42°21′33″N71°03′39″W / 42.359297°N 71.060954°W /42.359297; -71.060954

Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
Seal with motto "Nulli vendemus, nulli negabimus aut differemus, rectum aut justitiam" (To no one will we sell, to no one deny or delay right or justice)
Interactive map of Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
42°21′32.75″N71°3′40.5″W / 42.3590972°N 71.061250°W /42.3590972; -71.061250
Established	1692; 333 years ago (1692)
Location	Boston,Massachusetts, U.S.
Coordinates	42°21′32.75″N71°3′40.5″W / 42.3590972°N 71.061250°W /42.3590972; -71.061250
Composition method	Executive appointments withquasi-legislative consent
Authorised by	Massachusetts Constitution
Appeals to	Supreme Court of the United States
Judge term length	Mandatory retirement at 70 years of age
Number of positions	7
Website	Official website
Chief Justice
Currently	Kimberly S. Budd
Since	December 1, 2020
Lead position ends	October 23, 2036

TheMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is thehighest court in theCommonwealth ofMassachusetts. Although the claim is disputed by theSupreme Court of Pennsylvania,^[1][2] the SJC claims the distinction of being the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in theAmericas,^[3] with a recognized history dating to the establishment of theMassachusetts Superior Court of Judicature in 1692 under the charter of theProvince of Massachusetts Bay.^{[4][nb 1]}

Although it was historically composed of four associate justices and one chief justice, the court is currently composed of six associate justices and one chief justice. Like the State ofMaine, Massachusetts prefixes the name of its highest court with 'Judicial' to avoid confusion with theMassachusetts General Court, the state's legislature.

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court traces its history back to the high court of the BritishProvince of Massachusetts Bay, which was chartered in 1692. Under the terms of that charter, Governor SirWilliam Phips established the Superior Court of Judicature as the province's localcourt of last resort (some of the court's decisions could be appealed to courts in England). When theMassachusetts State Constitution was established in 1780, legislative and judicial records show that the state's high court, although renamed, was a continuation of provincial high court. During and after the period of theAmerican Revolution the court had members who were appointed by royal governors, the executive council of theMassachusetts Provincial Congress (which acted as the state's executive from 1775 to 1780), and governors elected under the state constitution.

The SJC sits at theJohn Adams Courthouse, OnePemberton Square,Boston, Massachusetts 02108, which also houses theMassachusetts Appeals Court and theSocial Law Library.^[6] The legal citation for the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court is "Mass."

• Rex v. Preston (1770) – CaptainThomas Preston, the Officer of the Day during theBoston Massacre, was acquitted when the jury was unable to determine whether he had ordered the troops to fire. The defense counsel in the case was a young attorney namedJohn Adams, later the secondPresident of the United States.^[7]
• Rex v. Wemms, et al. (1770) – Six soldiers involved in theBoston Massacre were found not guilty, and two more – the only two proven to have fired – were found guilty of manslaughter.^[8]
• Commonwealth v. Nathaniel Jennison (1783) – The Court declaredslaveryunconstitutional in the state of Massachusetts by allowing slaves tosue their masters for freedom. Boston lawyer, and member of the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention of 1779,John Lowell, upon the adoption of Article I for inclusion in theMassachusetts Constitution, exclaimed: "I will render my services as a lawyer gratis to any slave suing for his freedom if it is withheld from him ..."^[9] With this case, he fulfilled his promise. Slavery in Massachusetts was denied legal standing.
• Commonwealth v. Hunt (1842) – The Court established thattrade unions were not necessarily criminal or conspiring organizations if they did not advocate violence or illegal activities in their attempts to gain recognition through striking. This legalized the existence of non-socialist ornon-violent trade organizations, though trade unions would continue to be harassed legally throughanti-trust suits and injunctions.
• Roberts v. Boston (1850) – The Court established the "separate but equal" doctrine that would later be used inPlessy v. Ferguson by maintaining that the law gaveschool boards complete authority in assigning students to schools and that they could do so along racial lines if they deemed it appropriate.
• Goodridge v. Department of Public Health (2003) – The Court ruled 4–3 that the denial ofmarriage licenses tosame-sex couples violated the Massachusetts Constitution. The decision was stayed for 180 days to allow the legislature time to amend the law to comply with the decision. In December 2003, the state Senate asked the SJC whether "civil unions" would comply with their ruling. The SJC replied that civil unions were insufficient, and civil marriage was required. The legislature made no further action, and the stay expired on May 17, 2004. The state began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples the same day. This decision was one of the first in the world to find that same-sex couples have a right to marry.

The Court consists of aChief Justice and sixAssociate Justices appointed by theGovernor of Massachusetts with the consent of theGovernor's Council.

The Justices hold office until themandatory retirement age of seventy, like all other Massachusetts judges since 1972.

Chief JusticeKimberly S. Budd

Associate JusticeFrank Gaziano

Associate JusticeScott L. Kafker

Associate JusticeDalila Argaez Wendlandt

Associate JusticeSerge Georges Jr.

Associate JusticeBessie Dewar

Associate JusticeGabrielle Wolohojian

• William Cushing,Associate Justice of theSupreme Court of the United States (1790–1810)
• Charles Devens,United States Attorney General (1877–81)
• Charles Fried,United States Solicitor General (1985–89)
• Horace Gray,Associate Justice of theSupreme Court of the United States (1882–1902)
• Ebenezer R. Hoar,United States Attorney General (1869–70)
• Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.,Associate Justice of theSupreme Court of the United States (1902–32)
• Lemuel Shaw, Chief Justice, father-in-law ofHerman Melville
• Theophilus Parsons, Federalist leader, Constitutional scholar

• Davis, William (1900).History of the Judiciary of Massachusetts
• Massachusetts Civil List for the Colonial and Provincial Periods
• Reno, Conrad.Memoirs of the Judiciary and the Bar of New England, Volume 1

Wikimedia Commons has media related toSupreme Court of Massachusetts.

• Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts
• List of Chief Justices of the Supreme Judicial Court (since 1801)
• Office of the Reporter of Decisions of the SJC
• Supreme Judicial Court,hdl:2452/36895. (Various documents).
• Gay-Marriage Decision: Just the Beginning of the Debate
• Memoirs v. Massachusetts
• Simpson's Contemporary Quotations
• Supreme Judicial Court Oral Arguments Archive

• Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
• State supreme courts of the United States
• Massachusetts state courts
• 1692 establishments in the Province of Massachusetts Bay
• Government Center, Boston
• Courts and tribunals established in 1692

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