Litigants are likely to push for the rehearing of certain hot-button issues by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, as well as those decided by a deeply divided bench during its five-justice year, once a fully constituted, seven-member court is in place next year, appellate attorneys said.

The court won't necessarily be eager to take up issues that have been decided by its recent iterations—even 3-2 opinions that some attorneys referred to as weak precedent—but that won't stop lawyers from trying.

“The fact that there are three new justices does go and create a sort of wild card on the court,” said James M. Beck of Reed Smith.