The state Superior Court has revived an abuse of process suit against Fox Rothschild, Dillon McCandless King Coulter & Graham and two attorneys over claims that a coordination motion stemming from an underlying legal malpractice suit was a “sham” aimed at having the suit tried in a more favorable county.

A unanimous three-judge panel of the court overruled a decision from the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas in Rupert v. King, which had tossed the abuse of process lawsuit for failure to state a claim. Judge Patricia H. Jenkins, who wrote the majority's memorandum opinion, said the trial court had failed to accept the plaintiff's allegations as true.

“At this point, it is not clear and free from doubt that appellant will be unable to prove the facts legally sufficient to establish the right to relief,” Jenkins said.