JAMES CHARLES KIAK v. CROWN EQUIPMENT CORPORATION

JAMES CHARLES KIAK v. CROWN EQUIPMENT CORPORATION No. 3033 EDA 2007 2010 PA Super 13 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/29/2010
	Appeal from the Order Entered October 24, 2007. in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County, Civil No., October Term, 2000 No. 3340
Before: FORD ELLIOTT, P.J., MUSMANNO, ORIE MELVIN, BENDER, BOWES, PANELLA, DONOHUE, SHOGAN AND ALLEN; JJ.
Opinion by: MUSMANNO, J.
James Charles Kiak (“Kiak”) appeals from the Order of the trial court granting summary judgment in favor of Crown Equipment Corporation (“Crown”) in this product liability action. The trial court concluded that this case is controlled by the decision of a panel of this Court in Arnoldy v. Forklift L.P., 927 A.2d 257 (Pa. Super. 2007), and the principles of federal preemption. In Arnoldy, a panel of this Court concluded that the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (“OSH Act”), 29 U.S.C.A. §§ 651 et seq., and regulations adopted pursuant to the OSH Act, preempted a similar state tort law claim. We hereby overrule Arnoldy, reverse the Order of the trial court and remand for further proceedings.

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COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. IBRAHIM ABED

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. IBRAHIM ABED No. 2710 EDA 2008 2010 PA Super 12 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/29/2010
	Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence June 18, 2008 In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Criminal Division at No(s): CP-51-CR-0007901-2007
Before: STEVENS, GANTMAN, and ALLEN, JJ.
Opinion by: STEVENS, J.
This is an appeal from the judgment of sentence entered by the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County after Appellant Ibrahim Abed was convicted of stalking, harassment, and contempt of court. Appellant claims the trial court erred in denying his motions for acquittal and in revoking his bail. We affirm.

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COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. LENORA RODRIQUEZ

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. LENORA RODRIQUEZ No. 929 EDA 2009 2010 PA Super 14 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/29/2010
	Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence entered February 20, 2009 in the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County, Criminal, at No. CP-15-CR-03281-2007.
Before: DONOHUE, ALLEN, and FITZGERALD, JJ.
Opinion by: ALLEN, J.
Lenora Rodriquez (Appellant) appeals from the judgment of sentence imposed following a stipulated non-jury trial in which she was found guilty of one count each of retail theft, theft by deception and receiving stolen property. On appeal, Appellant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence with respect to the retail theft conviction. We vacate the judgment of sentence only as to the retail theft conviction, and remand for resentencing.

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CYNTHIA A. NORDI, AN INDIVIDUAL v. KEYSTONE HEALTH PLAN WEST INC., AND HIGHMARK, INC.

CYNTHIA A. NORDI, AN INDIVIDUAL v. KEYSTONE HEALTH PLAN WEST INC., AND HIGHMARK, INC. No. 1476 WDA 2008 2010 PA Super 11 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/22/2010
	Appeal from the Order entered August 26, 2008 In the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County Civil Division at No. GD-04-3664
Before: BENDER, BOWES AND CLELAND, JJ.
Opinion by: CLELAND, J.
Appellant Cynthia A. Nordi (Nordi) appeals the order of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas granting the summary judgment motions of Appellees Keystone Health Plan West, Inc. (Keystone) and Highmark, Inc. (Highmark) in a dispute over the extent of health insurance coverage provided by Keystone under an HMO plan administered, in part, by Highmark under a Service Agreement. The parties’ dispute requires us to address whether the Appellees violated the insurance “bad faith” statute, 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 8371, and whether an HMO is exempted from the bad faith statute by the Health Maintenance Organization Act, 40 P.S. §§ 1551-1567 (HMO Act). For reasons that follow, we affirm.

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EVEANN MURPHY v. NICHOLAS MURPHY

EVEANN MURPHY v. NICHOLAS MURPHY No. 424 EDA 2009 2010 PA Super 10 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/22/2010
	Appeal from the Order entered December 12, 2008 In the Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County Domestic Relations, No. A06-05-60975-S-29
Before: STEVENS, GANTMAN, AND ALLEN, JJ.
Opinion by: GANTMAN, J.
Appellant, Nicholas Murphy (“Father”), appeals from the order entered in the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas, which upheld its June 12, 2008 order directing Father to pay spousal and child support to Eveann Murphy (“Mother”), upon finding that Father had received sufficient notice of the court’s June 12, 2008 rescheduled support hearing. Specifically, Father asks us to determine whether the court provided sufficient notice of the June 12th hearing. We hold the court properly found Father had sufficient notice of the rescheduled hearing at issue. Accordingly, we affirm.

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M.A.T. v. G.S.T.

M.A.T. v. G.S.T. No. 1517 MDA 2008 2010 PA Super 8 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/21/2010
	Appeal from the Order entered August 11, 2008, Court of Common Pleas, Dauphin County, Civil Division at No. 2006 CV 4571 CU
Before: FORD ELLIOTT, P.J., MUSMANNO, ORIE MELVIN, BENDER, BOWES, PANELLA, DONOHUE, SHOGAN and ALLEN, JJ.
Opinion by: DONOHUE, J.
Concurring and Dissenting Opinion by: SHOGAN, J.
Appellant M.A.T. (“Mother”) appeals the trial court’s order dated August 11, 2008 denying her petition for modification of a custody order granting Appellee G.S.T. (“Father”) primary physical custody of their daughter K.J.T. (“Daughter”). The trial court based its decision on (1) its application of an evidentiary presumption against a homosexual parent, see, e.g., Constant A. v. Paul C.A., 496 A.2d 1 (Pa. Super. 1985); and (2) rejection of uncontroverted expert testimony recommending shared custody. For the reasons set forth herein, we reverse the trial court’s order and grant Mother’s petition for modification of the custody order. In doing so, we overrule the holding and reasoning in Constant. We further rule that the trial court in this case abused its discretion in rejecting the recommendations of the jointly retained custody evaluator and basing its decision to award primary physical custody to Father upon the trial court’s personal opinion that shared custody is seldom (if ever) in the best interests of school-age children. Accordingly, we vacate the trial court’s order dated August 11, 2008 and remand for entry of an order consistent with this Opinion.

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COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. CHARLES S. RENCHENSKI

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. CHARLES S. RENCHENSKI No. 214 WDA 2009 2010 PA Super 9 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/21/2010
	Appeal from the PCRA Order January 30, 2009 In the Court of Common Pleas of Clearfield County Criminal Division at No. CP-17-CR-0000481-1982
Before: MUSMANNO, BENDER and CLELAND*, JJ.
Opinion by: BENDER, J.
Charles S. Renchenski (Appellant) appeals from the order denying his petition for relief filed under the Post Conviction Relief Act (PCRA), 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 9541-9546. Appellant claims that the trial court erroneously determined that the extraordinary time delay in this case prejudiced the Commonwealth’s ability to retry the case, thereby warranting dismissal of the petition pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 9543(b). For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

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GREGORY CLARK and LINDA MEASHEY individually and on behalf of others similarly situated v. PFIZER INC., and WARNER-LAMBERT COMPANY, LLC.

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GREGORY CLARK and LINDA MEASHEY individually and on behalf of others similarly situated v. PFIZER INC., and WARNER-LAMBERT COMPANY, LLC. No. 754 EDA 2009 2010 PA Super 6 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/19/2010
	Appeal from the Order Entered February 9, 2009, Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia County, Civil, at No. 01819, June Term - 2004
Before: STEVENS, GANTMAN and ALLEN, JJ.
Opinion by: ALLEN, J.
Gregory Clark and Linda Meashey, individually and on behalf of others similarly situated (“Appellants”), appeal from the trial court’s February 9, 2009 order decertifying the class action and granting partial summary judgment in favor of Pfizer Inc. and Warner-Lambert Company, LLC (“Defendants”). We affirm the trial court’s order to the extent that it decertified the class, concluding that Appellants cannot satisfy the commonality and typicality requirements because individual issues of reliance and/or causation predominated the class’ claims. We vacate the trial court’s order insofar as it granted summary judgment against the class and/or their claims, concluding that the potential res judicata effect on the absent class members could forever bar their causes of action. Accordingly, we affirm in part and vacate in part.

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IN THE INTEREST OF: M.J.H., MINOR

IN THE INTEREST OF: M.J.H., MINOR No. 1451 MDA 2008 2010 PA Super 7 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/19/2010
	Appeal from the Adjudication of Delinquency, July 9, 2008 in the Court of Common Pleas of York County Juvenile Division at No. CP-67-JV-0000746-2007
Before: FORD ELLIOTT, P.J., MUSMANNO AND COLVILLE,* JJ.
Opinion by: FORD ELLIOT, P.J.
This appeal contests the dispositional order imposed following a delinquency adjudication based upon a finding of culpability on charges of burglary and theft by unlawful taking or disposition. On appeal, appellant alleges that the evidence was insufficient to sustain his adjudications. After careful review, we reverse.

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SHARON GRAHAM v. BERTULFO CAMPO

SHARON GRAHAM v. BERTULFO CAMPO No. 3307 EDA 2008 2010 PA Super 5 2010 PA Super 5 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/15/2010
	Appeal from the Judgment Entered January 20, 2009 In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Civil Division at No(s): July Term, 2006, No. 0058
Before: STEVENS, BOWES, JJ., and McEWEN, P.J.E.
Opinion by: STEVENS, J.
This is an appeal from the judgment entered by the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County for Sharon Graham-Nutter (hereinafter “Graham”) in the amount of $204,247.79 in damages following the denial of post-trial motions filed by Bertulfo Campo (“Appellant”). We affirm.

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COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. FRANCIS NICHOLAS RAKOWSKI, JR.

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. FRANCIS NICHOLAS RAKOWSKI, JR. No. 2059 MDA 2008 2010 PA Super 3 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/14/2010
	Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence August 27, 2008, In the Court of Common Pleas of York County, Criminal Division at No. CP-67-CR-0001198-2008.
Before: BENDER, FREEDBERG, and POPOVICH, JJ.
Opinion by: POPOVICH, J.
Dissenting Opinion by: BENDER, J.
Appellant Francis Nicholas Rakowski, Jr., appeals the judgment of sentence for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) in violation of 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 3802(c) on grounds that: 1) the evidence was insufficient to sustain his conviction; 2) the verdict was against the weight of the evidence; and 3) the jury’s entry of inconsistent verdicts warrants a vacation of the judgment of sentence. After careful review, we affirm.

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COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. A.R.

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. A.R. No. 382 EDA 2009 2010 PA Super 4 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/15/2010
	Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence January 5, 2009, In the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County, Criminal Division at No. CP-15-CR-0002052-2006.
Before: PANELLA, POPOVICH, and COLVILLE, JJ.
Opinion by: POPOVICH, J.
Dissenting Opinion by: COLVILLE, J.
Appellant A.R. appeals the judgment of sentence entered on January 5, 2009, in the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County, following the revocation of his probationary sentence. On appeal, Appellant claims that the evidence was insufficient to support the trial court’s conclusion that Appellant violated his probation and that the trial court erred in admitting into evidence the results of a therapeutic polygraph examination as supportive evidence at Appellant’s violation of probation (VOP) hearing. Upon review, we affirm.

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COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. GAYLEND L. YOUNG

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. GAYLEND L. YOUNG No. 1287 MDA 2008 2010 PA Super 2 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/6/2010
	Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence, April 26, 2005, in the Court of Common Pleas of Centre County Criminal Division at No. CP-14-CR-0000345-2000
Before: FORD ELLIOTT, P.J., KLEIN AND COLVILLE, JJ.
Opinion by: FORD ELLIOT, P.J.
Dissenting Opinion by: COLVILLE, J.
Appellant, Gaylend L. Young, appeals the judgment of sentence entered following his conviction for various sexual offenses against his minor son. Finding no error, we affirm.

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COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. JOHN W. WYLAND

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. JOHN W. WYLAND No. 1332 WDA 2008 2010 PA Super 1 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 1/5/2010
	Appeal from the Suppression Order July 16, 2008, in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Criminal Division, at No. CP-02-MD-0002168-2008.
Before: BENDER, BOWES AND CLELAND, JJ.
Opinion by: BOWES, J.
The Commonwealth appeals from the July 16, 2008 order granting a motion to quash a criminal complaint charging John Wyland with drunk-driving offenses for events that occurred on an air base occupied and controlled by the United States Air Force. After careful review, we affirm.

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