Opinion
No. 5.
June 4, 2004.
No. 310, Criminal Procedural Rules.
ORDER
NOW, this 4th day of June, 2004, it is ORDERED pursuant to Article V, Section 10 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania that:
(1) New Rule of Criminal Procedure 801 is promulgated;
(2) Rules of Criminal Procedure 801, 802, 803, 804, 805, 806, 807, 808, 809, and 810 are renumbered as Rules 802, 803, 804, 805, 806, 807, 808, 809, 810, and 811 respectively; and
(3) the revisions of the Comments to Rules of Criminal Procedure 120, 122, 521, 576, 604, 720, 901, and 904 are approved,
all in the attached form.
This ORDER shall be processed in accordance with Pa.R.J.A. 103(b), and shall be effective November 1, 2004.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, from the date of this Order until 18 months after the effective date of this Order, that the educational requirements in new Rule 801 shall be phased in as follows:
(1) from the date of this Order until the November 1, 2004 effective date, the appointing or admitting court shall determine that the attorney has attended at least 6 hours of courses relevant to representation in capital cases, using the new Rule 801 educational criteria as a guide for relevance;
(2) by November 1, 2004, to be eligible for appointment or to enter an appearance pursuant to new Rule 801, an attorney shall have completed a minimum of 6 hours of training relevant to representation in capital cases, as approved by the Continuing Legal Education Board;
(3) by November 1, 2005, to be eligible for appointment or to enter an appearance pursuant to new Rule 801, an attorney shall have completed a minimum of 12 hours of training relevant to representation in capital cases, as approved by the Continuing Legal Education Board; and
(4) by May 1, 2006, to be eligible for appointment or to enter an appearance pursuant to new Rule 801, an attorney shall have completed a minimum of 18 hours of training relevant to representation in capital cases, as approved by the Continuing Legal Education Board.