In the near future, I plan to introduce a constitutional amendment that would give the legislature the constitutional power to pass laws establishing venue in civil cases. 

 

                In 2002, the commonwealth was experiencing great stress in medical costs and availability of care, so the general assembly passed Senate Bill 138, which limited the venue in malpractice cases to the county where the incident occurred. This bipartisan bill passed the Senate unanimously and passed the House of Representatives with little opposition, but the court struck it down and decided that the constitution gives them the sole authority to determine venue. The court then passed a rule doing the same thing Senate Bill 138 sought to do. 

                In 2022, the PA Supreme Court decided to overturn the rule from 2022, allowing attorneys to force doctors from all corners of the state to drive to Pittsburgh or Philadelphia where award amounts are higher. Not only does this impact healthcare costs as the price of malpractice insurance rises for doctors, but it affects availability because doctors have to travel far and wide to go to court. Just as it was prior to 2002, our healthcare system is again in crisis. Hospitals first started closing in rural areas of the state and now even suburban and urban areas, such as Chester, are beginning to feel the impact; insurance costs are rising, and our state’s healthcare system is suffering again. 

                We are currently feeling the effects of the court reversing the rule as it pertains to healthcare, but the issue of venue shopping is by no means exclusive to malpractice cases. Venue shopping is often abused in personal injury cases, for example. A noteworthy example of this is Hangey v. Husqvarna Professional Products.  A man purchased a lawnmower from a retailer in Bucks County then was injured operating the lawnmower at his home in Wayne County. The man then sued the Bucks County retailer, Husqvarna, and Husqvarna’s affiliates in Philadelphia County. Initially, discovery revealed that Husqvarna only had two dealers in Philadelphia County and only derived 0.005% of its revenue in Philadelphia, so the trial court held that their activities in Philadelphia were de minimis and transferred the case to Bucks County. The Superior Court and the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania both disagreed with the trial court and found that Philadelphia County was the proper venue. 

                Venue matters. There is a reason why we the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees criminal defendants, “an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed.” A right which is commonly referenced as the right to a “jury of our peers”. In fact, the word “peers” is taken from the Magna Carta, the document that greatly influenced our constitution. Could you imagine, for example, if prosecutors were allowed to choose the court that hears criminal cases because they know they could get a longer sentence or a better chance of conviction. Imagine if a defendant from Philadelphia who committed a crime in Philadelphia was allowed to be tried in Jefferson County, where our judge is notably strict, because the defendant sent a text message to someone from Philadelphia. 

                This is essentially what is happening for civil cases when venue shopping happens. Plaintiffs and their counsel appear to be choosing Philadelphia wherever they can because they believe Philadelphia will award them the largest amount. This is something that our State’s Supreme Court seems content to allow. Reasonable considerations like proximity to the site of the incident for evidence gathering, the jury composing of peers, convenience of travel for parties, etc. have all been taken a backseat to considerations regarding the almighty dollar. 

                Plaintiffs and, unfortunately, the majority of our State’s Supreme Court Justices, do not care if your physician, your small business, your employer, or even yourself are forced to close up shop and travel across the state to Philadelphia for lawsuits. That is unfortunately the reality of the current state of venue shopping in Pennsylvania. 

 

Please join me in sponsoring this constitutional amendment which would give the general assembly the authority to legislate venue and pass laws that can return common sense to venue selection in Pennsylvania.