Scrivener's Affidavits in Pennsylvania

Scrivener's Affidavits are not common in Pennsylvania. The customary procedure to correct items in a chain of title, absent a Court Order, is to obtain a corrective or confirmatory document (deed, mortgage, etc.) executed by the necessary party for recording. The document should have a recital indicating it is corrective of a prior-recorded document.

In some situations where the error is minimal (i.e. typographical), it may be possible to re-record the original document with a statement appended describing the error and the correction that was made. The availability of this procedure will depend on the local County Recorder of Deeds policies, and should be examined with caution because it can be used improperly (i.e. to add separate land to a deed that was never conveyed originally). The Recorders, and their staff, are not empowered to review documents for legal effect and sufficiency, so the acceptance for recording is not itself a guarantee that a document is proper.