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A Description of
Pennsylvania's Courts
The Commonwealth Court of
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has exclusive jurisdiction of
appeals from final orders of most Commonwealth Administrative
agencies. That means that the Commonwealth Court hears appeals from
decisions issued by the Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, the
Workmen's Compensation Appeal Board, the Pennsylvania Labor Relations
Board and the Prevailing Wage Appeals Board. The Commonwealth Court
also hears appeals from PERA arbitration awards. In addition, the
Commonwealth Court hears many cases involving the nomination and election
of public officials . Thus, each year, the Commonwealth Court
decides hundreds of cases affecting trade unions and their members.
The Superior Court of Pennsylvania
The Superior Court of Pennsylvania hears most of the appeals taken
from decisions issued by the Courts of Common Pleas. Among the types
of appeals heard by the Superior Court are those from the issuance of
injunctions restraining picketing and appeals from Common Pleas Court's
decisions in wage payment and collection cases. In some counties
where there are anti-union district attorneys and county judges, criminal
laws are sometimes exploited to pressure labor union officials. The
Superior Court of Pennsylvania hears appeals from Common Pleas Courts'
decisions on these kinds of criminal cases.
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the
state. The Supreme Court hears appeals from the decisions of
Commonwealth Court and from Superior Court. Therefore, it is the
Supreme Court which has the last word on how all Laws of Pennsylvania,
including all those laws affecting labor, are to be interpreted and
enforced. Very often, the Supreme Court reverses a Commonwealth
Court or Superior Court decision on a labor issue and establishes
precedents that all courts and state agencies must follow.
Accordingly, even though the Supreme Court will hear only a few dozen
labor cases a year, the impact of its decisions are far reaching and are
of great importance to labor. In addition, the Supreme Court may
have the last word on election redistricting, which will critically affect
labor's political power.
This information provided
courtesy of the USWA District 10 Legislative Committee. |