Certification of Compliance
(Public Access Policy) (PA)

Summary

This template is a certificate of compliance that can be filed simultaneously with legal documents in all Pennsylvania courts to certify that the filing party has complied with Pennsylvania public access policy regarding the protection of confidential information when it is filed with the public access court system. This template includes practical guidance and drafting notes. This privacy protection policy is called the Public Access Policy of the Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania: Case Records of the Appellate and Trial Courts (PAP), and it is a mandatory statewide procedural law, under 204 Pa. Code §213.81, incorporated into the procedural rules as Pa. R.A.P. 127; it is also published in Pennsylvania Bulletin, 47 Pa.B. 7851. This rule governs public access to Pennsylvania court records and has 12 sections covering: • Definitions • Policy • Access • Records requests • Responses to requests • Fees • Confidential Information and required forms/certifications • Confidential documents and required forms/certifications • Limits on public access • Limits of remote access • Clerical errors • Providing access to system at all times The Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System's website provides the actual text of the Pa.R.A.P. 127, information about the policy, explanations, pdf-fillable forms, and other helpful links. Any party or attorney who files a document in a Pennsylvania court must also file a certification of compliance with that filing, even if the document does not contain any confidential information. This certification confirms that the filing party is aware and has complied with the provisions of PAP regarding the filing of confidential information and documentation. As noted, this certification must be included with a filing both when: • The filing contains no confidential information and • The filing contains confidential information such as: o Social security numberso Financial account numbers except if needed for identification as part of the action o Driver's license numberso State identification (SID) numbers o Minors' names and dates of birth except for a defendant in a criminal matter (42 Pa.C.S. §6355) o Abuse victim's address and other contact information including employer's name, address, and work schedule, in family court actions as defined by Pa. R.C.P. 1931(a), except for victim's name When a document contains confidential information, the court requires that a "Confidential Information Form" be placed on top of the document when it is filed. This is governed by PAP Section 7.0. Local rules will govern the particular policy regarding confidential information filing procedures. The unified judicial system provides a link to all the local rules adopted by each court of common pleas pursuant to PAP. See the Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System's website. See also the Allegheny County website, which publishes all PAP forms, in fillable, pdf versions and provides information to explain the redaction and cover sheet rules. It also provides a flowchart that explains Section 7 and Section 8 and the required forms. For PAP forms (Confidential Information Form and Confidential Document Forms), see the Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System's website. For a sample sealing order, see Sealing Order (PA). For a full listing of key content covering fundamental civil litigation tasks throughout a Pennsylvania state court litigation lifecycle, see Civil Litigation Fundamentals Resource Kit (PA).