Orphans' Court

Going Digital – Pennsylvania’s New Mandate for Court-Appointed Guardians

August 14, 2018 by Isaac J. Jean-Pierre, Esq.

In the upcoming days and weeks, courts around the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania will begin to implement the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s directive that requires court-appointed guardians of incapacitated adults to file both inventories and annual reports online. As for Chester County, the Pennsylvania Guardianship Tracking System (GTS) will become available as of Wednesday, August 29, 2018.

Per announcements relating to the new Pennsylvania Guardianship Tracking System, the use of the mandatory system is designed to simplify the reporting process. Accessibility to the system from a vast number of devices including desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones should not present an issue because GTS is web-based. The most conceivable advantage to GTS is the time savings users may experience thanks to the ability of the system to “rollover” certain pieces of data for use in subsequent years.

Once GTS is available, users can access it through the Unified Judicial System (UJS) website at https://www.ujsportal.pacourts.us.

For court-appointed guardians in Chester County who are not as tech-savvy, or who have limited internet access, resources will be available at the Chester County Justice Center located at 201 W. Market Street in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Specifically, computers will be made available for use with the GTS system and will be located on the second floor of the Justice Center at the Register of Wills office as well as the Law Library. In addition, trained personnel will be available to provide assistance upon request. For more information about the Pennsylvania Guardianship Tracking System, contact the county Orphans Court.

Isaac J. Jean-Pierre is an attorney in MacElree Harvey’s Litigation Department in the West Chester office. Licensed to practice in Pennsylvania, Isaac focuses his practice in the areas of commercial litigation, trust & estate litigation, and banking and finance litigation.

To learn more about Isaac’s practice, contact him by phone at (610) 840-0273 or email at [email protected].

Why Do They Call It Orphans’ Court?

July 11, 2018 by John F. McKenna, Esq.

By John F. McKenna–

I am often asked what is Orphans’ Court and why do they call it that? The other question, is what does the Orphans’ Court do? First of all, some, if not most States, call this type of court “Probate Court” and sometimes “Surrogate Court”. These Courts decide the validity of Wills, enforce the provisions of valid Wills, oversee the proper distribution of assets of the Decedent, prevents fraud and other acts of malfeasance by Executors and Administrators of Estates and provide for the fair distribution of assets of persons who die without a valid Will (“intestate”).

In Pennsylvania, the Orphans’ Court was a separate division that started in 1682 and lasted as an individual Court until 1968, when it was abolished by Constitutional Amendment and became part of the Courts of Common Pleas. The Orphans’ Court was organized to protect orphaned children and their right to their deceased family members’ Estate from claims and against abuses by stepparents and others. Those powers also included the issues outlined above, as well as Guardianship matters and charitable non-profit issues. In Chester County, the Orphans’ Court is a division of the Court of Common Pleas and has its own Clerk which runs parallel with the Register of Wills.

The Trust and Estates Litigation Group at MacElree Harvey handles matters related to Orphans’ Court jurisdiction. The Trust and Estates Litigation Group works hand-in-hand with the Estate Practice Group to provide a full complement of services to those connected with Estates, Trusts, Guardianships and Non-Profit issues. Please feel free to contact us should you have any questions or issues that need attention.

John heads the firm’s Trust and Estate Litigation Group. He represents clients in all estate and trust matters, complex guardianships, will contests, trust termination and modifications, corporate disputes, contract interpretation, real estate disputes, consumer protection, and broker liability litigation.

If you have questions regarding a Trust and Estate litigation matter, contact John F. McKenna at [email protected] or (610) 840-0215.

Going Digital – Pennsylvania’s New Mandate for Court-Appointed Guardians

Why Do They Call It Orphans’ Court?

LEGAL SERVICES

ABOUT US

NEWS & INSIGHTS

OFFICES

Centreville, DE

Hockessin, DE

Kennett Square, PA

West Chester, PA

Orphans' Court

Footer