Opinion ID: 1998403
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Stay of appeal period

Text: Appellants second claim is that the filing of an appeal for a trial de novo twenty-nine days after the dissolution of the court order staying the appeal period constituted a timely filing under the thirty day requirement of Pa.R. C.P. 1308(a). We are thus presented with the issues of whether the court of common pleas could stay the period for filing a de novo appeal to that court and whether the dissolution of that stay could start the appeal period running anew. Since we determine that the court of common pleas does not have the power to stay the appeal period while the court considers a motion to strike the award, we necessarily conclude that the dissolution of such a stay does not start the appeal period running anew or, indeed, affect it in any way. The timeliness of an appeal, whether it is to an appellate court or is for a de novo trial in the court of common pleas, is a jurisdictional matter. Thus, the court of common pleas does not have jurisdiction to hear an arbitration appeal for a trial de novo unless that appeal is timely filed. See Gallardy v. Ashcraft, 288 Pa.Super. 37, 430 A.2d 1201 (1981); Turner v. May Corp., 285 Pa.Super. 241, 427 A.2d 203 (1981). As timeliness is a jurisdictional matter, the court to which the appeal is taken may not enlarge the time for taking an appeal. In the context of appeals to appellate courts, this limitation is specifically provided in Pennsylvania Rule of Appellate Procedure 105(b). In the same vein, time limitations for filing appeals are strictly construed, Commonwealth v. Hoskins, 329 Pa.Super. 226, 478 A.2d 45 (1984), and the time for taking an appeal cannot be extended as a matter of mere indulgence. In re In the Interest of C.K., 369 Pa.Super. 445, 448, 535 A.2d 634, 636 (1987). Thus, this court has held that: once a final order or judgment is entered, an appeal must be filed within thirty days or, the trial court must expressly grant reconsideration within thirty days. If either of these two events do not occur, the judgment is final and except for extraordinary cause is not subject to collateral attack by virtue of a petition to open or strike. Luckenbaugh v. Shearer, 362 Pa.Super. 9, 523 A.2d 399 (1987) (en banc), appeal denied 518 Pa. 626, 541 A.2d 1138 (1988); see also Note, Pa.R.A.P. 1701 (once appeal has been taken only a grant of reconsideration will affect the appeal period; an order staying all proceedings has no tolling effect). In the context of an appeal from an arbitration award, the rules of procedure are equally clear. As stated above, upon the rendering of the award, the panel of arbitrators must disperse and they have no authority to reconsider or modify the award. See Explanatory Note, Pa.R.C.P. 1307. Unlike in the case of a trial court which can halt the running of an appeal period by expressly granting reconsideration of its order within the thirty day appeal period, or can thereafter entertain a petition to open or strike for extraordinary cause, a board of arbitrators has no power over its own award once the award is entered. Only the court of common pleas can then act on the award and its powers are clearly limited by the rules of civil procedure. As is outlined above, the court of common pleas can act in two ways. First, it can conduct a trial de novo upon the filing of a timely appeal. Second, it can act pursuant to Rule 1307(d), which allows the court of common pleas to entertain an application to mold the award to correct an obvious and unambiguous error in the award in mathematics or language. . . Pa.R.C.P. 1307(d). Importantly, it is only in the context of an application to mold that the rules provide for a stay of the appeal period. Rule 1307(d) specifically provides that the filing of an application to mold will stay all proceedings including the running of the thirty day period for appeal until disposition of the application by the court. The rules do not otherwise grant the court of common pleas any power to hold the appeal period in abeyance. We can only conclude, therefore, that the powers of the court of common pleas as to arbitration awards and appeals therefrom are strictly limited to either conducting a de novo trial of the matter upon the filing of a timely appeal, [4] or to entertaining an application to mold, which automatically stays the appeal period. We find no authority in the court of common pleas otherwise to stay the running of the appeal period and, therefore, enlarge its own jurisdiction to act on an arbitration award. In light of this conclusion, we find that the stay entered by the Court of Common Pleas had no effect on the time for filing an appeal. Therefore, appellants' filing of an appeal for a trial de novo on April 8, 1985 exceeded the thirty day appeal period that began with the arbitration award of December 28, 1984. As we find that the stay had no effect, we need not address the issue of what effect the stay would have had on the calculation of the appeal period.