Commonwealth v. Joseph Abraham 2010 PA Super 104 (6/08/2010)
Topic: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel – PCRA – Collateral Consequences
Summary: In view of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Padilla v. Kentucky, the fact that a consequence of a conviction is a collateral one will not protect an attorney from an ineffective assistance of counsel claim. To be effective, an attorney must inform his client of any consequences when the “consequences in question are succinct, clear, and distinct….” Also, an attorney will be found to be ineffective if she fails to give “good advice about a serious consequence.”