THE COURTS
WYOMING AND SULLIVAN COUNTIES
Local Rule of Judicial Administration Governing Public Access Policy; No. 2017-1358
[47 Pa.B. 7850]
[Saturday, December 30, 2017]
Order of Court And Now, this 12th day of December, 2017, in compliance with Sections 7 and 8 of the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania,
It Is Ordered that the Court adopts the following Rules of Judicial Administration, General Rule No. 7 and General Rule No. 8, regarding public access to confidential information, which becomes effective January 6, 2018.
The District Court Administrator is hereby ordered to:
1. File one copy of this Order with the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts to adminrules@pacourts.us.
2. Submit two paper copies of this Order and one (1) electronic copy in Microsoft Word format to bulletin@palrb.us with the Legislative Reference Bureau for publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
3. Publish a copy of this Rule on the court's website after publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
4. Provide one copy of this Order to the members of the Wyoming and Sullivan County Bar Association.
5. File this order in the Prothonotary's Offices of Wyoming County and Sullivan County.
By the Court
RUSSELL D. SHURTLEFF,
President JudgeRule of Judicial Administration, General Rule No. 7. Confidential Information. Public Access Policy for the Court of Common Pleas.
A. In accordance with the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts, attorneys and self-represented parties shall not include the following confidential information in any document filed with the appropriate filing office (Prothonotary, Clerk of Courts and Clerk of Orphans' Court), except on the Confidential Information Form designed and published by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts.
1. Social Security Numbers;
2. Financial Account Numbers, except an active financial account number may be identified by the last four digits when the financial account is the subject of the case and cannot otherwise be identified;
3. Driver's License Numbers;
4. State Identification (SID) numbers;
5. Minors names and dates of birth except when a minor is charged as a defendant in a criminal matter (see 42 Pa.C.S. § 6355); and
6. Abuse victim's address and other contact information, including employer's name, address and work schedule, in family court as defined by Pa.R.C.P. 1931(a), except for victim's name.
B. Attorneys and self-represented parties shall file the Confidential Information Form in the appropriate filing office (Prothonotary, Clerk of Courts and Clerk of Orphans' Court) contemporaneously with the document.
C. This section is not applicable to cases that are sealed or exempted from public access pursuant to applicable authority. Examples of such cases are juvenile cases, child support cases and adoption.
D. Attorneys and self-represented parties shall be solely responsible for complying with the provisions of the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts and the applicable state and local rules and shall certify their compliance to the Court. This certification shall accompany each filing and shall be substantially in the following form: ''I certify that this filing complies with the provisions of the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts that require filing confidential information and documents differently than non-confidential information and documents.''
E. The court of appropriate filing office (Prothonotary, Clerk of Courts and Clerk of Orphans' Court) is not required and will not review or redact any filed document for compliance with the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts.
F. Confidential information filed in accordance with the Public Access Policy shall be on a standardized Confidential Form provided by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts. The form shall be available in the Prothonotary's Office as well as on the Court's website at www.wycopa.org. Failure to comply with the requirements may result in the matter being before the court for hearing or sanctions.
Rule of Judicial Administration, General Rule No. 8. Confidential Documents. Public Access Policy for the Court of Common Pleas.
A. In accordance with the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts, attorneys and self-represented parties shall file the following confidential documents with the appropriate filing office (Prothonotary, Clerk of Courts and Clerk of Orphans' Court), under a cover sheet titled ''Confidential Document Form'' designed and published by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts.
1. Financial Source Documents;
2. Minors' educational records;
3. Medical/Psychological records;
4. Children and Youth Services' records;
5. Marital Property Inventory and Pre-Trial Statement as provided in Pa.R.C.P. 1920.33;
6. Income and Expense Statements as provided in Pa.R.C.P. 1910.27(c); and
7. Agreements between parties as used in 23 Pa.C.S. § 3105.
B. Confidential documents submitted with the Confidential Document Form shall not be accessible to the public, except as ordered by the court. The Confidential Document Form shall be accessible to the public.
C. This section is not applicable to cases that are sealed or exempted from public access pursuant to applicable authority. Examples of such cases are juvenile cases, child support cases and adoption.
D. Attorneys and self-represented parties shall be solely responsible for complying with the provisions of the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts and the applicable state and local rules and shall certify their compliance to the Court. This certification shall accompany each filing and shall be substantially in the following form: ''I certify that this filing complies with the provisions of the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts that require filing confidential information and documents differently than non-confidential information and documents.''
E. The court of appropriate filing office (Prothonotary, Clerk of Courts and Clerk of Orphans' Court) is not required and will not review or redact any filed document for compliance with the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts.
F. Confidential information filed in accordance with the Public Access Policy shall be on a standardized Confidential Form provided by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts. The form shall be available in the Prothonotary's Office as well as on the Court's website at www.wycopa.org. Failure to comply with the requirements may result in the matter being before the court for hearing or sanctions.
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 17-2168. Filed for public inspection December 29, 2017, 9:00 a.m.]
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