The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts (in

case citation Case citation is a system used by legal professionals to identify past court case decisions, either in series of books called Reporter (law), reporters or law reports, or in a neutral style that identifies a decision regardless of where it is re ...

s, D. Mass.) is the

federal district court The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

whose territorial jurisdiction is the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with " republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from th ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, United States. The first court session was held in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

in 1789. The second term was held in Salem in 1790 and court session locations alternated between the two cities until 1813. That year, Boston became the court's permanent home. A western division was opened in Springfield in 1979 and a central division was opened in Worcester in 1987. The court's main building is the

John Joseph Moakley Federal Courthouse The John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse is a federal courthouse for the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, located on Fan Pier on the Boston, Mas ...

on Fan Pier in

South Boston South Boston is a densely populated neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located south and east of the Fort Point Channel and abutting Dorchester Bay. South Boston, colloquially known as Southie, has undergone several demographic transformati ...

. Appeals from the District of Massachusetts are heard by the

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (in case citations, 1st Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Maine * District of Massachusetts * ...

, also located in the Moakley courthouse (except for

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling disclo ...

claims and claims against the U.S. government under the

Tucker Act The Tucker Act (March 3, 1887, ch. 359, , ) is a federal statute of the United States by which the United States government has waived its sovereign immunity with respect to certain lawsuits. The Tucker Act may be divided into the "Big" Tucker ...

, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).

U.S. Attorney's Office

The United States Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts represents the United States in civil and criminal litigation in the court. the Senate-confirmed U.S. Attorney is Rachael Rollins.

Federal Public Defender's Office

The Federal Public Defender's Office represents individuals who cannot afford to hire a lawyer in federal criminal cases and related matters. The office is assigned to cases by the district courts in three districts (New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts), and by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

Current judges

Vacancies and pending nominations

Former judges

Chief judges

Succession of seats

List of U.S. Attorneys

Notable cases

*''

Ghen v. Rich ''Ghen v. Rich'', 8 F. 159 (1881), is an American property law case from the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts involving ownership of a dead whale. The case is frequently used to illustrate the difficulties of esta ...

'' (1881) (a whale is the property of the whaler who killed it, and not the person who found it dead on the beach). *''

2019 college admissions bribery scandal In 2019, a scandal arose over a criminal conspiracy to influence undergraduate admissions decisions at several top American universities. The investigation into the conspiracy was code named Operation Varsity Blues. The investigation and r ...

'' (2019)

References

External links

United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts Official WebsiteUnited States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Official WebsiteUnited States Marshal for the District of Massachusetts Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts

Massachusetts law Government of Boston Salem, Massachusetts Springfield, Massachusetts Worcester, Massachusetts 1789 establishments in Massachusetts Courthouses in Massachusetts Courts and tribunals established in 1789