(a) The Court may, in the interest of justice, grant a continuance, on its own motion, or on the motion of either party. The Court shall on the record identify the moving party and state for the record the Court's reasons justifying the granting or denial of the continuance.(b) A motion for continuance of trial made on behalf of the defendant shall be made to the assigned Plea Judge no later than forty-eight hours before the time set for trial. A later motion shall be entertained only when the opportunity therefore did not previously exist, or the defendant was not aware of the grounds for the motion, or the interests of justice require it. (c) A request for continuance on the grounds that an attorney of record is unavailable may only be entertained when that attorney has an engagement in Federal Court, in Pennsylvania Appellate Court, a previously scheduled Common Pleas Court hearing, an illness, or by some special or unexpected circumstance rendering the attorney's absence practically involuntary. When two or more attorneys are of record for the same party, the absence of one of them shall not be deemed grounds for a continuance or for passing the case, except for reasons satisfactory to the court.(d) Except for cause shown as stated in the motion, a motion for continuance shall comply with the following requirements: (1) The motion shall be signed by the moving party and counsel for the moving party; and(2) The motion shall be consented to and signed by all counsel, and unrepresented parties of record, or it must be presented as a Priority Motion (in accordance with Fayette County 575) ; and(3) If the motion is made necessary by a pre-existing hearing commitment, a copy of the order setting such hearing shall be attached to the motion, and the motion for continuance must be presented as soon as possible after the conflict is established, and in no event more than two weeks after the mailing of notice of the hearing that is proposed to be continued; and(4) Counsel must obtain from the Court at least three dates available to all parties and all counsel for the continued hearing. Alternately, each counsel may provide a list of the dates counsel or counsel's client is unavailable during the three-month period following the date the motion for continuance is presented.Adopted May 9, 1997, effective 7/28/1997. Renumbered and Amended May 15, 2015, effective 7/13/2015.