Pa. Cons. Stat. » 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. (JUDICIARY) / Chapter 41
Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes

42 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 4132 (2026)

 Attachment and summary punishment for contempts.

✓ current as of May 2026
Coverage note: this corpus holds the consolidated Pa.C.S. titles only. Unconsolidated P.S. statutes (UTPCPL 73 P.S. § 201-1, Liquor Code, wage payment laws) are not included; a miss here does not mean the statute does not exist. Check palegis.us.
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section PA-LEGpalegis.us JustiaTitle on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

§ 4132.  Attachment and summary punishment for contempts.

The power of the several courts of this Commonwealth to issue attachments and to impose summary punishments for contempts of court shall be restricted to the following cases:

(1)  The official misconduct of the officers of such courts respectively.

(1.1)  The willful failure of the officers of such courts to disclose a person's complete criminal history record information when requested.

(2)  Disobedience or neglect by officers, parties, jurors or witnesses of or to the lawful process of the court.

(3)  The misbehavior of any person in the presence of the court, thereby obstructing the administration of justice.

(Oct. 29, 2020, P.L.718, No.83, eff. 60 days)

 

Cross References.  Section 4132 is referred to in sections 4133, 5337, 6304.1 of this title.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 54 cases (9 in the last 5 years), 1979–2025 · leading case: In Re: Davis, B., Appeal of: Davis, B., 302 A.3d 166 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2023).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
In Re: Davis, B., Appeal of: Davis, B., 302 A.3d 166 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2023). · cites it 16× “Whether the Trial Court erred in finding Appellant guilty of Direct Criminal Contempt, pursuant to 42 Pa. C.S. § 4132, as Appellant was never scheduled or notified to appear before President Judge DiSalle on the date in question.”
Commonwealth, Aplt. v. Moody, K., 125 A.3d 1 (Pa. 2015). · cites it 6× “Consonant with United States Supreme Court caselaw, 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132 limits, in part, the power of courts in the Commonwealth to impose summary punishments for contemptuous conduct to cases where a person misbehaves “in the *361 presence of the court, thereby obstructing the…”
Com. v. Umoh, E., 311 A.3d 24 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2024). · cites it 14× “Appellant, on the other hand, was convicted of contempt by the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, and thus his contempt conviction should have been listed on the sentencing order as a violation of 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132, which addresses contempt power of “the several courts…”
Commonwealth v. Falana, 696 A.2d 126 (Pa. 1997). · cites it 6× “In 1978, the Pennsylvania Legislature specifically limited the courts' contempt powers, by Section 4132 of the Judicial Code, 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132: The power of the several courts of this Commonwealth to issue attachments and to impose summary punishments for contempts of court…”
Williams v. Williams, 721 A.2d 1072 (Pa. 1998). · cites it 6× “The judgment of sentence was reversed on the basis that Williams' comment did not obstruct justice and, thus, that it did not fulfill the statutory test for contempt under 42 Pa.”
In Interest of Tasseing H., 422 A.2d 530 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1980). · cites it 6× “The punishment for criminal contempt is governed by 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132, which states that the punishment of imprisonment shall extend only to direct contempts [9] and that indirect contempts shall be punished by fine only.”
Com. v. Perkins, L, 292 A.3d 1144 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2023). · cites it 6× “At the conclusion of the hearing, the court found Appellant in direct criminal contempt pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132(3). In explaining its rationale, the court stated, in part: [Scott] spent fourteen or fifteen minutes sitting inside of the courtroom and for one minute she…”
Com. v. Meehan, E., 235 A.3d 1284 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2020). · cites it 5× “The trial court accepted Appellant’s apology and read the charges – one count each of contempt under subsections (1), (2), and (3) of 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132. The trial court then provided a lengthy description of its judicial duties, and concluded by asking Appellant “how do you…”
Behr v. Behr, 695 A.2d 776 (Pa. 1997). · cites it 2× “In 1978, the Pennsylvania Legislature specifically limited the courts’ contempt powers, by Section 4132 of the Judicial Code, 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132: The power of the several courts of this Commonwealth- to issue attachments and to impose summary punishments for con-tempts of court…”
Kramer v. Kelly, 401 A.2d 799 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1979). “42 Pa.C.S. § 4132. 6 . The Civil Procedural Support Law has since been repealed by the Judiciary Act Repealer Act, Act of April 28, 1978, P.”
Commonwealth v. Robinson, 166 A.3d 1272 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2017). “42 Pa.C.S. § 4132. “[T]o sustain a conviction for direct criminal contempt under this provision there must be proof beyond a reasonable doubt: (1) of misconduct, (2) in the presence of the court, (3) committed with the intent to obstruct the proceedings, (4) that obstructs the…”
Williams v. Williams, 681 A.2d 181 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1996). “Moreover, a mere affront to the trial judge is not sufficient to sustain a conviction for criminal contempt.”
Show all 54 citing cases →
— 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 4132(1) — 3 cases
Com. v. Meehan, E., 235 A.3d 1284 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2020). “The trial court accepted Appellant’s apology and read the charges – one count each of contempt under subsections (1), (2), and (3) of 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132. The trial court then provided a lengthy description of its judicial duties, and concluded by asking Appellant “how do you…”
Com. v. Meehan, E., 2020 Pa. Super. 193 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2020).
Rubin, B. v. Stewart, P. (Pa. Super. Ct. 2023).
— 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 4132(2) — 7 cases
Com. v. Urbano, C. (Pa. Super. Ct. 2019).
A.M. v. L.B., Appeal of: Stacey L. Shields, Esq. (Pa. Super. Ct. 2017).
Com. v. Glover, K. (Pa. Super. Ct. 2025).
W.R.M. v. W.M.M. Appeal of: N.Christopher Menges (Pa. Super. Ct. 2014).
Com. v. McGlinden, C. (Pa. Super. Ct. 2015).
— 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 4132(3) — 16 cases
Commonwealth, Aplt. v. Moody, K., 125 A.3d 1 (Pa. 2015). “Consonant with United States Supreme Court caselaw, 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132 limits, in part, the power of courts in the Commonwealth to impose summary punishments for contemptuous conduct to cases where a person misbehaves “in the *361 presence of the court, thereby obstructing the…”
Com. v. Umoh, E., 311 A.3d 24 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2024). “Appellant, on the other hand, was convicted of contempt by the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, and thus his contempt conviction should have been listed on the sentencing order as a violation of 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132, which addresses contempt power of “the several courts…”
Com. v. Perkins, L, 292 A.3d 1144 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2023). “At the conclusion of the hearing, the court found Appellant in direct criminal contempt pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132(3). In explaining its rationale, the court stated, in part: [Scott] spent fourteen or fifteen minutes sitting inside of the courtroom and for one minute she…”
Williams v. Williams, 721 A.2d 1072 (Pa. 1998). “The judgment of sentence was reversed on the basis that Williams' comment did not obstruct justice and, thus, that it did not fulfill the statutory test for contempt under 42 Pa.”
Williams v. Williams, 681 A.2d 181 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1996). “Moreover, a mere affront to the trial judge is not sufficient to sustain a conviction for criminal contempt.”
— 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 4132(s) — 1 case
In Interest of Tasseing H., 422 A.2d 530 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1980). “The punishment for criminal contempt is governed by 42 Pa.C.S. § 4132, which states that the punishment of imprisonment shall extend only to direct contempts [9] and that indirect contempts shall be punished by fine only.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.