A Target store in the Bay Area, California, with shelves picked over and deserted in wake of the coronavirus. (Photo: Jason Doiy/ALM)

In the span of a week, courts in Pennsylvania have gone from business as usual to nearly every court system in the state either modifying its procedures or shutting down almost entirely to help fight the spread of the coronavirus. As of Wednesday afternoon, 46 court systems in the state had declared a judicial state of emergency.

Attorneys have had to adjust.

With many working from home and nearly all turning to the latest videoconferencing technologies to stay in contact with clients and each other, several lawyers said Pennsylvania's legal community has been working together to make sure they stay safe and the civil and criminal justice systems continue to function.

But, regardless of the camaraderie and collective efforts of attorneys and judges, containment efforts are moving so fast, and often vary widely from county to county. Many attorneys reported struggling to keep on top of all the developments, as they change rapidly across the legal landscape.

"It seems like a lot of confusion out there," criminal defense attorney Steven Fairlie of Fairlie & Lippy said.

Fairlie is chairman of the Montgomery Bar Association's criminal defense committee. The virus has so far hit Montgomery County in southeastern Pennsylvania particularly hard, and its court system was the first in the state to seek an emergency declaration from the state Supreme Court. It was also the first to significantly alter its procedures, shutting down all jury trials starting March 13.

Fairlie said he has been fielding "nonstop" calls from attorneys asking how their particular case should be handled in light of the new emergency policies, whether their case is one of the many to be held in limbo, or if it fits the rare exceptions that will be processed under the emergency conditions. Everyone has been working together to address the issues, he said, but more questions keep arising.

"It seems like the courts have been working around the clock to try to get answers, but as fast as they can come up with a policy, there are questions about how that policy will be interpreted in various fact scenarios," Fairlie said. "Everything's moving so fast."

Civil Courts

On the civil side of the system, things have been somewhat more calm.

Plaintiffs and defense attorneys have mostly been able to work from home to help stem the spread of the virus, which by Wednesday had topped 130 cases in Pennsylvania. Attorneys said they have relied on teleconferencing and the latest videoconferencing technologies to continue developing their cases, and none reported any major problems so far.

Daniel Ferhat of White & Williams said lawyers from his firm have mostly been working from home, and have not run into any issues accessing the necessary files remotely.

"We've had that capability for some time now, so we're still able to serve all our clients' needs," he said.

Ferhat, who handles a lot of medical malpractice cases, said access to clients who are doctors and nurses has been limited due to hospitals' emergency policies. That's where teleconferencing and virtual meetings have come into play, and when that's not possible, he said, opposing counsel has been good about working together to reach compromises in these difficult times.

"We're all going to need to work together as people to try and make sure there's not too much disruption with the court system, but paramount is going to be the health and safety of the general public, and the safety of the people we're representing," he said.

John Conti of Dickie, McCamey & Chilcote said technology has been the key to allowing things to operate as smoothly as they have been.

"The challenge is clearly unprecedented, and things are moving so quickly that law firms really have to make decisions almost day-to-day on how they're going to approach this. Many if not most of the firms in Pittsburgh have moved to allowing lawyers to work remotely," he said. "If this happened five to 10 years ago, the impact on law firms would be truly dramatic, but technology lets us function pretty seamlessly from any location."

Attorneys said that with advanced videoconferencing technologies they've also been able to continue handling many depositions and mediation when needed.

Retired Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Lisa Rau, who started her own mediation and arbitration firm last year, said that, with the travel restrictions preceding the courts' decisions to limit access, her firm had time to ramp up its videoconferencing know-how before the courts began shutting down, and so has been able to hold sessions remotely. The process, she said, has been seamless, and attorneys have so far been interested in holding the session via videoconferencing, rather than rescheduling.

"People are being really flexible and creative. They're saying this is something we never could have anticipated, so let's try it," she said. "I think everybody in this time is learning to do things differently."

The shutdowns were not altogether a surprise for lawyers. Many said their firms began developing plans weeks ago. Joseph Messa of Messa & Associates in Philadelphia said March 13 that his firm had been developing contingency plans to have lawyers work from home if things worsened.

"Our intent is to continue to operate day-to-day and zealously represent our clients and to be able to operate whether people are in the office or not," he said.

Lane Jubb of The Beasley Firm said so far lawyers have been very understanding about balancing health and safety with ethical obligations to clients, and both sides have so far come together to ensure the system continues to work smoothly.

"At this point, all attorneys, it doesn't matter what side of the 'v' you're on, all attorneys recognize there's going to be some leeway," Jubb said. "So far, I haven't run into any situation where they aren't willing to accommodate a reasonable request."

Jubb said he's had to make accommodations as well, for instance deciding to postpone the depositions of some medical practitioners.

"The last thing I'd want to do is take them out of a hospital," he said. "In a situation where we have plenty of time to accomplish the deposition, it's not an issue to make sure they are where they are needed as opposed to being in our office."

Schmidt Kramer attorney Scott Cooper, who is based in Harrisburg, said he has remained in touch with his clients through FaceTime, Skype and phone calls, and has even signed a few new clients in the past week. The firm's office and attorneys are working from home, he said. The office remains closed, although there is some rotating staff onsite, he said, adding that most firms in the area are operating under similar conditions.

Cooper said that, regardless of the technological advances, some medical expert reports and depositions are likely to be delayed by the shutdown, but in cases where discovery has already been developed, lawyers may now have more time to focus on getting those cases resolved. Cooper said he recently settled three cases.

"People are around, so you can get them on the phone," he said.

However, there is one problem that has affected both the civil and criminal systems. As the emergency situation has developed so quickly, individual courts have been rapidly changing their procedures, which has left some lawyers struggling to stay on top of the changes.

"That's one of the big challenges right now: trying to figure out logistically what is the state of the courts," Ferhat said, echoing sentiments raised by other attorneys. "Nobody knows exactly what's going to happen yet, because it's all new. There's no playbook for it."

Criminal Courts

Criminal defense attorney Anthony Jackson of Justin Ketchel Law in Pittsburgh agreed that one of the hardest things has been staying on top of what types of hearings and motions are being suspended, and which are not. On the western side of the state, as of Wednesday, no courts had closed its doors entirely. Jackson said he has had to check with courthouses and judges multiple times a day to stay on top of the fast-developing situation.

"Every county around here is different. … We have to call from county to county," he said. "It would be a lot easier if they said, 'Hey, this is what we're doing across the board.'"

In many cases, issues have been resolved through videoconferencing, he said. When he does need to head to the courthouse, he said, courtrooms are empty.

Jackson said he has also been going through his whole court calendar, and calling each defendant so they know what issues have been postponed and which ones might still be in process. It's tedious, he said, but clients have been understanding.

"The good thing about it is, it's national news," he said, adding that many clients are calling him directly. "They know something's going on."

Philadelphia attorney Brad Shuttleworth of Alva & Shuttleworth, who does a mixture of criminal defense and personal injury, said the criminal practice often requires a lot of face-to-face interactions. Although he's been making do with phone calls and FaceTiming when possible, some still have requested in-person meetings. Clients are all understanding, he said, and it has not been difficult keeping a six-foot distance, as recommended by social distancing policies.

"I do that corona shake with my elbow," he said. "We're making it work."

Shuttleworth said he has also been trying to keep in touch with all his clients who have had upcoming cases to make them aware of the situation as it develops. The Philadelphia Court, he said, has already rescheduled several cases for several months out, which has been great, he said.

Defense attorney David Zellis, based in Bucks County, said he is "hustling" to interact with as many clients as possible, including FaceTiming, texting and calling. As a solo practitioner, marketing will be tough, he said, especially as access to courts are limited and arrests and prosecutions dwindle.

"I can't just drop off the face of the earth," he said. "I have to be out there making sure people know I'm available."

Some clients, he said, still prefer to meet face-to-face before hiring, so he has been accommodating. In the meantime, he said, he is continuing to work up cases that now appear set to be the first ones to hit trial once things come back online.