THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY CUTLER, AUMENT, BOBACK, BOYD, CAUSER, CREIGHTON, DENLINGER, EVERETT, FLECK, GABLER, GEIST, GINGRICH, GRELL, GROVE, HESS, HICKERNELL, KAUFFMAN, KNOWLES, MAJOR, METCALFE, MILLARD, MILLER, MILNE, MURT, MUSTIO, OBERLANDER, O'NEILL, PICKETT, QUINN, REICHLEY, ROCK, SAYLOR, SCHRODER, SIMMONS, SONNEY, STERN AND VULAKOVICH, APRIL 28, 2011

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, APRIL 28, 2011  

AN ACT

Amending Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) of the

Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, providing for

certificates of merit in professional liability actions.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Title 42 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated

Statutes is amended by adding a section to read:

§ 7104.  Certificate of merit.

(a)  General rule.--No cause of action asserting a

professional liability claim may be filed with the court unless

a certificate of merit is included as provided under subsection

(b).

(b)  Certificate of merit.--

(1)  In filing a professional liability action with the

court under subsection (a), the plaintiff shall include with

the complaint a certificate of merit containing a written and

signed statement from an appropriate licensed professional,

identified by name and professional designation, that one of

the following applies:

(i)  Based on the facts and circumstances contained

in the complaint and for the reasons stated as applied to

those facts, there exists a reasonable probability that

the care, skill or knowledge exercised or exhibited in

the treatment, practice or work that is the subject of

each allegation in the complaint fell outside the

acceptable professional standards and that the conduct

was a cause in bringing about the harm.

(ii)  The claim that the defendant deviated from an

acceptable professional standard is based solely on

allegations that the other licensed professionals for

whom the defendant is responsible deviated from an

acceptable professional standard.

(iii)  Expert testimony of an appropriate licensed

professional is unnecessary for prosecution of the claim.

(2)  No person shall be competent to execute a

certificate of merit or offer an expert opinion in a

professional liability action unless that person does all of

the following:

(i)  Affirms that the person has read the complaint.

(ii)  Possesses sufficient education, training,

knowledge and experience to provide credible, competent

testimony.

(iii)  Provides a resume or curriculum vitae

attesting to the person's credentials for inclusion with

the complaint.

(3)  A separate certificate of merit shall be filed as to

each licensed professional against whom a claim is asserted.

(4)  (i)  A defendant who files a counterclaim asserting

a claim for professional liability shall file a

certificate of merit as required under this section.

(ii)  A defendant or an additional defendant who has

joined a licensed professional as an additional defendant

need not file a certificate of merit unless the joinder

is based on acts of negligence that are unrelated to the

acts of negligence that are the basis for the claim

against the joining party.

(5)  The court, upon good cause shown, may extend the

time for filing a certificate of merit for a period of not

more than 60 days.

Section 2.  The addition of 42 Pa.C.S. § 7104 shall apply to

a cause of action asserting a professional liability claim on or

after the effective date of this section. 

Section 3.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.