Resource  Court system response to COVID-19

Effective March 23, 2022, wearing a mask to court is encouraged but no longer required for court staff and users. There will no longer be health screening and temperature checks at the door. All courts remain open for in-person business. Court operations, including the use of remote hearings, are governed by standing orders issued by individual court departments.

There are certain circumstances under which users should not come to court. Please see the section Going to court for more information.

Temporary court closures and expiring orders

You can find information about temporary court closures on this page: Temporary court closures due to COVID-19. 

Any order that is set to expire while a courthouse is closed will automatically be extended until the court can address the matter. 

Going to court

You may not enter a courthouse if you:

• Have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 5 days
• Are waiting for COVID-19 test results after experiencing COVID-19 symptoms
• Have been directed to isolate or quarantine
• Currently have COVID-19 symptoms
• Are not up to date on vaccinations and have been in close contact with someone with COVID-19 within the past 5 days

Be sure to check the page Courthouse closures due to COVID-19 to make sure your court is open before going in.

Contacting the court

You can contact the courts by phone. You can also share COVID-19 concerns with the court using this form: Notify the Trial Court of Concerns During COVID-19.

Checking the status of your court case

You can find public case information on MassCourts.org. Please see how to search court dockets online and which types of cases are available to the public online for more information.

If you aren’t sure when your case will be heard or whether your case will be heard in person or virtually, please call your court. You can look up your court’s phone number using the Courthouse Locator.

How to pay court fees

For information on court fees, please see Court Filing Fees & Payment Information.

If you are eFiling, you can pay court fees through eFileMA. Please see Learn about eFiling in the Trial Court for more information.

Jury trials and jury service

Jury trials resumed in Massachusetts state courts on Monday, February 14. 

Eviction

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention moratorium on evictions is no longer in effect as of August 26, 2021 as the result of a United States Supreme Court opinion. Certain protections in non-payment eviction cases are still in effect in Massachusetts. See St. 2020, c. 257, as amended by St. 2021, c. 20, as amended by St. 2022, c.42. Resources about eviction are available online.

Tenants and small landlords can get legal help and information from the Eviction Diversion Initiative. Please see COVID-19 eviction information to learn more.