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Section 1 - Territorial Jurisdiction and Place of Holding Court - Section 1. The district court department, established under section 1...
Section 2 - Boston Municipal Courts; Concurrent Jurisdiction Over Waters and Islands - Section 2. The municipal courts in Boston shall have concurrent...
Section 2a - Transfer of Civil Actions Brought in Wrong Court - Section 2A. Each district court shall have civil jurisdiction of...
Section 3 - Boston Municipal Courts; Concurrent Criminal Jurisdiction Over Waters and Islands - Section 3. The central, Charlestown, South Boston, and East Boston...
Section 4 - District Court Jurisdiction; Seals - Section 4. District courts shall be courts of record. They...
Section 4a - Massachusetts Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act - Section 4A. (a) This section may be cited as the...
Section 5 - Contempt Cases; Service of Process - Section 5. Processes issued in contempt cases may be served...
Section 6 - Justices; Number; Terms; Compensation; Duties - Section 6. In each district court, as provided in section...
Section 6a - Special Justices of District Court; Certification of Full Time Duties; Restrictions on Employment - Section 6A. (a) Any special justice of a district court...
Section 7 - Oaths; Power to Administer - Section 7. Justices and special justices of district courts may,...
Section 8 - Clerks; Appointment; Number; Retirement; Vacation and Sick Leave - Section 8. Each district court shall have a clerk and...
Section 9 - Temporary Clerks - Section 9. In the case of the absence, death or...
Section 10 - Assistant Clerks - Section 10. The clerk of a district court may, subject...
Section 10a - Deputy Assistant Clerks; Power to Designate - Section 10A. The clerk of each district court, except the...
Section 11 - Temporary Assistant Clerks - Section 11. In case of the absence, death or removal...
Section 12 - Clerks; Oath of Office; Duties and Powers - Section 12. The clerks, assistant clerks, temporary clerks and temporary...
Section 13 - Records; Storage - Section 13. The records, papers and documents of the district...
Section 14 - Facsimile Signatures - Section 14. Clerks and assistant clerks of district courts may...
Section 15 - Times for Holding Trials; Office Hours - Section 15. The chief justice for the district court department,...
Section 16 - Bond of Clerk - Section 16. The clerk of a division of the district...
Section 17 - Justice, Clerk or Assistant Clerk; Restrictions on Practice of Law; Special Justices; Restrictions on Hearing or Trying Cases - Section 17. A justice, clerk or assistant clerk of a...
Section 18 - Justices and Clerks; Receipt of Certain Fees; Prohibition - Section 18. A justice, special justice acting in the place...
Section 19 - General Provisions - [See Standing Order of the Supreme Court, dated July 17,...
Section 19a - District Court or Boston Municipal Court; Statement of Facts in Support of Civil Action for Damages; Dismissal; Appeals - Section 19A. (a) A clerk-magistrate in a district court or...
Section 19b - District Court or Boston Municipal Court; Trial by Jury of Six; Appeals - Section 19B. (a) Except as otherwise provided by law, all...
Section 19c - District Court Jurisdiction; Equity Powers and Rules - Section 19C. The district court and Boston municipal court departments...
Section 19d - Housing Specialists; Appointment; Knowledge Requisites; Powers and Duties - Section 19D. The first justice of a district court may...
Section 20 - Actions Against Executors and Administrators, and Against Bail - Section 20. District courts shall also have jurisdiction of civil...
Section 21 - Power to Establish Rules of Small Claims Procedure; Venue; Jurisdictional Amount; Hearings; Damages and Penalties - [ First paragraph effective until December 13, 2021. For text...
Section 22 - Procedure - Section 22. The procedure shall include the beginning of actions...
Section 23 - Initial Determination of Cause; Removal; Claim for Trial by Jury; Bond or Deposit; Finding as Evidence; Report to Appellate Division - Section 23. Every cause begun under the procedure shall be...
Section 24 - Transfer to Regular Docket - Section 24. The court may, in its discretion, transfer a...
Section 25 - Costs; Discretion of Court - Section 25. In any civil action begun by summons and...
Section 26 - General Provisions - Section 26. The district courts and divisions of the Boston...
Section 26a - Trial by Jury; Discovery; Jury-Waived Trial; Record of Proceedings; Probation - Section 26A. Trial of criminal offenses in the Boston municipal...
Section 27 - Imposition of Penalties - Section 27. The district court may impose the same penalties...
Section 27a - Jury Sessions - Section 27A. (a) Every division of the district court department...
Section 28 - Recognizances to Keep Peace - Section 28. District courts may require persons found guilty of...
Section 30 - Binding Over to Superior Court - Section 30. They shall commit or bind over for trial...
Section 32 - Complaints and Warrants - Section 32. District courts may receive complaints and issue warrants...
Section 32a - Inclusion of Offense-Based Tracking Number on Application for Complaint - Section 32A. An application for a criminal complaint submitted to...
Section 33 - Warrants and Process; Power of Clerks to Issue - Section 33. A clerk, assistant clerk, temporary clerk or temporary...
Section 34 - Arrest Without Warrant; Endorsement of Complaint by Arresting Officer - Section 34. Said courts may dispense with the issuing of...
Section 35 - Complaints, Warrants and Process; Power to Issue; Disqualification to Hear Case; Destruction of Applications for Complaints - Section 35. A justice or special justice of a district...
Section 35a - Process; Issuance on Complaints for Misdemeanors; Consideration of Criminal Records and Domestic Violence Records; Right to Hearing - Section 35A. If a complaint is received by a district...
Section 36 - Justice of Peace; Taking Bail - Section 36. The governor, with the advice and consent of...
Section 37 - Process for Witnesses and Defendants in Criminal and Juvenile Cases; Direction and Service - Section 37. District courts, justices, special justices, clerks, assistant clerks,...
Section 38 - Access to Courts; Sittings; Adjournments; Filing of Complaints - Section 38. District courts and Boston municipal court divisions shall...
Section 39 - Books and Supplies - Section 39. Justices and clerks of district courts, except the...
Section 40 - Part-Time Special Justices; Authorized Cases - Section 40. A special justice of a district court who...
Section 41 - Special Justice; Powers and Duties - Section 41. A special justice of a district court shall...
Section 42 - Adjournment When Justice Absent - Section 42. If no justice or special justice is present...
Section 42a - Chief Justice; Powers and Duties - Section 42A. The justice, as provided under section 1 of...
Section 42b - Deputy Court Administrator - Section 42B. The deputy court administrator for the district court...
Section 43 - Uniform Rules of Practice and Procedure; Power to Make and Promulgate - Section 43. The chief justice shall from time to time...
Section 43a - Uniform Practices; Forms; Superintendence of Record Keeping - Section 43A. The chief justice shall be authorized to require...
Section 43b - Official Forms; Powers of Chief Justice - Section 43B. In addition to the powers set forth in...
Section 43e - Community Mediation Advisory Board; Coordinator - Section 43E. There shall be established a district court community...
Section 44 - Process; Formal Requisites; Territorial Jurisdiction - Section 44. Processes issuing from district courts shall be under...
Section 47 - Clerks; Duty to Make Payments and to Account; Penalty - Section 47. Clerks of district courts, except Boston municipal court...
Section 48 - Sentences to Deer Island - Section 48. In cases in which municipal courts in Boston...
Section 49 - Clerks; Duty to Pay Certain Fees; Advances; Accounting - Section 49. In the municipal courts in Boston, except the...
Section 50 - Justices; Number; Vacation and Sick Leave; Rule Making Power - Section 50. The Boston municipal court department established under section...
Section 51a - Chief Justice of the Boston Municipal Court Department; Powers and Duties - Section 51A. The justice provided for under section 1 of...
Section 52 - Justices and Special Justices; Assignment; Additional Sessions; Compensation, Etc. - Section 52. In addition to the powers conferred in section...
Section 52a - Clerks; Criminal and Civil Business - Section 52A. The central division of the Boston municipal court...
Section 53 - Clerks and Assistant Clerks - Section 53. In the central division of the Boston municipal...
Section 53a - Temporary Assistant Clerks - Section 53A. In case of the absence, death or removal...
Section 54 - Civil Jurisdiction - Section 54. In addition to the jurisdiction otherwise conferred and...
Section 55 - Recording Systems; Stenographic and Medical Services and Equipment - Section 55. The chief justice of the Boston municipal court...
Section 56 - Clerks; Accounting; Penalty - Section 56. The clerk shall, on or before the tenth...
Section 57 - Juvenile Courts; Divisions; Territorial Jurisdiction; Appeals - Section 57. The juvenile court department established under section one...
Section 57a - Chief Justice for the Juvenile Court Department; Powers and Duties - Section 57A. The justice provided for under section 1 of...
Section 57b - Deputy Court Administrator for the Juvenile Court Department - Section 57B. The deputy court administrator for the juvenile court...
Section 58 - Justices and Clerks; Assignment; Salaries; Vacation and Sick Leave; Interpreters - Section 58. The Suffolk county division of the juvenile court...
Section 58a - Administrative Assistant for Intergovernmental Relations - Section 58A. The Boston juvenile court shall have an administrative...
Section 58b - Special Justices of Boston Juvenile Court; Certification of Full-Time Duties; Restrictions on Employment - Section 58B. (a) Any special justice of the Boston juvenile...
Section 58c - Special Justices of Juvenile Court - Section 58C. (a) Any special justice of a juvenile court...
Section 59 - Powers, Duties and Procedure; Jurisdiction - Section 59. Except as otherwise provided by law, the divisions...
Section 60 - Jurisdiction Over Offenders; Rule Making Power - Section 60. Within the territorial limits prescribed in section fifty-seven,...
Section 66 - Boston Municipal Court Department; Messenger - Section 66. There shall be a messenger of the Boston...
Section 67 - Boston Municipal Court; Interpreters - Section 67. The chief justice of the Boston municipal court...
Section 68 - East Boston Division of the Boston Municipal Court Department; Interpreter - Section 68. The justice of the East Boston division of...
Section 69 - Clerks of Divisions of District Court Department; Allowance for Assistance - Section 69. Clerks of the divisions of the district court...
Section 70 - Clerks of Boston Municipal and Juvenile Court Departments; Allowance for Assistance - Section 70. The clerks of the Boston municipal court department...
Section 74 - Monthly Installments - Section 74. Salaries of justices and special justices appointed to...
Section 75b - Salaries of Assistant Clerks of Boston Municipal Court Department - Section 75B. The salaries of the first assistant clerks of...
Section 79 - Salaries of Clerks - Section 79. The salaries of the clerks of the district...
Section 80 - Compensation of Assistant Clerks; Practice of Law - Section 80. The salaries of the first assistant clerks of...
Section 80a - Boston Municipal Court Department; Salaries of Secretary and Assistant Secretary to Justices - Section 80A. The secretary and assistant secretary to the justices...
Section 81 - Traveling Expenses - Section 81. A justice of a division of the district...
Section 84 - Computation of Compensation - Section 84. Justices and clerks whose salaries are fixed in...