Case law

Com. v. Nelson, J.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Feb 13, 2018

I'm not sure if Juror No. 12 qualifies as a grandparent. Certainly he's not grandparent by blood. I don't think that there's an issue. … And they were concerned about him being on the jury, whether he was qualified under the rules. The Court: All right.

Schmitt, R. v. Schmitt, L.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Apr 25, 2024

An estate administration was not open, such as by a fiduciary named in Decedent’s will, if one existed, or by the appointment of an administrator duly qualified by statute. … -4- J-A29022-23 in 23 Pa.C.S.A. § 3323(g) (“Grounds established.”).3 Id.

Com. v. Jackson, M.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · May 13, 2022

Id. at 8-9 (prosecutor arguing, “we’re trying to establish knowledge, Your Honor. And [Varesko’s] profession establishes that knowledge.”). … But I want to remind the Commonwealth and the defense that … Varesko is not … going to be qualified as an expert. So, he’s not going to be able to testify in that capacity.

Com. v. Gearhart, T.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · May 10, 2022

Foreseeing that the instant claim is barred under well-established authorities, Appellant avers he is not arguing that Ford itself is a new fact. … Thus, to the extent Appellant argues that Ford qualifies as a newly-recognized constitutional right, the claim is without merit.

Com. v. Hess, E.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Jun 7, 2022

After a thorough review of the record, we conclude that Hess has failed to establish sufficient validity to any of his issues. Consequently, we affirm. … Later, Hess would qualify his response by asserting that he was merely replying to what he was able to see as the end of the victim’s text message, as he was busy pumping gas at the time and thought the content of the

Com. v. Kennedy, J.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Feb 22, 2017

Pursell, 724 A.2d 293, 302 (Pa. 1999) (“[w]e will not require courts considering PCRA petitions to struggle through the pro se filings of [petitioners] when qualified counsel represent[s] those [petitioners]”); Commonwealth … , the voluntariness of the plea is established.

Com. v. Cole, K.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Dec 2, 2024

“Significantly, regardless of whether the informant was an eyewitness to the transaction for which the defendant was charged, the Commonwealth retains a qualified privilege not to disclose an informant’s identity.” … A Batson claim presents mixed questions of law and fact; therefore, our standard of review is whether the trial court’s legal conclusions are correct and whether its factual findings are clearly erroneous. Id.

Com. v. Navedo, L.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Jan 20, 2023

Garrett, who works in the Bureau of Forensic Services in the Ballistics Division, was qualified at trial as an expert witness in the area of firearms and tool mark analysis. … Navedo’s testimony established that Appellant went to Puerto Rico for reasons completely unrelated to the shooting.

Cannon, L. v. Tre Racing Engines

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Apr 29, 2019

petition to open a judgment must be filed to qualify as time[ly].” … In any negligence action, “establishing a breach of a legal duty is a condition precedent to a finding of negligence.” Id.

Com. v. Williams, J.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Feb 8, 2024

On appeal, Spencer argued that Wimer’s testimony “should have been disallowed because she was not qualified to express an opinion that the robber’s gait was similar to his.” Id. at 824. … Here, Appellant contends that, the testimony offered by Officer Goodwin did not meet the standard established in Spencer.

Com. v. Patton, D.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Sep 19, 2014

set of facts clearly show the [trial court’s] verdict in this matter was in error. … To the contrary, the gifting power was clearly subject to the condition that Appellant use the power “for [Ms. Wetzel’s] benefit” – and Appellant clearly violated this condition when he took all of Ms.

Com. v. Harding, J.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Aug 2, 2017

Nevertheless, the Commonwealth need not establish guilt to a mathematical certainty. … However, the claim is not so clearly devoid of merit to warrant classifying this appeal as frivolous.

In Re: Adoption of: E.K., a Minor Appeal of: D.T.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Apr 20, 2015

It found that the guardian ad litem had established a basis for termination of Father’s parental rights by clear and convincing evidence. … “These statutory mandates clearly place the trial court’s focus on the best interests of the child.” In re S.B., 943 A.2d at 978 (citation omitted).

Com. v. Brake, K.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Apr 14, 2016

The court directed Attorney Jarmon to determine whether (1) Appellant’s “appellate rights should be reinstated,” (2) Appellant qualified for a PCRA time-bar exception, and (3) the issues raised in Appellant’s September … To be entitled to PCRA relief, a petitioner must establish “[t]hat the allegation of error has not been previously litigated or waived.” 42 Pa.C.S. § 9543(a)(3).

Hupp, D. v. Wheeland, C.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Jun 12, 2017

The other large assets are [Hupp’s] pension of $38,377.98 as her marital portion established by the Master. … The other large assets are Wife's pension of $38,377.98 as her marital portion established by the Master.

Barbetti, V. v. Afzal, S.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Jan 13, 2026

Barbetti] had clearly stated in 2022 that she would not agree to a global release for any amount of money due to her continuing business relationship with [Mr.] and [Mrs.] … Barbetti did not seek to qualify the scope of the release. Id. (quoting N.T. Hearing, 7/1/24, at 3). The court then analyzed the evidence regarding the parties’ conduct following the settlement conference.

Com. v. Betts, T.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Dec 30, 2016

She was qualified as an expert in her field for testimony. She processed the vehicle and took fingerprints in this particular case, however she did not go to the scene. … He was qualified as an expert in firearm and tool mark examining. He examined the gun from the car accident as well as the bullets. He also examined the shell casings from the shooting.

Estate of: Whitby, P., Appeal of: LaRocca, R.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Feb 22, 2019

On May 20, 2011, Kenneth and Kay qualified as executors and received letters testamentary.  Peter married Kay on June 4, 1983. … Where the rules of law on which the court relied are palpably wrong or clearly inapplicable, we will reverse the court’s decree. In re Staico, 143 A.3d 983, 987 (Pa.

Strub, M. v. Wesol, A.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Apr 23, 2026

While it clearly rescinded the contract, it also clearly referred to an “assessment of monetary damages” and awarded - 33 - J-A27042-25 Strub reimbursement for fees she expended … We agree that Strub’s evidence of lost rental income was speculative: while Strub clearly desired to rent the Property following closing, she did not establish that Wesol’s breach forced her to forgo an opportunity to rent

Com. v. Czako, S.

Superior Court of Pennsylvania · Feb 2, 2026

Czako argues, “even if the jury was not made aware of the specific statutory meaning of the term, the context of the testimony clearly indicated to the jury that CYS believed the allegations to be true,” which constituted … Czako has not established that exclusion of the challenged testimony would have changed the outcome of the trial.