Media Advisory

PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE
SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT
John Adams Courthouse
One Pemberton Square
Boston , MA 02108

CONTACT: Tina LaFranchi, Esq. General Counsel Massachusetts Appeals Court 617-626-7914 tina.lafranchi@appct.state.ma.us FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 22, 2012 MASSACHUSETTS APPEALS COURT TO SIT AT UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS - BOSTON CAMPUS ON MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012 What: A panel of three justices of the Massachusetts Appeals Court will hear oral arguments in six appeals in a special session to be held on the campus of University of Massachusetts, located in Boston. The sitting, part of the Appeals Court's educational outreach program, is open to the public.  Teachers and students from UMass Boston are expected to attend and have been participating in classroom discussions conducted by Attorney Denise Kenneally, a member of the Appeals Court staff and UMass-Boston alumna.  Richard Campbell, Esq., also an alumnus, President of the Mass. Bar Association and a member of the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees, will welcome the court in a brief ceremony at the start of the session.   Oral arguments for each case take approximately thirty minutes.  Seating is on a first come, first served basis.  The SJC Rule for cameras in the courtroom will apply: http://www.massreports.com/courtrules/sjcrules.aspx#Rule1:19.  Interested media representatives should contact Tina LaFranchi in advance of the sitting.   Immediately following the session, members of the panel, Chief Justice Phillip Rapoza, Hon. Scott Kafker and Hon. William Meade, will conduct an informal question and answer period for the students on general topics related to the role of Massachusetts Appeals Court.  (Pending matters will not be discussed.)   When: Monday March 5, 2012 9:30 a.m. Where: UMass – Boston Healey Library, Room 0011, 11th Floor 100 Morrissey Boulevard Boston, MA 02125 Background: Established in 1972, the Appeals Court is an intermediate court of general appellate jurisdiction. Most appeals from the several Departments of the Trial Court are entered initially in the Appeals Court; some are then transferred to the Supreme Judicial Court, but a large majority will be decided by the Appeals Court. The Appeals Court also has jurisdiction over appeals from final decisions of three State agencies: the Appellate Tax Board, the Department of Industrial Accidents and the Commonwealth Employment Relations Board. More information about the court and the cases scheduled for argument may be obtained from the court's website, http://www.mass.gov/courts/appealscourt.