
2024 edition of the Massachusetts Guide to Evidence now available
The Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) and its Advisory Committee on Massachusetts Evidence Law last week announced the release of the 2024 edition of the Massachusetts Guide to Evidence. Like the 2023 edition, the guide is printed in a large format with a durable spiral binding, enabling readers to lay the book down flat for ease of use.
The justices of the SJC recommend use of the guide by the bench, bar, and public.
“First published in 2008, the Guide has become an invaluable resource for attorneys, judges, and self-represented litigants,” said SJC Chief Justice Kimberly S. Budd. “In this most recent and sixteenth edition, the Advisory Committee has continued not only to provide updates on important Massachusetts state evidentiary developments from the past year, but also to significantly revise existing sections, such as Section 606 (Juror’s Competency as a Witness), to make them more accessible and useful for users. The Justices are grateful for the committee’s dedication to this important work.”
The Massachusetts Guide to Evidence assembles existing Massachusetts evidence law in an easy-to-use document organized similarly to the Federal Rules of Evidence. The guide includes extensive explanatory notes and citations to pertinent authorities.
An
electronic version of the guide is available without charge on the court's website, where it can be searched and downloaded. The Official Print Edition is published by the Flaschner Judicial Institute, which is again providing a complimentary copy to every sitting judge in the commonwealth. The 2024 guide will be available for purchase from the
Flaschner Judicial Institute and
Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.
The 2024 edition of the guide incorporates 41 opinions issued by the SJC and the Appeals Court between Jan. 1, 2023 ,and Dec. 31, 2023, and a number of additional appellate court decisions that did not appear in prior editions.
In 2006, the SJC established the Advisory Committee to prepare a Massachusetts Guide to Evidence at the request of the Massachusetts Bar Association, the Boston Bar Association and the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys. Since 2008, the SJC has appointed a standing committee to monitor and incorporate new legal developments and produce annual new editions of the guide.
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CPCS to present Annual Awards Ceremony on May 21
The Committee for Public Counsel Services will hold its 2024 Annual Awards Ceremony to honor members of its staff and the private bar at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21, at Suffolk University Law School, 120 Tremont St., Boston.
Click here to register to attend in person and here to register for the remote livestream.
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Women's Bar Association holding Pioneering Women of Color Celebration, June 5
The Women’s Bar Association of Massachusetts (WBA) and its Women of Color Committee will present their annual Pioneering Women of Color Celebration on Wednesday, June 5, at 5:30 p.m. At the event, the WBA will honor attorney Angela Gomes of Sullivan & Worcester and Hon. Dalila Argaez Wendlandt of the Supreme Judicial Court.
Click here for more information.