429 Pa. 161 | Pa. | 1968
Opinion by
This is an appeal from the order of the County Court of Philadelphia permitting appeals to be taken from 54 magistrates’ judgments in municipal-code violation proceedings.
In the course of its duties under the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter with respect to enforcing the Philadelphia housing, fire, building and license codes, the Law Department of the City commenced suits for penalties against the various Appellees (the entities other than Samuel Elgart being controlled by him), in various magistrates’ courts of the City of Philadelphia. In the period from July 1966 to February 1967, 54 separate violations of the Philadelphia housing fire, build
On May 24, 1967, appePees filed in the County Court of Philadelphia a “petition for leave to file ap: peal from judgments of magistrates nunc pro tunc.” This petition was filed using the caption of one of the judgments entered in that court [December Term 1966, No. 10805-E]. To this petition appellees attached a three-page exhibit listing the 54 magistrates’ judgments in which appellees had been fined for violating Philadelphia Code provisions and purported to apply his petition to all 54 cases. Appellees made the blanket averment with respect to all the cases that they were not “served with process initiating the action before a magistrate and had no knowledge' of the pendency of the action”, and accordingly requested the County Court to permit appeals in all 54 cases.
On June 19, 1967, the City of Philadelphia filed preliminary objections to appellees’ petition on the grounds that the County Court lacked jurisdiction to grant appeals from magistrates’ judgments involving code-enforcement proceedings since the applicable Pennsylvania statutes conferred exclusive jurisdiction of such action on the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia.
On July 13, 1967, the County Court of Philadelphia dismissed the City’s preliminary objections and granted appellees’ petition for leave to file appeals from all 54 magistrates’ judgments. The Court in its opinion filed September 11, 1967, found that it rather than the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia had the right to grant appeals from magistrates’ judgments. This appeal followed.
Bell Appeal held not only that the King’s Bench power of certiorari reposed in the Supreme Court, but also that the Superior Court did not have that power, the language of the Act of March 2, 1923 notwithstanding. That Act provides: “From and after the passage of this act, appeals from any order, judgment, or sentence of the County Court of Allegheny County, or the Municipal Court of Philadelphia, or of any similar court hereafter created, not provided by law to be taken to the court of common pleas or court of quar
The procedure dictated by Bell Appeal has been drastically changed by statute and rule. The rule is Supreme Court Rule 68%. That Rule, promulgated in 1964, provides: “Where the subject matter does not fall within the statutory jurisdiction of the Superior Court, an appeal to the Supreme Court in the nature of a certiorari from a judgment order or decree will lie only if specially allowed by the Court or by a Judge thereof, where a statute expressly provides that there shall be no appeal from the decision or order or judgment or decree of a Court, or that the decision or order or judgment or decree of a Court shall be final or conclusive, or shall not be subject to review, or where the relevant statute is silent on the question of appellate review.
“In all such cases, the appellant shall file within 30 days from the date of the decision or order or judgment or decree sought to be reviewed a petition. . . .”
However, we are of the opinion that this Court could not even hear this case on petition under Rule 68% because the subject matter now falls within the statutory jurisdiction of the Superior ■ Court. Just as Rule 68% was promulgated to modify the Supreme Court’s certiorari power described in Bell Appeal, the Act of August 14, 1963, P. L. 819, §1, 17 P.S. §184, was passed to remedy the Superior Court’s lack of that certiorari power, also described in Bell Appeal. It is
Since this case is within the statutory jurisdiction of the Superior Court, it is hereby remitted to that court.
The Act of April 21, 1949, P. t. 665, §17, 53 P.S. §13131, authorizing ordinances under the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter.
This section has been suspended except insofar as it relates to appeals by Pa. R. C. P. 1451 and 1550'.