§ 503 — Reassignment of matters

(a) General rule.--The Supreme Court may by general rule provide for the assignment and reassignment of classes of matters among the several courts of this Commonwealth and the magisterial district judges as the needs of justice shall require and all laws shall be suspended to the extent that they are inconsistent with such general rules.

(b) Procedures.--

(1) Rules adopted pursuant to subsection (a) shall be reported to the General Assembly by the Chief Justice at or after the beginning of a regular session thereof, but not later than May 1.

(2) Upon receipt, such rules shall be proposed to each house of the General Assembly as a resolution or resolutions, shall be placed on the calendar of each house for the next legislative day following their receipt, and shall be considered by each house within 120 calendar days of continuous session by the General Assembly.

(3) Such rules shall take effect if they are approved by a majority vote of the duly elected members of each house during such 120-day period, or may be disapproved by either house during that period by a majority vote of the duly elected membership of each house. The effective date of such rules shall be the date of approval of the last of the two houses to act.

(4) Upon the expiration of the 120-day period after the delivery of such rules to the two houses of the General Assembly and the failure to act as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3), such rules shall become effective.

(5) For the purposes of this subsection, continuity of session shall be considered as broken only by an adjournment of the General Assembly sine die; but in the computation of the 120-day period, there shall be excluded the days on which either house is not in session because of an adjournment of more than ten days to a day certain.

(6) Any such rules may, under provisions contained therein, be made operative at a time later than the date on which such rules would otherwise take effect.

Legislative History

(Nov. 30, 2004, P.L.1618, No.207, eff. 60 days) 2004 Amendment.Act 207 amended subsec. (a). See section 29 of Act 207 in the appendix to this title for special provisions relating to construction of law. Cross References.Section 503 is referred to in sections 701, 704, 931, 932, 933, 1105, 1123, 1143, 1302, 1515, 1702, 1722, 3724, 5502 of this title.