MEETING MINUTES
Monday, November 5, 2012
Attendance
Present were: Judge Anderson, Judge Gray, Judge McCoy, Brian Bluth, Richard Callahan, Skip Greevy, John Person, Joseph Rider, Cliff Rieders, E.J. Rymsza, Michael Wiley and Ed Mitchell.
Old Business
Court Calendar
The Court calendar for 2013 has been published and is available on the Law Association website.
Legal Services Reduced Funding
John Person expressed the appreciation of Legal Services for the Pro Bono work being provided by members of the Lycoming County Bar.
New Business
Scheduling of Custody Trials
A procedure has been implemented in which two custody trials are scheduled for the same date. If one settles, the other will be tried. If neither settle, the court will decide which one is tried and the other will be rescheduled. Both cases must appear on the day of trial prepared to proceed on that date. That means all witnesses must be lined up to testify and counsel prepared to proceed on that date.
The court’s rationale for the double scheduling is that many cases settle and without double scheduling, there may be lost court time. Some attorneys abuse the court time and the other parties by not agreeing to settlements or announcing settlements until the last minute.
There was extensive discussion by the attorneys present about the hardship this procedure causes to the parties, attorneys, and witnesses of the party who is required to be present and prepared to proceed but whose trial is rescheduled on the day of the trial. Complaints have been made to the members of the committee by both lawyers and parties.
The discussion expanded into other situations where the court does double scheduling and/or requires attorneys to be present prior to the time the court actually intends to conduct hearings. This occurs routinely in connection with PFAs. It was pointed out to the court that many PFA parties are being represented by attorneys providing services Pro Bono to assist the court in legal services.
It was requested that the court take into consideration the hardships double scheduling is causing for parties, attorneys and witnesses.
Meetings for 2013
The meetings for 2013 will be:
February 4
May 6
August 15
November 4
Respectfully submitted,
C. Edward S. Mitchell, Chairman