Fayette Cnty. C.P. Local Rules and Administrative Orders - Amended March 12,... Rule 106

(a) The Court may, in the interest of justice, grant a continuance, on its own

motion, or on the motion of either party. The Court shall on the record identify the

moving party and state for the record the Court's reasons justifying the granting or

denial of the continuance.

(b) A motion for continuance of trial made on behalf of the defendant shall be

made to the assigned Plea Judge no later than forty-eight hours before the time set for

trial. A later motion shall be entertained only when the opportunity therefore did not

previously exist, or the defendant was not aware of the grounds for the motion, or the

interests of justice require it.

(c) A request for continuance on the grounds that an attorney of record is

unavailable may only be entertained when that attorney has an engagement in

Federal Court, in Pennsylvania Appellate Court, a previously scheduled Common

Pleas Court hearing, an illness, or by some special or unexpected circumstance

rendering the attorney's absence practically involuntary. When two or more

attorneys are of record for the same party, the absence of one of them shall not

be deemed grounds for a continuance or for passing the case, except for

reasons satisfactory to the court.

(d) Except for cause shown as stated in the motion, a motion for

continuance shall comply with the following requirements:

(1) The motion shall be signed by the moving party and counsel

for the moving party; and

(2) The motion shall be consented to and signed by all counsel,

and unrepresented parties of record, or it must be presented as a Priority

Motion (in accordance with Fayette County Rule 575); and

(3) If the motion is made necessary by a pre-existing hearing

commitment, a copy of the order setting such hearing shall be attached to

the motion, and the motion for continuance must be presented as soon as

possible after the conflict is established, and in no event more than two

weeks after the mailing of notice of the hearing that is proposed to be

continued; and

(4) Counsel must obtain from the Court at least three dates

available to all parties and all counsel for the continued hearing. Alternately, each

counsel may provide a list of the dates counsel or counsel's client is unavailable

during the three-month period following the date the motion for continuance is

presented.

NOTE: Adopted May 9, 1997, effective July 28, 1997. Renumbered and

Amended May 15, 2015, effective July 13, 2015.