West-Bogans v. Davidson

245 A.3d 1056 (Table)

Angela WEST-BOGANS, Appellant v. John A. DAVIDSON, Esq. and the Law Offices of John A. Davidson

No. 193 MDA 2020

Superior Court of Pennsylvania.

Filed December 9, 2020

MEMORANDUM BY COLINS, J.:

Appellant, Angela West-Bogans, pro se , appeals from the order entered January 24, 2020, in the Court of Common Pleas of Dauphin County, denying her motion to strike a judgment of non pros ("JNP") entered on December 20, 2019. For the following reasons, we dismiss this appeal.

On June 5, 2019, Appellant commenced this action by complaint, asserting that Appellee John A. Davidson, Esquire, acted improperly or unprofessionally toward her during his representation of clients Noemi and Gloria Castro in a landlord-tenant dispute between Appellant and the Castros. In addition to the appeal of this underlying landlord-tenant action, West-Bogans v. Castro , No. 1943 MDA 2019 (Pa. Super. filed October 23, 2020) (unpublished memorandum), the current appeal is the third time the instant case, Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas Docket Number 2019-CV-4034, has been before this Court on appeal. West-Bogans v. Davidson , No. 1504 MDA 2019 (Pa. Super. filed December 18, 2019) (order granting application to quash appeal); West-Bogans v. Davidson , No. 147 MDA 2020 (Pa. Super. filed April 17, 2020) (quashed sua sponte ).

The relevant procedural history for the present appeal begins on October 2, 2019, when Davidson and his law firm, Co-Appellee The Law Offices of John A. Davidson, filed a notice of intent to enter JNP for failure to file a written statement from an appropriate licensed professional. On December 20, 2019, Appellees filed a praecipe for entry of JNP pursuant to Pa.R.C.P. 1042.12, ¹ and, later that same day, the Prothonotary issued a notice of entry of JNP. On January 21, 2020, Appellant filed a motion to strike the JNP. On January 24, 2020, the trial court denied the motion to strike. On January 27, 2020, Appellant filed this timely ² appeal. ³

Appellant presents the following issues for our review:

1) Did the trial court err in requiring Appellant to obtain a signed Certificate of Merit by an Attorney unaffiliated with the case?

2) Did the trial court err in striking Appellant's default Judgement from the record?

3) Did trial court err allowing Appellees['] Counsel to extend the time for responding to complaints?

4) Did trial court[ ] err ignoring the damage and harassment experienced by Appellant while representing his clients?

5) Did the trial court err by ignoring Appellee conspired and participated in reigniting domestic violence issues?

6) Did trial court err by refusing to acknowledge Appellee went beyond the scope of his defense in the landlord tenant case?

7) Did the trial court err by stating Cumberland County divorce proceedings ^[4] had no bearing on Dauphin County cases?

8) Did the trial court err in allowing Appellee to toll the time for filing a response to the complaint filed by Appellant?

Appellant's Brief at 6.

Before reaching the merits of these issues, we must ascertain whether Appellant adhered to the Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure. Whether an appellant followed appellate procedure is a pure question of law for which "our scope of review is plenary, and the standard of review is de novo." Commonwealth v. Walker , 185 A.3d 969, 974 (Pa. 2018).

"[A]ppellate briefs and reproduced records must materially conform to the requirements of the Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure. This Court may quash or dismiss an appeal if the appellant fails to conform to the requirements set forth in the Pennsylvania Rules of Appellate Procedure." In re Ullman , 995 A.2d 1207, 1211 (Pa. Super. 2010) (citing Pa.R.A.P. 2101 ).

[ P ] ro se status does not relieve [an appellant] of his duty to follow the Rules of Appellate Procedure. "Although this Court is willing to liberally construe materials filed by a pro se litigant, pro se status confers no special benefit upon the appellant. To the contrary, any person choosing to represent himself in a legal proceeding must, to a reasonable extent, assume that his lack of expertise and legal training will be his undoing." In re Ullman , 995 A.2d 1207, 1211–1212 (Pa. Super. 2010). Accordingly, pro se litigants must comply with the procedural rules set forth in the Pennsylvania Rules of Court; if there are considerable defects, we will be unable to perform appellate review.

Commonwealth v. Vurimindi , 200 A.3d 1031, 1037–38 (Pa. Super. 2018), reargument denied (February 6, 2019), appeal denied , 217 A.3d 793 (Pa. 2019), cert. denied. , 140 S. Ct. 1147 (2020).

Instantly, Appellant's pro se brief falls well below the standards delineated in our Rules of Appellate Procedure. Specifically, Appellant's entire brief is comprised of prose in which she makes various allegations of misconduct on the part of Appellees and rehashes her version of the facts and the travails that she believes she has faced in her various cases in Cumberland and Dauphin Counties. Appellant fails to divide her argument into as many parts as there are questions to be argued, in violation of Rule 2119(a), nor does she develop any analysis of the issues raised. See Pa.R.A.P. 2119(a) ("argument shall be divided into as many parts as there are questions to be argued; and shall have at the head of each part — in distinctive type or in type distinctively displayed — the particular point treated therein, followed by such discussion and citation of authorities as are deemed pertinent"); Kelly v. The Carman Corporation , 229 A.3d 634, 656 (Pa. Super. 2020) (citing Pa.R.A.P. 2119(a) (argument shall include citation of authorities)); see also, e.g. , Commonwealth v. Spotz , 18 A.3d 244, 281 n.21 (Pa. 2011) (without a "developed, reasoned, supported, or even intelligible argument[, t]he matter is waived for lack of development"); In re Estate of Whitley , 50 A.3d 203, 209 (Pa. Super. 2012) ("The argument portion of an appellate brief must include a pertinent discussion of the particular point raised along with discussion and citation of pertinent authorities[; t]his Court will not consider the merits of an argument which fails to cite relevant case or statutory authority" (internal citations and quotation marks omitted)); Lackner v. Glosser , 892 A.2d 21, 29-30 (Pa. Super. 2006) (explaining appellant's arguments must adhere to rules of appellate procedure, and arguments which are not appropriately developed are waived on appeal; arguments not appropriately developed include those where party has failed to cite any authority in support of contention).

The briefing requirements scrupulously delineated in our appellate rules are not mere trifling matters of stylistic preference; rather, they represent a studied determination by our Court and its rules committee of the most efficacious manner by which appellate review may be conducted so that a litigant's right to judicial review as guaranteed by Article V, Section 9 of our Commonwealth's Constitution may be properly exercised.

Commonwealth v. Briggs , 12 A.3d 291, 343 (Pa. 2011).

"While this Court may overlook minor defects or omissions in an appellant's brief, we will not act as his or her appellate counsel." Commonwealth v. Freeman , 128 A.3d 1231, 1249 (Pa. Super. 2015). In Freeman , id...