Supreme Judicial Court

The state's highest court has for the first time set legal guidelines for when and how parents can use spanking to discipline their children. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court said Thursday that spanking or other forms of mild physical punishment of a minor child are permissible if the force used is ``reasonable,'' and is ultimately for the purpose of helping a child by preventing or punish

The state's highest court has ruled that thousands of defendants convicted of drug crimes after a chemist in a Massachusetts lab tampered with evidence cannot be charged with a more serious crime or given a harsher sentence if they seek a new trial...

Massachusetts' highest court has heard arguments about a law critics say unfairly limits free speech during state elections. The 1946 law bans the publishing of false statements about candidates meant to affect their chances on Election Day...

The Supreme Judicial Court has ruled against the Bristol County District Attorney's Office regarding witness testimony in the Aaron Hernandez trial.

The Bristol County District Attorney's Office has filed an appeal with the Supreme Judicial Court regarding witness testimony in the Aaron Hernandez Trial.

The state's highest court says juveniles convicted of first-degree murder are entitled to public funds for lawyers and expert witnesses at parole board hearings. Monday's 5-2 ruling by the Supreme Judicial Court builds on a December 2013 ruling that found mandatory life sentences for juveniles without the possibility of parole unconstitutional...

The highest court in Massachusetts has overturned a murder conviction in the 2005 slaying of a man in New Bedford and ordered a new trial. The Supreme Judicial Court on Friday ruled that a lower court judge should not have allowed a secretly recorded prison confession to be admitted as evidence in the case against John Burgos...

The state's highest court has reduced penalties imposed against two electric utilities by Massachusetts regulators for their poor responses to a pair of 2011 storms that left hundreds of thousands of customers without power for days. The Department of Public Utilities fined National Grid $18...

The highest court in Massachusetts has overturned a first-degree murder conviction against a man who stabbed his girlfriend to death, finding that jurors should have been told they could consider the man's consumption of alcohol when determining whether he acted in a cruel or atrocious manner...

State Treasurer and Democratic candidate for Governor Steve Grossman made several stops on the Southcoast Wednesday, highlighting advanced manufacturing and health care in the region. During a stop at St. Lukes Hospital to view some new construction there, Grossman said he supported the Supreme Judical Court's decision to allow Massachusetts residents to vote up or down on the state's casino law..