News and Noteworthy

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  Supreme Judicial Court Issues New Judicial Guidelines for Civil Cases with Self-Represented Litigants (2/12)​

  The Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) issued new Judicial Guidelines for Civil Cases with Self-Represented Litigants (2025 Edition) to assist judges in working with the many litigants who do not have an attorney to represent them. Read Full Article
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  Two databases are joining forces to create a new, more streamlined interface!

  Two databases are joining forces to create a new, more streamlined interface! Fastcase, which provides access to extensive US primary law collections, such as state and federal case law, statutes, and regulations and vLex, offering the largest collection of legal and regulatory information in the world including case law, legislation, books, newspapers and journals from over 100 countries - both civil and common law, will be upgrading to vLex Fastcase. Read Full Article
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  Massachusetts Trial Court Announces the Implementation of the Office of Adult Guardianship and Conservatorship Oversight

  Massachusetts Trial Court Chief Justice Heidi E. Brieger and Court Administrator Thomas Ambrosino today announced the implementation of the Office of Adult Guardianship and Conservatorship Oversight (OAGCO) in the Administrative Office of the Probate and Family Court Department. The OAGCO is the culmination of collaborative efforts made possible by the Elder Justice Innovation Grant that the Trial Court was awarded in 2021 from the United States Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Community Living. Read Full Article
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  Supreme Judicial Court to Hold Special Sitting to Present Memorial to the Honorable Charles Fried

  The Justices of the Supreme Judicial Court will hold a special sitting for the presentation of a memorial to the Honorable Charles Fried, who passed away on January 23, 2024. Justice Fried was an Associate Justice on the Supreme Judicial Court from 1995 to 1999. Read Full Article
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  Social Law Celebrates 45 Years in GPO’s Federal Depository Library Program

  At the request of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) designated the Social Law Library as the highest appellate court library in the state and, as such, now celebrates 45 years as a high-court repository of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP). Read Full Article
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  Governor Administers Ceremonial Oath of Office Swearing In Honorable Amy Lyn Blake as Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Appeals Court (1/28)

  At a ceremony in the John Adams Courthouse in Boston, Governor Maura Healey today administered the ceremonial Oath of Office to the Honorable Amy Lyn Blake, swearing her in as Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Appeals Court. Chief Justice Blake was administered the official Oath of Office on November 14, 2024. Read Full Article