Chapter 211

Section 1. The supreme judicial court shall consist of one chief justice and six associate justices.

Section 10. If, upon the hearing of an appeal in any proceeding, it appears that the appeal is frivolous, immaterial or intended for delay, the court may, either upon motion of a party or of its own motion, award against the appellant double costs from the time when the appeal wa…

Section 12. The supreme judicial court shall hold sittings for the hearing and determination of questions of law arising in any cases at such times and places as the court shall by rule determine, and any such sittings may be adjourned to such places and times as shall appear to …

Section 14. The full court sitting in any county, or for the commonwealth, shall have jurisdiction of all questions of law and of all cases and matters at law or in equity, civil or criminal, which arise in any county other than that in or for which it is sitting, and which might…

Section 15. The exceptions alleged at the trial of a criminal case in any county, not subject to the provisions of sections thirty-three A to thirty-three G, inclusive, of chapter two hundred and seventy-eight in accordance with said provisions or not made subject thereto by orde…

Section 16. If the justice before whom an action or proceeding is tried in the supreme judicial court or the superior court in counties other than Barnstable, Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth or Suffolk considers that a question of law which arises for the determination of the…

Section 17. Jury sittings of the court shall be held by one justice, who shall have all the powers not expressly reserved to the full court. If there are pending before the court in the respective counties matters requiring trial by jury, such sittings shall be held in the county…

Section 18. If the public business so requires, the court may adjourn an established sitting for the county of Bristol from either Taunton or New Bedford to Fall River, in the manner and with the effect of an adjournment to another shire town; and such adjournment shall be subjec…

Section 19. An action, suit or proceeding arising or pending in the county of Nantucket, which is cognizable by the supreme judicial court and which is to be heard before one justice, shall be entered, heard, tried and determined at the court held in the county of Bristol, in all…

Section 2. The full court shall be the supreme judicial court in banc, and four justices shall constitute a quorum to decide all matters required to be heard by it.

Section 20. Four or more justices present at a jury sitting shall have the powers of a full court. One justice present at a law sitting shall have the same authority as at a jury sitting.

Section 21. The full court, sitting for the commonwealth, shall examine and audit all accounts for services and expenses incident to said court, and they shall be paid by the commonwealth.

Section 22. The chief justice shall receive a salary of $232,101 and each associate justice shall receive a salary of $226,187 and the chief justice and each associate justice shall annually receive from the commonwealth upon the certificate of the chief justice the amount of exp…

Section 23. The justices of the court shall be allowed annually law clerks, stenographers, other clerical assistance and any other personnel that said justices may from time to time deem necessary.

Section 24. (a) A retired chief justice or associate justice of the supreme judicial court whose name has been placed on the list of retired justices pursuant to section sixty-five E of chapter thirty-two may be designated and assigned by the chief justice of the supreme judicial…

Section 25. There is hereby created under the superintendence of the supreme judicial court, hereinafter called the court, a disability benefits project, hereinafter called the project, for the exclusive purpose of providing increased legal assistance for mentally or physically d…

Section 26. A majority of the supreme judicial court, in consultation with the chief justice of the trial court shall design and implement a program for performance evaluation of judges. The sole purpose of said program shall be the improvement of the performance of individual ju…

Section 26A. The program for performance evaluation, as described in section twenty-six of this chapter, shall include, but not be limited to, a questionnaire, to be designed and implemented by the supreme judicial court. Said questionnaires shall be given to attorneys, parties a…

Section 26B. The majority of the supreme judicial court shall establish judicial evaluation standards which individual judges must achieve during the evaluation process and shall design and implement programs for judges to attend who fail to achieve judicial evaluation standards.…

Section 27. The supreme judicial court may adopt rules requiring the justices of the commonwealth to participate in pre-service and in-service training programs for such periods and at such intervals as it deems advisable, and providing for the administration of such training req…

Section 28. The chief justice of the supreme judicial court may grant a leave of absence for study, research, teaching, or such other reason as said chief justice deems appropriate to the improved administration of justice, to a justice of said court, said leave to be for a perio…

Section 2A. The chief justice of the supreme judicial court in consultation with the chief justice of the trial court and the court administrator shall periodically prepare a statement of all expenses and costs, including salaries, for the supreme judicial court. Said chief justi…

Section 3. The supreme judicial court shall have general superintendence of all courts of inferior jurisdiction to correct and prevent errors and abuses therein if no other remedy is expressly provided; and it may issue all writs and processes to such courts and to corporations a…

Section 3A. The justices of the supreme judicial court may appoint an administrative assistant who shall have such powers and perform such duties as the justices shall determine. The salary of said administrative assistant shall be set by the justice of the supreme judicial court…

Section 3B. The justices of the supreme judicial court may provide by rule or special order for the holding of conferences of the judges of the various courts and of invited members of the bar, for the consideration of matters relating to judicial business, the improvement of the…

Section 4. A majority of the justices may, if in their judgment the public good so requires, remove from office a clerk of the courts or of their own court; and if sufficient cause is shown therefor and it appears that the public good so requires, may, upon a complaint, upon a su…

Section 4A. The supreme judicial court or a justice thereof may transfer for partial or final disposition in any appropriate lower court any cause or matter which might otherwise be disposed of by a single justice, and said lower court shall thereupon have jurisdiction thereof, s…

Section 5. Questions of law arising upon exceptions, report, or appeal shall be heard and determined by the full court.

Section 6. Questions of law arising upon a trial or other proceeding, or upon a motion for a new trial by reason of an opinion, direction, order or refusal of one justice in matter of law, may be reserved for the consideration of the full court, and so much of the case as is nece…

Section 7. Unless the court for cause shown directs otherwise, questions of law in criminal cases which are entered upon the docket of the full court shall be argued in their order and before any civil cases are argued, and thereafter questions of law in civil cases which are ent…

Section 8. The full court shall, as soon as may be after the decision of the questions submitted to it, make and enter a proper order, direction or judgment for the further disposition of the case, or cause a rescript, containing a brief statement of the grounds and reasons of th…

Section 9. The records and rescripts which are made after the decision of questions of law shall contain a brief statement of the reasons therefor; and if no further opinion is written within sixty days, the reporter shall publish the case with the opinion contained in such recor…