After The Appeal
42 Pa.C.S. 9545 — one year from the date the judgment becomes final, a second petition included
One year. Any petition under the post conviction relief subchapter, including a second or subsequent one, is filed within one year of the date the judgment becomes final. A judgment becomes final at the conclusion of direct review, including discretionary review, or when the time for seeking that review expires.
- Interference by government officials kept the claim from being raised; defense counsel, appointed or retained, are not government officials for this purpose.
- The facts behind the claim were unknown to the petitioner and could not have been found with due diligence.
- A constitutional right recognized after the deadline by the Supreme Court of the United States or of Pennsylvania, and held to apply retroactively.
Those are the three exceptions. A petition invoking one is filed within one year of the date the claim could have been presented.
Who may file. The petitioner pleads and proves by a preponderance of the evidence a Pennsylvania conviction, that they are still serving a sentence of imprisonment, probation or parole for it or are in another situation the section lists, and that the conviction or sentence resulted from one of the listed errors, such as ineffective assistance of counsel that so undermined the truth-determining process that no reliable adjudication could have taken place.
Not already litigated. The allegation of error must not have been previously litigated or waived.
Federal habeas corpus has a deadline of its own, which runs separately and is not on this page. Whether a petition is timely, and which grounds can still be raised, are questions for a licensed Pennsylvania attorney.
Sources for this section (2)
- 42 Pa.C.S. 9545 — Jurisdiction and proceedings
- 42 Pa.C.S. 9543 — Eligibility for relief
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Pennsylvania attorney.