Court Opinion

ID: 9695925
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-25 18:31:28.004853+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:20:17.408171
License: Public Domain

*255MANDERINO, Justice,
dissenting.
I must respectfully dissent. I cannot subscribe to the notion of the majority opinion that there is a third category of litigation known as “orphans’ court” which is not encompassed by the language of “law and equity.” This appeal should not be quashed because appellant had a right to an interlocutory appeal since he is contesting subject matter jurisdiction. Act of March 5, 1925, P.L. 28, § 1, 12 P.S. § 672. On the merits of the appeal, I would affirm. There is no such thing today as “orphans’ court subject matter jurisdiction.” The constitutional reforms of 1969 were designed to make clear that there is only one court of common pleas for subject matter jurisdiction purposes. Divisions of the court of common pleas may be convenient for administrative purposes. These divisions, however, are irrelevant to the question of subject matter jurisdiction.
Article 5, § 5 of the Pennsylvania Constitution provides:
“There shall be one court of common pleas for each judicial district (a) having such divisions and consisting of such number of judges as shall be provided by law, one of whom shall be the president judge; and (b) having unlimited original jurisdiction in all cases except as may otherwise be provided by law.” (Emphasis added.)
Since the court of common pleas had subject matter jurisdiction, the order of the trial court should be affirmed.