The Supreme Judicial Court's Standing Advisory Committee on the Rules of Civil Procedure (SAC) invites comments on proposed amendments to Rule 63 of the Massachusetts Rules of Civil Procedure. The proposed amendments broaden the current provisions dealing with the incapacity of a judge in a civil action.
As described in the draft Reporter’s Notes, the amendments would allow the Chief Justice of the court to assign another judge to complete a trial where the trial judge has become “unavailable” after a trial has begun. They also make clear that any judge of the court may receive a jury verdict. There is no requirement of incapacity or disability to do so.
A redline showing changes from the current rule, a clean copy of proposed amendments, and draft Reporter’s Notes are linked below.
Comments should be directed to Christine Burak, Supreme Judicial Court, John Adams Courthouse, One Pemberton Square, Boston, MA 02108 on or before October 6, 2023. Comments also may be emailed to christine.burak@jud.state.ma.us. Comments received will be made available to the public.
Redline showing proposed Amendments to Mass. R. Civ. P. 63