidavit required by Pa.R.C.P. No. 1920.42(b)(1)(ii) and (c)(1)(ii).
Amendment history: The provisions of this Rule 1920.46 adopted January 28, 1983, effective July 1, 1983, 13 Pa.B. 677; amended March 30, 1994, effective July 1, 1994, 24 Pa.B. 1943; amended July 30, 2003, effective immediately, 33 Pa.B. 4072; amended August 13, 2008, effective immediately, 38 Pa.B. 4736; amended June 3, 3019, effective October 1, 2019, 49 Pa.B. 3059; amended October 19, 2021, effective January 1, 2022, 51 Pa.B. 6764. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (396999) to (397000).
Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)
This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.
When someone files for divorce and their spouse does not show up or respond, the filing spouse cannot just move forward without one extra step. They must file a sworn statement confirming whether or not their spouse is currently serving in the military.
This statement must be filed at the right time, depending on how the case is moving forward. That could be when asking the court to appoint a hearing officer, before a judge hears the case, or when filing certain other required paperwork in the divorce process.
This rule exists to protect people who are on active military duty, since they may not be able to respond to a divorce case while deployed or otherwise serving.
Committee Notes
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, 50 U.S.C. § § 3901—4043, requires that in cases in which the defendant does not make an appearance, the plaintiff must file an affidavit of non-military service before the court may enter judgment. If the defendant is in the military service and an attorney has not entered an appearance on behalf of the defendant, a judgment shall not be entered until the court appoints an attorney to represent the defendant and protect his or her interest.
Actions for divorce under Section 3301(c)(2) and (d)(1)(i) of the Divorce Code are governed by Pa.R.C.P. No. 1920.42(b) and (c), respectively.
Explanatory Comment—2003
35 P. S. § 450.602 previously required a certificate of each divorce or annulment decreed in the commonwealth to be transmitted to the Vital Statistics Division of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Health. The statute was amended October 30, 2001 (P. L. 826, No. 82), § 1, effective in 60 days, to require that the prothonotary submit a monthly statistical summary of divorces and annulments, rather than individual forms for each decree. Thus, subdivision (a) of Rule 1920.46, requiring the filing of the vital statistics form, is no longer necessary. Former subdivision (b) now comprise the entirety of the rule and the title has been amended to reflect that the rule applies only to the affidavit regarding military service.
