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Zoning – Constructive grant – Comprehensive permit
Where the Edgartown Zoning Board failed to open a hearing on a developer’s comprehensive permit application within 30 days of receipt of the application, that resulted in a constructive grant of the application.
Zoning – Solar facility – Special permit
Where the Northfield planning board denied a request for a special permit to construct a large-scale solar power facility, the board’s decision must be annulled because it does not satisfy the minimum requirements described in Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers of New York., Inc. v. Board of Appeal of Billerica, 454 Mass. 374, 381 (2009).
Zoning – Dover Amendment – Homeless shelter
Where the Somerville zoning board authorized the conversion of the ground floor of a church into an emergency homeless shelter, the board’s decision should be upheld because the proposed shelter is entitled to the protections of the Dover Amendment, G.L.c. 40A, §3.
Massachusetts nears 100 ‘Housing Choice’ communities
As the state seeks to address its critical housing shortage, 29 communities received a designation on April 13 that provides them access to grants aimed at spurring production.
Zoning battle ends with demolition after 17-year dispute
A 17-year zoning dispute over an undersized lot in Douglas, Massachusetts, ended with a court-ordered demolition after years of litigation and the deaths of both homeowners.
Municipal – ‘BESS’ bylaw
Where the attorney general disapproved a town’s bylaw for the licensing of battery energy storage systems, the AG’s motion for judgment on the pleadings should be allowed because she did not act arbitrarily or capriciously, nor did she commit a substantial error, in disapproving the bylaw.
Cases scheduled to be heard in April
A list of the cases scheduled to be argued before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in April 2026, with summaries of the issues presented in each case.
Lawmakers weigh starter home ballot question
Massachusetts lawmakers hear testimony on a ballot measure to allow starter homes on smaller lots, weighing concerns over local zoning control and infrastructure.
$20M verdict may not end marathon developer battle
A Suffolk County jury awarded $5.8M in 477 Harrison Ave. v. JACE Boston, a Massachusetts abuse-of-process case raising First Amendment issues.
SJC hears arguments on MBTA Communities Act challenge
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court heard arguments on Marshfield's claim that the MBTA Communities Act imposes costly unfunded mandates on municipalities.
Zoning – Outdoor storage – Stormwater bylaw
Where the Holliston planning board denied a special permit with site plan approval and denied a stormwater and land disturbance permit, the plaintiff requires zoning relief to use its property for outdoor storage of vehicles, materials and equipment, while the town’s stormwater and land disturbance bylaw does not function like a zoning bylaw and does not improperly seek to regulate matters withi[...]
Cases scheduled to be heard in March
Following is a list of the cases scheduled to be argued before the Supreme Judicial Court in March. The summaries of the issues presented in the cases have been prepared by Lawyers Weekly.
Verdicts & Settlements
- Injury during baby’s adenoidectomy leads to stroke
- Construction worker’s hand caught in cement mixer
- Worker trapped in freezer, dies during steam cleaning
- Pedestrian, 69, hit by motor vehicle while in crosswalk
- Four-vehicle pileup leaves driver with spinal cord injury
- Nursing home staff blamed for kidney-failure death
- Pharmacy’s late delivery blamed for patient’s death
- Man, 25, drowns after swimming lesson at fitness club
Opinion Digests
- Jurisdiction – Forum selection clause – Non-signatory
- Criminal – Responsibility
- Attorneys – Lien
- Landlord and tenant – Default judgment
- Zoning – Constructive grant – Comprehensive permit
- Fraud – False Claims Act – Settlement share
- Civil practice – Discovery – Cybersecurity
