Pennsylvania — Court Rules & Rules of Practice Guide

1. Court System Overview

Pennsylvania’s Unified Judicial System: courts of common pleas (60 judicial districts (42 Pa.C.S. § 901, verified); general jurisdiction — civil, criminal, orphans’ court divisions (probate/trusts/guardianship), family divisions), magisterial district judges (MDJs) (small claims ≤$12,000 exclusive of interest and costs (42 Pa.C.S. § 1515(a)(3), verified), landlord-tenant, criminal preliminaries; Philadelphia has Philadelphia Municipal Court instead (civil ≤$12,000; criminal offenses punishable by ≤5 years — 42 Pa.C.S. § 1123, verified; Pittsburgh also retains a municipal court)), two intermediate appellate courts split by subject: the Superior Court (private civil + criminal appeals) and the Commonwealth Court (government/administrative/election cases + original jurisdiction against the Commonwealth) (verified), and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (the nation’s oldest appellate court (verified); King’s Bench powers — 42 Pa.C.S. § 502 vests the Court with the powers of the justices of the Court of King’s Bench at Westminster as of May 22, 1722, § 726 adds extraordinary jurisdiction over any matter of immediate public importance, and applications proceed under Pa.R.A.P. 3309 (verified)). The Supreme Court promulgates all rules through its procedural rules committees; rules are codified in the Pennsylvania Code and amended via the Pennsylvania Bulletin (verified process).

2. The Ruleset Map

Pennsylvania’s rulesets are standalone bodies, each codified in its own Pa. Code title (verified title list):

• Business courts: Philadelphia’s Commerce Case Management Program (“Commerce Court”) in the common pleas Trial Division (commercial and business-to-business disputes not subject to compulsory arbitration, plus class actions and confessed-judgment motions; each case assigned to a single judge for all motions and trial; governed by the same state and local rules, with program protocols under Administrative Docket No. 12 of 2025 — verified, courts.phila.gov) and Allegheny County’s Commerce and Complex Litigation Center (assignment only by court order on a Motion to Assign Case to the Center; the assigned judge handles all motions including discovery — verified, alleghenycourts.us) — local-program creations, not statewide rulesets.
• The Commonwealth Court is itself a specialty court — a separate appellate/original-jurisdiction forum for government litigation that most states lack.

3. Civil Litigation Mechanics

• Commencement is a choice: by complaint or by praecipe for a writ of summons (Pa.R.Civ.P. 1007, verified) — the writ is a Pennsylvania signature: it starts the action without a complaint, and the defendant can force one by praecipe for a rule to file a complaint, with a judgment of non pros if no complaint is filed within twenty days after service of the rule (Rule 1037(a), verified).
• Service: original process within the Commonwealth is served only by the sheriff (Rule 400(a)), with competent-adult service allowed in listed action types (injunction, partition, declaratory judgment, certain diversity cases — Rule 400(b)) and in Philadelphia, the First Judicial District (Rule 400.1) (verified). Responsive pleading: the preliminary objection regime (Rule 1028(a) — jurisdiction/venue/service, nonconformity, insufficient specificity, demurrer, capacity/joinder, prior action or ADR agreement, statutory remedy, adequate remedy at law; all raised at one time — verified) replaces 12(b) motions; answers follow with new matter (affirmative defenses, including statute of limitations and statute of frauds) under Rule 1030 (verified); every pleading with factual averments or denials must be verified (Rule 1024, verified).
• Notice to defend / notice to plead captions drive response duties: every complaint opens with the Rule 1018.1 notice to defend, and each subsequent pleading is due twenty days after service of a preceding pleading that carries a notice to defend or notice to plead (Rule 1026(a); sixty days for a defendant served outside the United States, Rule 1026(b)) (verified).
• Discovery: Pa.R.Civ.P. 4001–4025 (own numbering; Rule 4001(d)’s catalogue of methods — depositions, interrogatories, production, physical/mental examinations, requests for admission — contains no initial-disclosure device; expert discovery is by interrogatory, with further discovery of a testifying expert only upon cause shown, non-testifying experts shielded absent exceptional circumstances, and draft reports and attorney–expert communications protected — Rule 4003.5) (verified).
• Compulsory arbitration: where prescribed by rule of court, common pleas civil cases go first to court-annexed arbitration panels of lawyers; the statutory ceiling is $50,000 exclusive of interest and costs, with appeal by trial de novo (42 Pa.C.S. § 7361, verified). Thresholds are set district-by-district up to that ceiling (Pa.R.Civ.P. 1301 note — each common pleas court fixes the amount by local rule within § 7361(b), verified); Philadelphia assigns all civil actions with $50,000 or less in controversy (excluding equitable actions and real-estate claims) to compulsory arbitration before three-attorney panels (verified — courts.phila.gov); appeal is by notice of appeal within thirty days of the docketed award notice (Pa.R.Civ.P. 1308, verified).
• MDJ courts: ≤$12,000 (42 Pa.C.S. § 1515(a)(3), verified), informal, de novo appeal to common pleas (Pa.R.Civ.P.M.D.J. 1002 — notice of appeal filed with the common pleas prothonotary within 30 days of judgment, 10 days for a possession judgment on a residential lease; Rule 1004 — a claimant-appellant files a complaint within 20 days of the notice of appeal, a defendant-appellant files a praecipe for a rule on the appellee to do so; Rule 1007 — the appeal proceeds de novo under the Rules of Civil Procedure, not limited by the amount in controversy before the MDJ — verified).

4. Criminal Practice Mechanics

• Path: complaint (Pa.R.Crim.P. 502) → preliminary arraignment before the issuing authority (Rule 540) → preliminary hearing on a prima facie standard, hearsay admissible (Rules 542–543) → information filed by the attorney for the Commonwealth in common pleas (Rule 560) (verified). Indicting grand juries exist but only as an alternative to the preliminary hearing where witness intimidation has occurred, is occurring or is likely to occur, and only in districts the Supreme Court has authorized (Rules 556, 556.2); investigating grand juries are a separate track (Rule 230) (verified). Philadelphia Municipal Court tries offenses punishable by ≤5 years’ imprisonment (42 Pa.C.S. § 1123, verified; Pa.R.Crim.P. 1001(A)); after a guilty verdict the defendant may appeal for trial de novo in common pleas or petition for a writ of certiorari, each within 30 days (Pa.R.Crim.P. 1006, verified).
• Speedy trial — Pa.R.Crim.P. 600: the famous “Rule 600” — trial within 365 days of the complaint (Rule 600(A)(2)(a)); only delay caused by the Commonwealth without due diligence counts, all other delay is excluded (600(C)(1)); pretrial incarceration is capped at 180 days from the complaint, with release on nominal bail as the remedy (600(B), (D)(2)); the remedy for a 365-day violation is dismissal with prejudice on written motion (600(D)(1)) (verified).
• Discovery: Pa.R.Crim.P. 573 — mandatory Commonwealth disclosure on request (exculpatory evidence, confessions, prior record, identifications, scientific reports and expert opinions, tangible objects, electronic-surveillance transcripts — 573(B)(1)); discretionary items on motion (eyewitness names and statements, co-defendant statements — 573(B)(2)); reciprocal defense disclosure on Commonwealth motion (573(C)); discovery motions due within 14 days after arraignment (573(A)) (verified).
• Post-conviction: the PCRA (Post Conviction Relief Act, 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 9541–9546) — one-year time bar from the date judgment becomes final, applying to second/subsequent petitions too, with three narrow exceptions (governmental interference; newly discovered facts; new retroactive constitutional right) (§ 9545(b), verified); PCRA petitions are the collateral vehicle and PCRA jurisprudence is voluminous.
• Suppression motions (Rule 581) must be raised in the single omnibus pretrial motion (Rule 578) after the case is returned to court, or the issue is waived; the Commonwealth bears the burden of going forward and of establishing that the evidence was lawfully obtained (Rule 581(B), (H)) (verified).

5. Evidence

• Pa. Rules of Evidence (Title 225) — FRE-modeled numbering, adopted May 8, 1998, effective October 1, 1998 (verified), rescinded and replaced January 17, 2013, effective March 18, 2013, to track the format, language and style of the restyled FRE while leaving substance unchanged; the Committee’s Comments identify Pennsylvania sources, compare each rule with its federal counterpart, and are not adopted by the Court (Pa.R.E. 101 Comment, verified); cited “Pa.R.E. 403.”
• Experts: Pennsylvania is a Frye state (general acceptance) — Betz v. Pneumo Abex LLC (Pa. 2012) reaffirmed Frye, gave “novel” a reasonably broad meaning, and upheld trial-court gatekeeping under abuse-of-discretion review (verified).

6. Appellate Mechanics

• Pick the right intermediate court: Superior Court (most private-party civil, all ordinary criminal) vs. Commonwealth Court (Commonwealth-party cases, agencies, local government, elections) (jurisdictional split verified) — Pa.R.A.P. 741 (an appellee’s failure to object timely perfects the wrong court’s jurisdiction), 751 (a misfiled appeal is transferred, not quashed, and treated as filed on its original date) and 752 (transfers between Superior and Commonwealth Courts) save misfiled appeals (verified).
• Initiating: notice of appeal in the trial court within 30 days of entry (Pa.R.A.P. 903) — the 30-day window is verified (42 Pa.C.S. § 5571(b); Commonwealth Court filing instructions state agency appeals must be filed “within 30 days”); Rule 1925 practice follows — the trial judge orders a concise statement of errors complained of (1925(b)) and writes an opinion (1925(a)); waiver for non-compliance with 1925(b) is a notorious trap — the judge must allow at least 21 days for the Statement, and issues not included in a timely filed and served Statement are waived (Pa.R.A.P. 1925(b)(2), (b)(4)(vii)); Rule 1925(c) permits remand for a nunc pro tunc Statement in civil cases for good cause and where criminal counsel was per se ineffective (verified).
• Allocatur: Supreme Court review by petition for allowance of appeal (Pa.R.A.P. 1112; filed within 30 days after entry of the Superior or Commonwealth Court order under Pa.R.A.P. 1113(a), 10 days in Election Code and local-debt matters — verified) — discretionary; direct appeals in death-penalty and select cases; King’s Bench/extraordinary jurisdiction available by application under Pa.R.A.P. 3309 (42 Pa.C.S. §§ 502, 726) (verified).
• Interlocutory: Pa.R.A.P. 311 (of right list — Rule 311(d) Commonwealth appeals confirmed on the official AOPC notice-of-appeal form), 312/1311 (permission), collateral order doctrine codified at Pa.R.A.P. 313 — Pennsylvania codified the collateral-order doctrine (Rule 311(a) lists orders refusing to open/vacate/strike a judgment, attachments and receiverships, criminal venue/venire changes, injunctions, peremptory mandamus, new trials, partition, and orders made appealable by statute; 311(b) venue/jurisdiction orders on election or certification; 311(d) Commonwealth certification appeals; Rule 312 routes permission appeals to Chapter 13; Rule 313(b) defines a collateral order as separable from the main action, too important to deny review, and irreparably lost if review waits — verified).

7. Rules of Professional Conduct

• Pa. Rules of Professional Conduct (Title 204, Chapter 81) — Model Rules-based; cited “Pa.R.P.C. 3.3”; paired with the Pa. Rules of Disciplinary Enforcement (Pa.R.D.E.) (Title 204, Chapter 83) (codification verified via the Disciplinary Board’s official rule links).
• IOLTA and trust-account overlays are built into Pa.R.P.C. 1.15 (Qualified Funds must be held in an IOLTA Account; the rule creates the nine-member IOLTA Board — verified); the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Professional Guidance Committee and the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Committee issue advisory ethics opinions that are not binding on the Disciplinary Board.

8. Attorney Discipline & Enforcement

• Flow (Pa.R.D.E.): complaint → Office of Disciplinary Counsel (investigation/prosecution; DB-7 notice to respondent) → Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania (three-member hearing committees → full Board review) → Supreme Court (final orders; private discipline at lower tiers) (flow verified against the Board’s official discipline-process page).
• Sanctions (Pa.R.D.E. 204, verified): informal admonition/private reprimand → public reprimand → public censure (probation may attach) → suspension (≤5 years; suspension >1 year requires a formal reinstatement petition — verified) → disbarment (a disbarred lawyer may not apply for reinstatement until at least five years from the effective date of disbarment — Pa.R.D.E. 218(b), verified).
• Discipline published at padisciplinaryboard.org; attorney status searchable there.

9. Newcomer Orientation Notes

• Preliminary objections, writs of summons, new matter, Rule 600, 1925(b) statements, allocatur — Pennsylvania’s vocabulary is its own; each term carries deadlines and waiver rules.
• The 1925(b) concise statement is the deadliest appellate trap: miss it (or write it badly) and issues are waived.
• Two intermediate courts: confirm Superior vs. Commonwealth jurisdiction before filing.
• Local rules are enforceable law (when properly adopted) — Philadelphia and Allegheny practice differ materially from the rest of the state; the Commerce Court has its own protocols.
• E-filing: PACFile serves the Supreme, Superior, Commonwealth, and certain common pleas courts (verified — ujsportal.pacourts.us/PACFile/Overview); counties run their own systems (Philadelphia’s Electronic Filing System at fjdefile.phila.gov covers civil, criminal, orphans’ and small claims — verified) — check county-by-county.
• Self-help: the UJS portal (ujsportal.pacourts.us — dockets/forms), pacourts.us self-help/forms pages, and county law libraries.
• Out-of-state counsel: PHV under Pa.B.A.R. 301 — applicant pays the IOLTA Board fee and the motion is filed by a sponsor who is a member of the Pennsylvania bar, under Pa.R.Civ.P. 1012.1, with the clerk or magisterial district judge at least three days before the appearance; the admitted attorney cannot be attorney of record (Pa.B.A.R. 301(a), (b); pabarexam.org).

10. Sources & Verification

Sources fetched in pass 1 (2026-08-27):

• Pa. Code rule titles (official codification): Title 231 TOC: https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?titleNumber=231&file=%2Fsecure%2Fpacode%2Fdata%2F231%2F231toc.html ; Title 246: https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=%2Fsecure%2Fpacode%2Fdata%2F246%2Fchapter200%2Fchap200toc.html
• Title 201 (Judicial Administration): https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/secure/pacode/data/201/chapter1/201_0001.pdf
• 42 Pa.C.S. (Judiciary Code): https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/42/42.HTM

Sources fetched in pass 2 (2026-08-28) — note: pacodeandbulletin.gov, pacode.com, legis.state.pa.us and palegis.us blocked automated fetch this pass (robots/timeouts), so statute text was verified on Justia (labeled fallback) and rules claims against official UJS/Board pages:

• Official — court structure: https://www.pacourts.us/courts (Supreme/Superior/Commonwealth/common pleas/minor courts incl. Phila. and Pittsburgh municipal courts); https://www.pacourts.us/courts/supreme-court (“oldest appellate court in the nation”); https://www.pacourts.us/courts/commonwealth-court (agency/election jurisdiction); https://www.pacourts.us/learn (PACFile link)
• Official — rules committees (title map confirmations): https://www.pacourts.us/courts/supreme-court/committees/rules-committees (eight committees); juvenile committee page (Pa.R.J.C.P., 237 Pa. Code); orphans’ court committee page (Pa.R.O.C.P., 231 Pa. Code Part II); criminal committee page (234 Pa. Code link); civil committee page (231 Pa. Code link); evidence committee page (Pa.R.E. adopted 5/8/1998, effective 10/1/1998)
• Official — e-filing: https://ujsportal.pacourts.us/PACFile/Overview (Supreme, Superior, Commonwealth + certain common pleas); https://www.courts.phila.gov/eservices and https://www.courts.phila.gov/publications (Philadelphia Electronic Filing System, fjdefile.phila.gov)
• Official — discipline: https://www.padisciplinaryboard.org/about/the-discipline-process (ODC → hearing committee → Board → Supreme Court; sanction types); https://www.padisciplinaryboard.org/about/the-reinstatement-process (formal petition for suspensions >1 year); https://www.padisciplinaryboard.org/for-attorneys/rules (Pa.R.D.E. 204 sanction list, suspension ≤5 years; RPC = 204 Pa. Code ch. 81, Pa.R.D.E. = ch. 83)
• Official — PHV: https://www.pabarexam.org/bar_admission_rules/301.htm (Pa.B.A.R. 301: IOLTA fee, PA-bar sponsor files motion)
• Official — appellate deadline and forms: https://www.pacourts.us/page/1887 (Commonwealth Court: petition for review “within 30 days”); AOPC notice-of-appeal form (cites Pa.R.A.P. 311(d)); AOPC MDJ appeal form (Pa.R.Civ.P.M.D.J.; complaint within 20 days of notice of appeal); https://www.pacourts.us/forms/for-the-public
• Official — Pennsylvania Bulletin process: https://www.pabulletin.com/ (Bulletin publishes statewide and local court rules; Pa. Code codification)
• Labeled fallback (statute text, Justia): 42 Pa.C.S. § 1515 (MDJ $12,000): https://law.justia.com/codes/pennsylvania/2024/title-42/chapter-15/section-1515/ ; § 7361 (arbitration ≤$50,000, de novo appeal): https://law.justia.com/codes/pennsylvania/2024/title-42/chapter-73/section-7361/ ; § 9545 (PCRA 1-year bar + exceptions): https://law.justia.com/codes/pennsylvania/2024/title-42/chapter-95/section-9545/ ; § 1123 (Phila. Municipal Court ≤5 yrs / $12,000): https://law.justia.com/codes/pennsylvania/2024/title-42/chapter-11/section-1123/ ; § 5571(b) (appeals within 30 days): https://law.justia.com/codes/pennsylvania/2024/title-42/chapter-55/section-5571/ ; § 901 (60 judicial districts): https://law.justia.com/codes/pennsylvania/2024/title-42/chapter-9/section-901/
• Labeled fallback (case law, Justia): Betz v. Pneumo Abex LLC (Pa. 2012), Frye reaffirmed: https://law.justia.com/cases/pennsylvania/supreme-court/2012/38-wap-2010.html
• Labeled fallback (research guide): https://libguides.law.widener.edu/pplr/pa-court-rules (title map 231/234/210/225/246; Bulletin adoption process)

Sources fetched 2026-09-02 (flag-resolution pass 3):

• Official — Pennsylvania Code (pacodeandbulletin.gov), 231 Pa. Code: Rule 1007 (commencement by praecipe for writ of summons or complaint): https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/231/chapter1000/s1007.html ; Rule 1037(a) (rule to file complaint; non pros after twenty days): …/231/chapter1000/s1037.html ; Rule 1018.1 (notice to defend form, twenty days): …/231/chapter1000/s1018.1.html ; Rule 1026 (pleadings due twenty days after service; sixty days if served abroad): …/231/chapter1000/s1026.html ; Rule 1024 (verification): …/231/chapter1000/s1024.html ; Rule 1028 (preliminary objection grounds): …/231/chapter1000/s1028.html ; Rule 1030 (new matter): …/231/chapter1000/s1030.html ; Rule 400 and 400.1 (sheriff service; Philadelphia competent-adult service): …/231/chapter400/s400.html and …/231/chapter400/s400.1.html ; Rule 4001 (discovery scope and method catalogue): …/231/chapter4000/s4001.html ; Rule 4003.5 (expert discovery by interrogatory; further discovery on cause shown): …/231/chapter4000/s4003.5.html ; chapter 4000 table of contents (Rules 4001–4025): …/231/chapter4000/chap4000toc.html ; Rule 1301 (compulsory arbitration scope; local rule sets amount within § 7361(b)): …/231/chapter1300/s1301.html ; Rule 1308 (appeal from award within thirty days): …/231/chapter1300/s1308.html
• Official — 234 Pa. Code (Pa.R.Crim.P.): Rule 600 (365 days; 180-day incarceration cap; computation; remedies): https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/234/chapter6/s600.html ; Rule 573 (mandatory/discretionary disclosure; 14-day motion): …/234/chapter5/s573.html ; Rule 578 (omnibus pretrial motion): …/234/chapter5/s578.html ; Rule 581 (suppression; waiver; Commonwealth burden): …/234/chapter5/s581.html ; Rules 502, 540, 542, 543, 560 (complaint → preliminary arraignment → preliminary hearing → information): …/234/chapter5/s502.html, s540.html, s542.html, s543.html, s560.html ; Rules 556 and 556.2 (indicting grand jury limited to witness-intimidation cases): …/234/chapter5/s556.html and s556.2.html ; Rule 230 (investigating grand jury testimony): …/234/chapter2/s230.html ; Rules 1001 and 1006 (Philadelphia Municipal Court case definition; trial de novo or certiorari within 30 days): …/234/chapter10/s1001.html and s1006.html
• Official — 210 Pa. Code (Pa.R.A.P.): Rule 1925 (concise statement; 21 days minimum; waiver; remand): https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/210/chapter19/s1925.html ; Rules 1112 and 1113 (petition for allowance of appeal; 30-day/10-day windows): …/210/chapter11/s1112.html and s1113.html ; Rules 311, 312, 313 (interlocutory appeals of right; permission; collateral orders): …/210/chapter3/s311.html, s312.html, s313.html ; Rules 741, 751, 752 (waiver of jurisdictional objection; transfer of erroneously filed cases; transfers between Superior and Commonwealth Courts): …/210/chapter7/s741.html, s751.html, s752.html ; Rule 3309 (applications for extraordinary relief; note identifies King’s Bench powers): …/210/chapter33/s3309.html
• Official — 225 Pa. Code Pa.R.E. 101 and Comment preface (rescinded and replaced January 17, 2013, effective March 18, 2013; comment practice): https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/225/chapter1/s101.html
• Official — 201 Pa. Code Pa.R.J.A. 103(d)(5) (local rules must be published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin to be effective and enforceable): https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/201/chapter1/s103.html
• Official — 204 Pa. Code: Pa.R.D.E. 218(b) (five-year wait before a disbarred lawyer may apply for reinstatement): https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/204/chapter83/s218.html ; Pa.R.P.C. 1.15 (IOLTA Accounts; IOLTA Board): …/204/chapter81/s1.15.html
• Official — 42 Pa.C.S. (legis.state.pa.us, static HTML): § 502 (general powers of Supreme Court; King’s Bench language): https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/42/00.005.002.000..HTM ; § 726 (extraordinary jurisdiction): https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/42/00.007.026.000..HTM
• Official — Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, Trial Division–Civil (compulsory arbitration for $50,000 or less before three-attorney panels; Commerce Case Management Program scope, single-judge assignment, Administrative Docket No. 12 of 2025): https://www.courts.phila.gov/common-pleas/trial/civil/
• Official — Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, Commerce and Complex Litigation Center (assignment by court order on motion; assigned judge handles all motions): https://www.alleghenycourts.us/civil/about/commerce-complex-litigation/
• Labeled fallback (secondary) — Philadelphia Bar Association, Ethics Opinions (Professional Guidance Committee advisory opinions, not binding on the Disciplinary Board): https://www.philadelphiabar.org/page/EthicsOpinions ; Pennsylvania Bar Association, Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Committee: https://www.pabar.org/site/For-Lawyers/Committees-Commissions/Legal-Ethics-and-Professional-Responsibility

Sources fetched 2026-09-24 (claim-by-claim audit):

• Official rule text as published on courtrules.net (imported from pacodeandbulletin.gov 2026-08-22 to 2026-09-11): Pa.R.Civ.P. 400, 400.1, 1007, 1018.1, 1024, 1026, 1028, 1030, 1037, 1301, 1308, 4001, 4003.5; Pa.R.Civ.P.M.D.J. 1002, 1004, 1007; Pa.R.Crim.P. 573, 600, 1006; Pa.R.E. 101 and Comment; Pa.R.A.P. 903, 1113, 1925; Pa.R.P.C. 1.15; Pa.R.D.E. 204, 218; Pa.B.A.R. 301; Pa.R.J.A. 103(d)(5).
• The 42 Pa.C.S. sections (§§ 901, 1123, 1515, 5571, 7361, 9545) were not re-fetched: the General Assembly’s statute viewer (palegis.us) did not render to automated fetch. Pa.R.Civ.P. 1301 confirms that compulsory arbitration runs under § 7361.

Not verified (flagged): none.