In  L.W.K. v. E.R.C., 432 Mass. 438 (2000), the Supreme Judicial Court held that a child support obligation survives death. In part, the majority held: “A legally enforceable obligation to pay child support, like other financial obligations of the testator, takes precedence over testamentary dispositions and   …Continue Reading Child Support After Parent’s Death

In Commonwealth v. Santiago, the Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled yesterday that the mere presence of a pit bull is insufficient to justify a no-knock entry. The court said, in part, “While we agree with the Commonwealth that a pit bull (or a mutt) may, under   …Continue Reading Pit Bull Won’t Justify No-Knock Warrant

Attorney General Martha Coakley announced yesterday that a Suffolk Grand Jury issued an indictment for involuntary manslaughter to Powers Fasteners, Inc. , the epoxy supplier, for their role in the Big Dig ceiling collapse last summer. According to Coakley, the company knew that the epoxy   …Continue Reading Corporate Manslaughter Charge in Big Dig

How do you get that section symbol into a document? Well, you can hunt it down under the Insert drop down menu, and select Symbols, then look for it in that maze of symbols, OR… hold the Alt key and type 0167. (It’s like magic.)   …Continue Reading §

Now that the high season for taxes is over, this bit of code caught our attention. In December, a new federal tax whistleblower statute took effect. The federal statute, title 26 section 7623 is brief, and interesting. It will award payments of between 15 and   …Continue Reading Whistleblowing for taxes

The Supreme Judicial Court yesterday released a decision which allowed the Lowell Housing Authority to evict a tenant for criminal activity that did not occur on the premises. In LHA v. Melendez, the court held that the statute allows for eviction for criminal activity that   …Continue Reading Eviction upheld for criminal activity

The SJC issued an opinion in Eagle-Tribune Publishing Company v. Clerk Magistrate of the Lawrence Division of the District Court Department  yesterday. In this case, the court held that a show-cause hearing need not be open to the public. The proceeding is held primarily for the benefit   …Continue Reading No Right of Access to Show-Cause Hearings

This week, the Massachusetts legislature voted 62-134 to put the proposed constitutional amendment to limit marriage on the November 2008 ballot. The measure needed only 50 votes to pass. It will need to pass again in next year’s legislative session to be placed on the   …Continue Reading Same-Sex Marriage Amendment Advances