Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Legal topics of interest to lawyers and consumers with a Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania focus.

1410 Posts and Counting

Pittsburgh Legal Newslog: Judge Conti Wins Inns of Court Award.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 22, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

The American Inns of Court has announced the granting of its 2009 Professionalism Award for the Third Circuit of the federal appellate courts, to US District Judge Joy Flowers Conti of the Western District of Pennsylvania and Senior Judge Louis H. Pollak of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Judge Conti, was the first Summa Cum Laude graduate of Duquesne Law School in 1973 and has served as a professor in that Law School, President of the Allegheny County Bar Association and a partner in two prominent Pittsburgh law firms, prior to her appointment to the US District Court.

Category: Uncategorized

Earth Day in the Comics.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 22, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

I was reminded about Earth Day by the comic strips in the Newspaper. I thought it had been celebrated on the 19th, followed by Earth Week. However a number of comic strips say it is happening today.

As usual in the comics, most of the Earth Day gags were stupid — Dennis the Menace covered with mud, Miss Buxley receiving a box full of dirt as a present because Zero heard that she was saving the earth. However, Cathy actually contained a good idea that made me smile. After Cathy bragged that her generation was committed to saving the environment, her mother asked her to unplug the computer and the numerous chargers of electronic devices that she cannot live without. She abruptly responds that she is too busy for that.

Good idea for the rest of us. Energy saving pays a dividend to both the world and the saver. So does electronic document archiving instead of paper files. The Allegheny County Bar Association has been promoting green practice, and even gives awards for meritorious achievement by law firms, small, medium and large.

So, go green and turn off your computer tonight.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Will the Real Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh Please Stand Up!

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 21, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

Old timers will recall (unless we have lost our memory) an early television program called “What’s My Line?”

On the show, three people, including two impostors, would claim to be the person who had introduced himself/herself through a written statement read aloud by the host. Then each contestant would say” “I am ____” in an authoritative voice. After the panelists (Bennett Cerf, Dorothy Kilgallen were two of them) had quizzed the contestants and voted, the MC would declare, with great drama: “Would the real _____, please stand up!”

A variation on this theme is playing out in Allegheny Common Pleas Court. (See Pittsburgh Legal Newslog, April 18, 2009) The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh, headed by Bishop Duncan, withdrew from the Episcopal Church of the United States in response to the elevation of a bishop whose views and practices were offensive to Duncan and many Episcopalians. Duncan and his flock as promptly were accepted into a South American-based Episcopalian See known as the Southern Cone.

Now, the two parties the schism are each claiming title to millions of dollars worth of Church property. The Calvary Church property dispute just happened to be in progress since 2003, making it an available battlefield for a dispute that will almost surely be resolved on appeal, and not until all appeals are exhausted.

The Episcopal Church of the United States argues that it was vested with the property, real and personal, held before the schism and continues to hold title. Duncan and his followers claim that Duncan as Bishop held record title before the schism and continued to hold it after the schism.

The winner of Round 1 appears to be the national church. However, this dispute has hardly begun. It will play out in other suits regarding church property, some yet to be filed, as well. Appeals will take years. Eventually, there will be nowhere left to go. But until that day, it will be a while before the real Diocese will be asked to “please stand up.”

Blog Commentary:

The Thinking Anglican, April 19, 2009.

Category: Uncategorized

Pittsburgh Legal Newslog: Supreme Court Takes First Amendment Case Involving Animal Cruelty Statute.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 21, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

The Supreme Court of the United States has accepted certiorari without comment on an appeal of a decision by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals invalidating a federal statute prohibiting the distribution of videos and other communications depicting animal cruelty on First Amendment grounds. The case originated in the Western District of Pennsylvania.

News articles:

AmLaw Daily, April 20, 2009.

Fox News, April 20, 2009.

Blog Commentary:

Res Ipsa Loquitur, April 20, 2009.

Pit Bull Chat, April 20, 2009.

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Pittsburgh Legal Travelog: Washington County Courthouse Parking.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 21, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

Parking at and near the Washington County Courthouse has been a problem for a long time. The danger of time lost finding a parking place has been a particularly acute one for lawyers, since being late for court is courting disaster for self and client. However, the relatively new LandAmerica Centre, with its multi-story parking facility has saved the day. Just go down West Beau Street (on the right of the Courthouse as you face it) and turn right at an alley about halfway down the block. The lot entrance is at the end of the alley. Take a ticket at the gate. You pay at a machine near the entrance before leaving. Don’t be disturbed if the name of the building has changed by the time you arrive. LandAmerica doesn’t own its former subsidiaries, Commonwealth and Lawyers Title, who occupy the building. They were sold to Fidelity National by a bankruptcy trustee last winter. Its the only new building on the block.

Don’t even mess with parking meters on the street, even if you see an empty spot. These hungry machines must be fed and you may get a ticket if your trial lasts later than expected. Moreover, the parking rates at LandAmerica Centre are cheap compared to Pittsburgh prices.

Unfortunately, the convenient side door of the courthouse is locked for security reasons. You must walk up the hill to the front door. However, look for the steps that take you to the back entrance (on the other side of the building), especially if you are on your way to the Arbitration Rooms in the former jail.

If you haven’t been to the Washington County Courthouse for a while, be advised that the Recorder of Deeds has moved to the Courthouse Annex Building behind the former jail, on the fourth floor. When you walk in the door, you may think you’ve come to the wrong place. Gone is the document counter. You simply walk to the nearest desk, sit down and hand your deed or mortgage to the person sitting at a computer. After it has been scanned and entered into the system, your recorded instrument is handed back to you and you are on your way.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Pittsburgh Legal Newslog: Skimmers and other Consumer Scams

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 20, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

Skimmers are devices attached to the exterior of an ATM or other machine that permit direct access to a bank account. The skimmer photographs the card number and the user entering a pin. Later, the owner of the skimmer removes it and attempts to drain the bank accounts of the machine users.

Here is an article from the Consumerist containing photographs of these devices. It is reported that one was detected at an ATM in Pittsburgh. They are still fairly rare and many police departments are unsure what to do about them. Tracking down the owner of the skimmer is difficult. Don’t remove it — report it to the bank or police immediately. Removing it under the eye of the ATM camera may cause police to accuse you of being the skimmer’s owner.

Meanwhile, more mundane forms of scamming, including identity theft schemes involving phony credit card interest rate reduction offers, abound, as indicated by the attached newspaper article.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized

Pittsburgh Legal Newslog: Judicial Candidates and Bar Association Ratings.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 20, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

List of Statewide candidates and Allegheny County Common Pleas candidates with biographical information.

Article about Common Pleas Court races.

Pennsylvania Bar Association candidate ratings.

Allegheny County Bar Association judicial candidate ratings.

Category: Uncategorized

Pittsburgh Legal Newslog: Judge Rules DeAngelis will be Tried as Minor.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 18, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

Mt Lebanon High School student, Robertino DeAngelis will be tried as a minor. Judge Mariani said that his lack of a criminal record was a factor in the decision.

Press Reports:

Pittsburgh Tribune Review, April 18, 2009.

Pittsburgh Post Gazette, April 18, 2009.

Category: Uncategorized

Pittsburgh Legal Newslog: Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh intervenes in Calvary Case

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 18, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

The Schism last year involving the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh has brought attention to an equity case originally filed in 2003 in the Allegheny County Common Pleas Court which involves, inter alia, the ownership of church property. A hearing was held before Judge Joseph James yesterday, April 17, which brought immediate commentary on blogs affiliated with the litigants.

Press Reports:

None yet.

Blog Commentary:

Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh of the Episcopal Church of the United States, April 17, 2009.

EpiscopalLife online, April 17, 2009.

Three Rivers Episcopal, April 17, 2009.

Episcopal Cafe, April 17, 2009.

Friends of Jake, April 17, 2009.

Lionel Diemel’s Web Log, April 16, 2009.

FROM THE DOCKET:
GD-03-020941 Calvary Episcopal Church etal vs Duncan etal
Filing Date: 10/24/2003 Case Type: Equity
Judge: James Joseph M Jury Requested: No
*
— Litigants —
Calvary Episcopal Church, Plaintiff, Atty.:Deforest III Walter P,
Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh, Plaintiff, Atty.:Deforest III Walter P,Roman Andrew M,
Harvey,Herman, Plaintiff, 201 Grant Street Sewickley PA 15143
Lewis Harold Rev. Dr.T.,Plaintiff, Atty.: Deforest III Walter P,
Roberts,Philip Richard, Plaintiff, Atty.: Deforest III, Walter P,
St. Stephens Protestant Episcopal Church,Plaintiff
Episcopal Church, Intervenor
Brall, Catherine Rev., Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy
Duncan,Robert Rev. William,Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Fapohunda Babatunde, Defendant, Atty.:Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Manson, Robert, Defendant, Atty: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Marks, Kathleen, Defendant, Atty.:Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
McGlynn, J. Rev. Douglas, Defendant, Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Moore, James, Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Morgan, John, Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Patterson, Lynn, Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Pepler, Donald, Defendant, Atty.: Otto Wilbur McCoy,
Quinn Scott Rev.T, Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Rampy, Thomas, Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Roemer, William, Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Scriven, Henry Rev., Defendant, Atty.: Otto Wilbur McCoy,
Seiling, Bruce G., Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Stevenson, John, Defendant, Atty.: Otto Wilbur McCoy,
Thomas, Richard, Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,
Wicker, Douglas, Defendant, Atty.: Otto, Wilbur McCoy,

— Attorney —

Deforest III, Walter P Plaintiff’s Attorney
Otto, Wilbur McCoy Defendant’s Attorney Dickie, McCamey & Chilcote Two PPG Place Suite 400 Pittsburgh PA 15222-5402 (412)2817272
Roman, Andrew M Defendant’s Attorney 625 Liberty Avenue Pittsburgh PA 15222
Fletcher,Andrew K Attorney 200 S. Broad Street Suite 850 Philadelphia PA 19102 (215)7359092
Watson Jennifer E. Attorney
Weibley Richard M Attorney (412)4545000

Docket Entries

04/16/2009, Consent to Intervention by the Episcopal Church Document 127

04/15/2009, Objection & Response to Petition to Intervene. Duncan Robert Rev. William Document 125

04/14/2009, Opposition to “Amended Motion to Restore & preserve status quo & Motion to establish procedure for adjudication of challenges). Calvary Episcopal Church Document 123

04/14/2009, Reply in Support of request for Special Master. Calvary Episcopal Church Document 124

04/13/2009, Response of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh of the Episcopal Church of the USA to Motion to Strike for Entry of Appearance Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh Document 122

03/09/2009, Amended motion to restore and preserve status quo and motion to establish procedure for adjudication of challenges Duncan Robert Rev. William Document 121

02/13/2009, Notice of Intervention Episcopal Church Document 120

01/20/2009, Motion to Strike Praecipe for entry of appearance Defendants All Document 117

01/20/2009, Motion To restore and preserves status quo and preclude interference with diocesan property Duncan Robert Rev. William Document 118

01/20/2009, Motion To strike request to special master and notice to plead Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh Document 116

01/16/2009, Notice To plead Calvary Episcopal Church Document 115
01/08/2009 Request to special master. Calvary Episcopal Church Document 114

01/05/2009, Praecipe for Appearance of Andrew M.Roman,Esquire on behalf of Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh o the Episcopal Church of the United States of America. Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh Document 113

11/03/2008, Notice of Proof of Filing or Delivery of: of Request to Terminate Escrow Account of Hearing on 10/23/08 Before Hon. Joseph James, J. Banos Kathleen M. Document 112

11/03/2008, Transcript of Proceedings of Request to Terminate Escrow Account of Hearing on 10/23/08 Before Hon. Joseph James, J. Banos Kathleen M. Docket Type Not Viewable from Internet

10/23/2008, Order of Court Dated 10/23/08. Order also filed by Pltfs., The Reverend Dr. Harold T. Lewis; Philip Richard Roberts and Herman S. Harvey the Pltf’s. Request to Terminate Escrow Account that said escrow account is termiated this date and that counsel for Pltfs. is authorized to disburse said funds as directed by Pltf., Calvary. James J. Calvary Episcopal Church Document 110

10/22/2008, Reply to deft’s response in opposition to request to terminate escrow account Calvary Episcopal Church Document 109

10/09/2008, Response in Opposition to Request to Terminate Escrow Account Defendants All Document 108

10/03/2008, Request to terminate escrow account. Also filed on behalf of The Reverend Dr. Harold T. Lewis, Philip Richard Roberts and Herman S. Harvey. Calvary Episcopal Church Document 107

09/26/2008, Order of Court Dated 09/25/08. Order that Paragraph 5 of the Order dated September 17, 2008 is hereby revised to state as follows: the Diocese shall bear the costs, expenses and reasonable fees of the Masters. James J. Calvary Episcopal Church Document 106

09/22/2008, Motion For admendment and clarification of order appointing masters Plaintiffs All Document 105

09/18/2008, Order of Court Dated 09/17/08. Ordered Stanley E. Levine, Esq., and the law firm of Campbell & Levine LLC are appointed Masters in the above case. Said Masters shall prepare and inventory of real personal Property held or administered by the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh and Episcopal Church of the United States of America. Said inventory shall include all real and personal Property of said Diocese as of the date of the Stipulation and Order of Oct. 14, 2005 going forward. The Masters shall file perodic reports to the court and advise the court as to any alleged violations of the stipulation and order of Oct. 14, 2005. The parties shall share equally the costs, expenses and reasonable fees of the Master. James J. eodie copies mailed. James Joseph M Document 104

09/09/2008, Notice of Filing of answers to requests to admit in furtherance of hearing held on September 8, 2008 Plaintiffs All Document 103

09/05/2008, Notice of Filing verification of Bishop robert William duncan to the anser and new matter to plaintiffs supplement to 12/19/06 petition, also filed by Reverend Dr. Harold T. Lewis, Philip Richard Roberts and Herman s. Harvey. Calvary Episcopal Church Document 102

09/05/2008, Notice of Filing of discovery in advance of hearing scheduled for September 8, 2008 Plaintiffs All Document 101

09/02/2008, Order of Court Dated 08/20/08. Ordered that the Motion is denied in part and granted in part as specified. At the 09/08/08 hearing the parties will argue the relevance of the materials requested in Pltf’s. Motion to Compel. James J. eodie copies mailed. James Joseph M Document 100

08/28/2008, Notice of presentation and motion to compel production of documents and things. Calvary Episcopal Church Document 98

08/28/2008, Opposition to defendants’ motion for protective order. Filed on behalf of The reverend Dr. Harold T. Lewis, Philip Richard Roberts and Herman S. Harvey also. Calvary Episcopal Church Document 99

08/25/2008, Answer To new matter response to supplement to Dec 19,2008 petition for enforcement of stipulation and order request for appointment of a monitor to inventory and oversee property held or administered by the episcopal diocese of pgh to assure compliance with the court’s order of Oct 14, 2005 and request for creation of an additional escrow accounts Calvary Episcopal Church Document 97

08/25/2008, Motion for Protective Order Defendants All Document 96

08/07/2008, Order of Court Dated 08/07/08. Order that a hearing is scheduled for September 8, 2008 at 10:00 a.m. in Room 330, Frick Bldg. to resolve issues raised in the above pleadings, including but not limited to; 1. Request for appointment of Monitor. 2. Request for creation of escrow accounts; 3. Pltf’s. Motion to strike request for a jury trial. James J. eodie copies mailed. James Joseph M Document 95
08/04/2008 Answer and New Matter Defendants All Document 94
07/07/2008 Supplement to 12/9/06 petition for enforcement of stipulation and order: request for appointment of a Monitor to inventory and oversee property held or administered by the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh to assure compliance with this Court’s Order of 10/04/05 and request for creation of an additional escrow acount(s). Calvary Episcopal Church Document 93

07/09/2007, Answer to Defendants’ Amended New Matter to Plaintiffs’ Petition for Enforcement of Settlement and Order Calvary Episcopal Church Document 91

06/20/2007 Transcript of Proceedings, Perko Mary Beth Docket Type Not Viewable from Internet
[Earlier entries omitted]

Category: Uncategorized

Anonymous Lawyer Holds Forth on Religion; Joins the Blogroll

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| April 17, 2009 | © 2026

Posted by Cliff Tuttle

The Anonymous Lawyer has posted two more times in the last two days. It looks like he is back to stay so he has been provisionally granted an office in the Blogroll. However, if we see signs of shirking, putting life ahead of blogging, out in the street with him!

Yesterday, April 16, he wrote about the meaning of Passover. The thing he likes best is that everything takes place after sunset, so there is no excuse for missing work.

CLT

Category: Uncategorized
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Welcome

CLIFF TUTTLE has been a Pennsylvania lawyer for over 45 years and (inter alia) is a real estate litigator and legal writer. The posts in this blog are intended to provide general information about legal topics of interest to lawyers and consumers with a Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania focus. However, this information does not constitute legal advice and there is no lawyer-client relationship created when you read this blog. You are encouraged to leave comments but be aware that posted comments can be read by others. If you wish to contact me in privacy, please use the Contact Form located immediately below this message. I will reply promptly and in strict confidence.

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