Should the Full 7-Member PA Supreme Court Re-Hear Act 13 Case?
The PA townships that sued the State of Pennsylvania last year over a section of the new Act 13 law that prevents towns from slapping their own zoning requirements on top of a uniform state zoning standard sense they may have won at the state Supreme Court level (which will allow them to zone) and are arguing against having oral arguments re-heard by all seven justices.
The original case–arguably one of the most important to come before the state Supreme Court in a long time–was originally heard by seven justices last fall–but one of the seven has since resigned due to campaign fundraising irregularities. The six justices remaining are three Democrats and three Republicans. Court watchers predict the Act 13 case decision will break down along party lines. If it’s a split decision at the Supreme Court level, the lower court ruling which favors the towns will stand. So the towns are arguing they don’t want the case re-heard by a full panel, now that a seventh justice (a Republican) has just taken the bench.
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Two weeks ago, MDN told you the final document in the long, drawn-out affair known as “the Hallowich family” court case had been released (see 
A new twist in the ongoing court battle over Pennsylvania’s still relatively new Act 13 Marcellus Shale drilling law. A court case has been before the PA Supreme Court since last year challenging provisions in the new law to replace local zoning of oil and gas drilling with a uniform, statewide standard. As MDN told you a few weeks ago, it appears the newly sworn-in seventh justice on the PA Supreme Court will not participate in the decision, leaving a split 3-3 decision a likely outcome (see 
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Potential trouble is brewing for Marcellus drillers in Pennsylvania. As MDN has chronicled since early last year, seven towns (and a few individuals) sued PA over a provision in “Act 13” passed in early 2012 which creates uniform statewide standards for oil and gas zoning regulations–regs that supercede and replace local zoning laws related to oil and gas drilling (see