Opinion ID: 4413886
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Statute of Limitations Will Be Tolled

Text: During the Pendency of Claims Under the PCRA ¶ 22 Once criminal defendants have exhausted their appeals of right, they have the additional remedy of filing an action under the PCRA.30 The statute of limitations for a claim under the PCRA is one year.31 In certain circumstances, this period may be extended.32 We hold that the statute of limitations for a malpractice action based on conduct occurring in a criminal case is tolled during the pendency of a PCRA action, provided the PCRA action is filed before the four-year statute of limitations on the malpractice action has expired. But the filing of a PCRA claim may not be used to revive claims for malpractice for which the statute of limitations has expired. Plaintiffs may rely on tolling while the PCRA claim is pending, but they are not precluded from filing their malpractice action during that time and pursuing both claims simultaneously. Again, we leave to plaintiffs the choice of which procedures to pursue.