Rule 39-1920.3 - Commencement of the Action. [Divorce](a) In addition to all filing fees now or hereafter required to be deposited at the time a complaint in divorce is filed, a standing master/transcription assessment in the amount of $55.00 shall be deposited commencing April 1, 1996.(b) The prothonotary shall on or before the final working day of each week following a receipt of standing master/transcription fees transmit the same to the Controller of Franklin County or the Treasurer of Fulton County for deposit in a separate account identified as the Standing Master/Transcription Account. (c) All parties to a divorce action with children under the age of eighteen shall attend the Education Program for Divorcing Parents. The program is a four-hour educational seminar which has been established by the Court to provide guidance to parents in helping their children adjust to the consequences of divorce. The procedures of the Program are as follows: (1) Simultaneously with the filing of the a Divorce Complaint, the moving party must file the vital statistics sheet along with two addressed envelopes for both parties who will then be notified by the Court establishing the program. A separate statement shall be filed with each Divorce Complaint listing the names, addresses and telephone numbers of the parties and the names and ages of all children under eighteen (18). (2) Attendance at the seminar is mandatory and can only be waived for compelling reasons after presentation of a request to the Court. (3) Within ten days of the notification of the Program as provided in paragraph 1 above, the parties are required to register by using the preprinted registration form contained in the Educational Program for Divorcing Parents brochure. The Program shall be successfully completed by both parties within ninety days of the filing of the Complaint. (4) A fee shall be assessed against each individual attending the seminar with said fee to be set on a regular basis by the Court. The fee must be paid and mailed in advance of the seminar along with the completed registration form to the address listed in the brochure. Any requests for a waiver or a reduction of the fee with proof of hardship must be presented to the Program Administration as instructed in the brochure. (5) FAILURE TO REGISTER AND COMPLETE THE PROGRAM WILL BE BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF THE COURT AND MAY RESULT IN FINDING OF CONTEMPT WITH THE IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS INCLUDING A FINE AND/OR IMPRISONMENT. (6) Upon successful completion of the Program, the Program Administrator will provide a certificate directly to the Prothonotary's Office verifying the parties participation in the course. Frank. Cnty. Pa. 39-1920.3
Adopted by Order of Court dated December 7, 1993; Published at 23 Pa. Bull. 12/25/1993; Amended by Order of Court dated February 12, 1996; Published at 26 Pa. Bull. 865 3/2/1996; Amended by Order of Court Dated December 5, 1996; Published at 26 Pa. Bull. 6072 12/21/1996; Amended by Order of Court dated May 20, 1998; Published at 28 Pa. Bull. 2685 6/13/1998.