Continuing Confusion Concerning Massachusetts Superior Court Rules 9A and 9C
by Hon. Robert B. Gordon and Hon. Debra A. Squires-Lee Voice of the Judiciary Commentators have written a good deal about the changes to Massachusetts Superior Court Rules 9A and 9C that went into...
View ArticleGoodbye Substantial Contributing Factor: SJC Redefines the Massachusetts...
by Jennifer A. Creedon and Stephanie M. Gazda Legal Analysis In Doull v. Foster, 487 Mass. 1 (2021) (“Doull”), the Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) adopted a but-for factual causation standard as set...
View ArticleConfronting an Accuser via Zoom: The SJC Considers the Constitutionality of...
by Brett D. Lovins Case Focus In Vazquez Diaz v. Commonwealth, 487 Mass. 336 (2021), the Supreme Judicial Court confronted the novel question of whether, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a virtual...
View ArticleCareful Scrutiny: The SJC and Mandatory Sentencing Laws
by Jared B. Cohen Legal Analysis The Supreme Judicial Court has long grappled with mandatory sentencing laws, expressing considerable skepticism and concern about their efficacy and fairness. Statutes...
View ArticleSJC “Likes” Aspects of Facebook’s Work Product Argument
by Bret Cohen, Jillian Hart, and Matthew Brown Case Focus The Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) recently issued its anticipated decision in Attorney General v. Facebook, Inc., 487 Mass. 109 (2021),...
View ArticleChief Justice Fabricant Retirement Reflections
Interview with Superior Court Chief Justice Judith Fabricant by Hon. Debra Squires-Lee Voice of the Judiciary As an Associate Justice of the Superior Court, I had the opportunity to interview Superior...
View ArticleHornibrook v. Richard: Massachusetts Conservators Granted Quasi-Judicial...
by Owen Vanderkolk Law Student Feature – Case Focus Over the summer of 2021, while headlines related to the overreach and misconduct of Britney Spears’s conservatorship captivated the public,...
View ArticleRevisiting Motions to Sanction Faithless Litigants and / or their Faithless...
by Hon. Mitchell Kaplan (Ret.) Voice of the Judiciary I was asked to write a “View from the Bench” concerning my experiences and impressions in ruling on motions brought under Mass. R. Civ. P....
View ArticleNew MBTA Communities Zoning Law Makes it Easier to Create the Homes the...
by Eric Shupin, Abhidnya Kurve, and Dana LeWinter Heads Up As home prices and rents continue to rise at rates that far outpace incomes, particularly for people with low wages, Massachusetts has put a...
View ArticleMassachusetts High Courts Weigh In On the Limits of Local Control Over...
by Stephen Bartlett Legal Analysis I. Introduction Within the past year, the Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) and Appeals Court provided some clarity on the role of municipalities in the...
View ArticleUnderstanding the Role of “Outside Sections” in Massachusetts Law
by Tara Myslinski Practice Tips In Massachusetts, fiscal appropriations bills often contain “outside sections,” which are pieces of legislation that may – but frequently do not – relate to the...
View ArticleTaking on Past Injustices: New Land Court Procedure Offers Solutions to...
by Lauren Reznick Voice of the Judiciary “No part of the land hereby conveyed or any of the improvements thereon shall ever be sold, leased, traded, deeded or donated to any one other than of the...
View ArticleMentoring the Next Generation
by Joshua Levy The Profession It is a fundamental tenet of the legal profession that lawyers should give back to the communities they serve. Generally embodied by the requirement that lawyers...
View ArticleAddressing Hate Crimes: Massachusetts Can Do Better
by Madison Bader & Christina Miller Legal Analysis Incidents of hate crimes in the United States surged to the highest level in twelve years in 2020.[1] With 7,759 hate-based incidents and 10,532...
View ArticleThe Inevitable Disclosure Doctrine In Employment Litigation: Two Perspectives
Point/ Counterpoint Introduction Imagine this scenario: A Chief Marketing Officer develops a strategic marketing plan for employer X then resigns to join a direct competitor Y in the same role where...
View ArticleJudge Paula M. Carey: A Lifetime of Service
by Trial Court Chief Justices Voice of the Judiciary After twenty years of public service, Chief Justice Paula Carey retired in January. What follows are reflections from the Trial Court Chief...
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