By statute, the court investigator is required to “investigate the conditions affecting the child1 and to make a [R]eport under oath to the court.” G. L. c. 119, § 24. The investigation report should contain all the facts obtained as a result of the investigation. See G. L. c. 119, § 21A. The Report will assist the court to determine the case management plan, with a focus on achieving timely permanency for the child, and to decide the outcome of the case in a fair and prompt manner.
The Report should contain all the facts obtained as a result of the investigation. See G. L. c. 119, § 21A. Additionally, the Report should be limited to the factual information collected from identified sources. See Custody of Tracy, 31 Mass. App. Ct. at 484. The Report may contain hearsay that is admissible in evidence. See Section V. I. Hearsay. To ensure admissibility, the court investigator must clearly identify the source (person, document, etc.) of any information contained therein by name. See Duro v. Duro, 392 Mass. 574, 579-580 (1984); Custody of Two Minors, 19 Mass. App. Ct. 552, 559 (1985).
Once submitted to the court, the Report is available for inspection by all counsel and is subject to motions in limine (a motion filed by a party that questions the admissibility of certain information). Due to the importance of the Report, these guidelines were created to assist the court investigator with his/her statutory task.
The purpose of the guidelines is to:
- suggest sources the court investigator should use to obtain the facts to be included in the Report
- recommend how to best organize the contents of the Report
- address basic elements that all Reports must contain
- discuss the use of hearsay in the Report
- discuss the propriety of addenda to the Report
- address the “Summary” and/or “Recommendations” sections of the Report