Massachusetts Appeals Court

Old Suffolk County, MA Courthouse

 

Massachusetts Appeals Court
Court information
Judges:	25
Salary:	Associates: $213,924
Judicial selection
Method:	Assisted appointment with approval of Governor's Council
Term:	Until age 70

The Massachusetts Appeals Court is the intermediate appellate court in Massachusetts. Justices of the appeals court review decisions from the trial court, as well as decisions of state agencies such as the Appellate Tax Board and the Commonwealth Employment Relations Board. Appeals court justices only review decisions for errors of law and whether those errors affected the outcome of the case. They do not retry cases or make factual determinations.

There are 25 statutory justices, including a chief justice, and they sit in panels of three. Sometimes, the court recalls retired appellate justices as well. In addition to the three-justice panels, there is a continuous single-justice session with a separate docket. This justice may review interlocutory orders and orders for injunctive relief issued by trial court departments. The justice may also review requests for review of summary process appeal bonds, attorney's fee awards, motions for stays and motions to review impoundment orders. Each associate justice sits as a single justice for a month at a time.

The majority of appeals are decided by the appeals court, but some are transferred to the supreme judicial court. Some appeals do not go to the appeals court at all; first-degree murder cases go directly to the supreme judicial court. Some civil cases go to the appellate division of the district court.

• Published opinions of the Massachusetts Appeals Court can be found here.

Justices

Judges of the Massachusetts Appeals Court are referred to as "justices."

Judge	Tenure	Appointed By
Kenneth V. Desmond Jr.	2016 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Peter Sacks	2016 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Vickie L. Henry	December 22, 2015 - Present	Charles D. Baker
John C. Englander	December 6, 2017 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Kathryn E. Hand	2019 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Amy Lyn Blake	September 9, 2014 - Present	Deval Patrick
Ariane D. Vuono	March 7, 2006 - Present	Mitt Romney
James R. Milkey	April 8, 2009 - Present	Deval Patrick
Peter J. Rubin	January 15, 2008 - Present	Deval Patrick
William J. Meade	December 22, 2006 - Present	Mitt Romney
Gregory I. Massing	September 20, 2014 - Present	Deval Patrick
Eric Neyman	December 15, 2015 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Sookyoung Shin	2016 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Joseph Ditkoff	April 19, 2017 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Sabita Singh	July 5, 2017 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Rachel E. Hershfang	2021 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Marguerite T. Grant	October 16, 2020 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Paul H. Smyth	2022 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Christopher P. Hodgens	2022 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Maureen E. Walsh	May 17, 2021 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Robert Brennan	July 24, 2022 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Andrew M. D'Angelo	November 16, 2022 - Present	Charles D. Baker
Chauncey Wood	December 4, 2024 - Present	Maura Healey
Gloria Y. Tan	December 4, 2024 - Present	Maura Healey

Former justices

• Peter W. Agnes, Jr.
• Judd J. Carhart
• Francis R. Fecteau
• Malcolm Graham
• Andrew Grainger
• Joseph Grasso
• Mark V. Green
• Sydney Hanlon
• R. Marc Kantrowitz
• C. Jeffrey Kinder
• James R. Lemire
• Diana L. Maldonado
• Edward J. McDonough Jr.
• Phillip Rapoza
• Mitchell Sikora
• Mary T. Sullivan
• Dalila Wendlandt
• Gabrielle Wolohojian

Judicial selection

See also: Judicial selection in Massachusetts

The 25 justices of the Massachusetts Appeals Court are appointed by the governor with advice from a judicial nominating commission and approval of the Governor's Council.

Qualifications

To serve on the appeals court, a justice must:

• be a U.S. citizen;
• be a state resident;
• be a state bar member in good standing; and
• have 13 years of legal experience and training;
• under the age of 70 (retirement at 70 is mandatory).

Chief justice

The chief judge of the court of appeals is also appointed by the governor with council approval. The governor appoints the chief justice with advice from the nominating commission and approval from the Governor's Council. The appeals court chief serves until age 70. The current chief judge of the court is Amy Lyn Blake.

Vacancies

Vacancies on the appeals court are filled by the governor with council approval and serve until age 70.

Salary

In 2024, the associate judges of the court received a salary of $213,924, according to the National Center for State Courts.

Ethics

The Massachusetts Code of Judicial Conduct sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in Massachusetts. It is composed of eight canons:

• Canon 1: "A judge shall uphold and promote the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary, and shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety."
• Canon 2: "A judge shall perform the duties of judicial office impartially, competently, and diligently."
• Canon 3: "A judge shall conduct the judge’s personal and extrajudicial activities to minimize the risk of conflict with the obligations of judicial office."
• Canon 4: "A judge Shall Refrain from political activity that is inconsistent with the independence, integrity, or impartiality of the judiciary."

The full text of the Massachusetts Code of Judicial Conduct can be found here.

Removal of judges

Judges in Massachusetts may be removed in one of three ways:

• By the supreme court at the recommendation of the commission on judicial conduct, which investigates complaints and conducts formal hearings.
• By the governor, with consent of the governor's council, upon joint address of both houses of the general court. This includes retiring judges because of advanced age or disability.
• By senate conviction after impeachment in the house of representatives.

State profile

Demographic data for Massachusetts
	Massachusetts	U.S.
Total population:	6,784,240	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	7,800	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	79.6%	73.6%
Black/African American:	7.1%	12.6%
Asian:	6%	5.1%
Native American:	0.2%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.9%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	10.6%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	89.8%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	40.5%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$68,563	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	13.1%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Massachusetts. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Massachusetts

Massachusetts voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

More Massachusetts coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in Massachusetts
• United States congressional delegations from Massachusetts
• Public policy in Massachusetts
• Endorsers in Massachusetts
• Massachusetts fact checks
• More...

See also

Massachusetts	Judicial Selection	More Courts
Courts in Massachusetts Massachusetts Appeals Court Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court	Elections: 2025 • 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 Gubernatorial appointments Judicial selection in Massachusetts	Federal courts State courts Local courts

External links

• Mass.gov, "Appeals Court Justices"
• Mass.gov, "Appeals Court"

Footnotes

Massachusetts courts

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Federal courts:

First Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Massachusetts • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Massachusetts

State courts:

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court • Massachusetts Appeals Court • Massachusetts Superior Courts • Massachusetts District Courts • Massachusetts Housing Courts • Massachusetts Juvenile Courts • Massachusetts Land Courts • Massachusetts Probate and Family Courts • Boston Municipal Courts, Massachusetts

State resources:

Courts in Massachusetts • Massachusetts judicial elections • Judicial selection in Massachusetts