About the Business Litigation Committee
The Business Litigation Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association, Business Litigation Section, is a forum for business litigators to network, share best practices, and advocate to make the litigation process better serve the needs of businesses. Members of the Committee include lawyers from firms of all sizes as well as the public and private sectors.
The Committee's Annual Commerce Program Reception, usually held in the spring, brings together business litigators and members of the judiciary to celebrate the success of the Commerce Case Management Program of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, which was established in 2000. The Committee strongly supported the establishment of this program, assisted the Court in its implementation, and continues to recruit Judges Pro Tem to serve as volunteer mediators for the Court's Alternative Dispute Resolution program.
Other activities include presenting CLE throughout the year, updating our members on developments in business litigation through our list-serv, and collaborating with other Committees of the Bar Association on public service projects. The Committee especially encourages young lawyers who practice in the area of business litigation to join, as the Committee offers unparalleled opportunities to interact with, and learn from, members of the judiciary and experienced practitioners, as well as to speak and publish on topics of interest to business litigators. To get more involved, please contact one of our Committee Co-chairs!
Leadership
Co-Chairs
TBD
Vice Chair
TBD
Business Litigation Committee Chairs
Qualification, Compensation Order for JPTs
Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Administrative Judge D. Webster Keogh has signed an Administrative Order amending Section E.1. of Administrative Docket 02 of 2003, which sets forth the process for selection of judges pro tempore in the Commerce Program. Click here for the new order. This Order is the culmination of several years of coordination between the Court and the Business Litigation Committee, through its JPT subcommittee.
Effective July 1, 2008, the Administrative Order will implement three important changes:
1. permitting Commerce JPTs to be compensated at $300 per hour for any time expended beyond the first three hours of a mediation or settlement conference, with the consent of the participating parties in the case; and
2. clarifying the criteria for becoming a judge pro tem, in order to insure that JPTs have the background necessary to be effective, on the one hand, while making the selection process more objective and less discretionary on the other. The new criteria require that each JPT:
a. be a licensed Pennsylvania attorney;
b. have no less than fifteen years of experience in litigation or alternate dispute resolution (ADR), including a practice focused on the types of disputes that traditionally come before the Commerce Program; and
c. satisfy either of the following additional criteria:
(1.) participation in a minimum of 10 hours of ADR training by a court-sponsored provider or certified CLE provider, or
(2.) participation as a neutral, Judge Pro Tempore, or mediator in a minimum of 3 ADR proceedings, including but not limited to mediations, settlement conferences and private arbitrations, involving the types of disputes that traditionally come before the Commerce Program.
Under a grandfathering provision, all existing JPTs have eighteen months, until December 31, 2009, to meet these requirements, and would be permitted to serve in the meantime. In order to assist in implementation of the new Order, assure compliance with the new criteria and inform the Court of the experience and qualifications of the JPTs, the Committee has prepared an online JPT Data Sheet.
Any questions relating to this new Administrative Order may be directed to: Marc Zucker, (215) 241-7792, mzucker@weirpartners.com
JPT subcommittee chairs:
Robert R. Baron, Esq. (215) 864-8335, baron@ballardspahr.com
Darryl May, Esq., (215) 864-8103, may@ballardspahr.com
Marc Zucker, (215) 241-7792, mzucker@weirpartners.com
Gregory Mathews, Esq., (215) 972-2876, gmathews@edrservices.biz
