Commonwealth v. All that Certain Lot or Parcel of Land Located at 605 University Drive

DISSENTING OPINION BY

Judge McGINLEY.

I dissent to the Plurality’s conclusion that the Rules of Civil Procedure, including Summary Judgment, are not available in a civil forfeiture proceeding under the Forfeiture Act, 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 6801-6802. I object to the Plurality’s decision to overrule two decades of case law1 without fully considering the implications of its ruling.2

*1056First, I do not agree that the language of the statute mandates a hearing even when there is no disputed issue of material fact. Although the Forfeiture Act mandates that a party receive an opportunity to be heard the…