Guideline 1:04
Public access to documents and case files in harassment prevention proceedings is governed by c. 258E and by the law and procedures for impoundment of court records generally.
Pursuant to G.L. c. 258E, § 10, records of harassment prevention order proceedings where the plaintiff or defendant is a minor (person under the age of eighteen) are to be withheld from public inspection except by order of the court. Without a court order, access is limited to the parties, their attorneys, or the minor’s parent(s)/guardian(s).
Records of harassment prevention order proceedings where the parties are adults are available for public inspection, except for the plaintiff’s residential address and residential telephone number, and the plaintiff’s workplace name, address, and telephone number, absent an order of the court. The plaintiff’s residential and workplace addresses, however, should appear on the order and be accessible to the defendant and the defendant’s attorney unless the plaintiff specifically requests that such information be withheld. If the plaintiff so requests, that information should not be included on the order and should not be disclosed to the defendant. In such cases, stay-away orders should be framed in terms of “wherever that may be,” and the appropriate boxes should be checked so that the addresses will not appear on the order. Because the address information will therefore not be entered on the order or entered into the Department of Criminal Justice Information System (DCJIS), the address information is not accessible to law enforcement except during the business hours of the court. The plaintiff should be advised of this as the plaintiff may choose to notify the police department of their address in the event law enforcement response is needed.
The plaintiff must provide to the court the information they want to keep confidential on the Plaintiff Confidential Information Form. This form is kept by the court but is not part of the public record. A substitute residential and/or workplace address, such as a post office box, may be used where safety requires, such as when a plaintiff resides in a confidential domestic violence shelter. Confidential information shall be accessible at all reasonable times to the plaintiff and plaintiff’s attorney, to those specifically authorized by the plaintiff to obtain such information and, if necessary, to prosecutors, victim witness advocates, domestic violence victim counselors, sexual assault counselors, and law enforcement officers, in the performance of their duties. Before providing any confidential information to an authorized person, the clerk’s office should request identification to verify that the requestor is an authorized person and may require a written request on a Request for Access to Plaintiff Confidential Information.
The confidentiality provisions of § 10 apply to any protection order issued by another jurisdiction that is filed with the court pursuant to G.L. c. 258E, § 7. Confidential portions of the record are not deemed to be public records under the provisions of G.L. c. 4, § 7, clause 26. G.L. c. 258E, § 10.
The plaintiff may also request that other information be impounded, that is, kept confidential from the general public by court order. The plaintiff may use the Motion for Impoundment & Affidavit. See Trial Court Rule VIII: Uniform Rules on Impoundment Procedure. The judge may, on motion of either of the parties or the judge’s own motion, based on the circumstances presented, impound or redact an affidavit or identifying information in the order.
Commentary
Except as noted, judicial records of c. 258E proceedings are presumptively open to the public. Boston Herald, Inc. v. Sharpe, 432 Mass. 593, 608 (2000). See Trial Court Rule XIV: Uniform Rules on Public Access to Court Records. This includes the audio recordings of c. 258E proceedings.
Before providing public access to a c. 258E file involving adult parties, the clerk should review the file and redact or remove the plaintiff’s residential address and residential telephone number, and the plaintiff’s workplace name, workplace address, and workplace telephone number wherever they may appear. This would include photocopies of a plaintiff’s identification for those courts that may keep this information in the file when verifying the identity of a plaintiff who is seeking to terminate a harassment prevention order or to vacate one of its provisions, consistent with Guideline 6:05 Modification of Orders; Terminating Orders; Expungement Standard. Plaintiff safety is the most important aspect of the confidentiality requirements of c. 258E proceedings.
Unless the plaintiff has requested address information to remain confidential, the addresses will be listed on the order. Because this information is only available to a defendant and not to the public generally, before providing a copy of an order that lists the plaintiff’s residential and workplace addresses, the clerk should request identification to confirm that the person is in fact the defendant (or the defendant’s attorney). Similarly, before any confidential information is provided to a person authorized to receive it pursuant to G. L. c. 258E, § 10, the case file should be carefully reviewed to determine if the information has also been impounded by a separate court order.
The court should also be cautious about eliciting the plaintiff’s address information on the record during the hearing as the court’s recording system allows online access to the audio of courtroom proceedings. Plaintiffs should be advised not to give their address information during the ex parte hearing unless specifically asked to do so by the judge. Then, prior to eliciting any address information, a judge can direct the clerk to use the “seal” button on the recording system to impound that portion of the audio. If the clerk does not press the “seal” button prior to address information being disclosed on the record, then the clerk must send an email to mass.support@fortherecord.com, designating the date, court, courtroom, and start and stop time of the segment that should be impounded. This is one of the reasons it is important for clerks to routinely use the barcode scanner each time the case is called.
Under G.L. c. 265, § 24C, the portion of any “records of a court” containing the name of a “victim in an arrest, investigation or complaint” for certain enumerated sexual assault crimes or human trafficking must be withheld from public inspection. Although it is not clear that this section applies to c. 258E orders or affidavits, a judge may decide whether it is appropriate to redact or impound the affidavit or to instruct the clerk’s office to redact the name and identifying information of the victim in court records where the c. 258E complaint is accompanied by a complaint or indictment for offenses set out in G.L. c. 265, § 24C or is based on conduct that would constitute a violation of one of the enumerated statutes. See Guideline 6:00 Initial Orders after Notice: General.
Impounded information is open for inspection by the court, attorneys of record, and the parties, but not the public. See Pixley v. Commonwealth, 453 Mass. 827, 836 n.12 (2009). Per Uniform Rules of Impoundment Procedure (URIP) R. 2, “Any party or interested nonparty may file a written motion for impoundment of a portion or all of the case record in any judicial proceeding.” The motion shall be specific, including the duration of impoundment sought, reasons, proposed findings, a proposed order, and an affidavit in support. An order of impoundment may be entered only upon a written finding of good cause. URIP R. 8. “In determining good cause, the court shall consider all relevant factors, including, but not limited to, (i) the nature of the parties and the controversy, (ii) the type of information and the privacy interests involved, (iii) the extent of community interest, (iv) constitutional rights, and (v) the reason(s) for the request. Agreement of all parties, interested nonparties, or other persons in favor of impoundment shall not, in itself, be sufficient to constitute good cause.” URIP R. 7. An ex parte order of impoundment shall expire ten days from the date of issuance unless otherwise ordered by the court for good cause shown. URIP R. 3(b). In cases where the judge intends the impoundment order to extend past ten days, the judge should specify the duration on the impoundment order.
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| Last updated: | October 20, 2025 |
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