About the Bristol County Superior Court
The Massachusetts Superior Court is the state's trial court of general jurisdiction. It operates across 20 courthouses with 82 justices statewide. The court has exclusive original jurisdiction over first-degree murder. It also holds original jurisdiction over all other crimes, civil actions over $50,000, equitable relief, labor injunction disputes, and medical malpractice tribunals. Certain administrative agency appeals also come through the Superior Court.
Bristol County is served by three Superior Court locations: Taunton, Fall River, and New Bedford. The court sits within the Massachusetts statewide Trial Court system, not a separately run county judiciary. That means records, clerks, and procedures follow uniform statewide rules set by the Executive Office of the Trial Court, not county-by-county policy. The Clerk of Courts for Bristol County Superior Court is Jennifer Sullivan, based in Taunton.
Criminal dockets and civil dockets are split by location in Bristol County. Taunton and Fall River handle criminal matters only. New Bedford handles civil matters only. A case that begins at the District Court level may be indicted or bound over to Superior Court for trial if the charge warrants it. A civil plaintiff can file directly in Superior Court when the amount at issue exceeds the District Court threshold. For docket and case information, the MassCourts electronic case access portal is the starting point. Official hard copies come from the Clerk's office where the case is on file.
The Taunton Superior Court at 9 Court St. sits in a National Register of Historic Places complex at Taunton Green, alongside the Registry of Deeds. The Bristol Law Library is on the second floor of the same building, open to the public, with free Westlaw and Lexis access.
What the Bristol County Superior Court Handles
The Superior Court takes cases that exceed the reach of the District Court in civil matters, or that carry the weight of serious felony charges in criminal cases. Civil actions are filed in New Bedford for Bristol County. A civil plaintiff generally needs to claim damages above $50,000 or seek equitable relief such as an injunction before the Superior Court has jurisdiction. Claims below that amount belong in District Court. The Superior Court also hears medical malpractice tribunals, which are panels that screen malpractice claims before they proceed to trial.
On the criminal side, all felony matters and any first-degree murder charge come to Superior Court. Taunton and Fall River handle Bristol County criminal sessions. First-degree murder is the only charge for which the Superior Court holds exclusive original jurisdiction, meaning it cannot start in a lower court. Other serious felonies may begin with an arrest and arraignment in District Court, then move to Superior Court by indictment or waiver. The District Attorney's office, currently Thomas M. Quinn III at the Bristol County District Attorney's office, presents felony cases to a grand jury for indictment before Superior Court arraignment.
The Superior Court does not handle probate, guardianship, divorce, custody, eviction, or juvenile delinquency matters. Those go to Probate and Family Court, Housing Court, or Juvenile Court respectively. Likewise, land title disputes go to the statewide Land Court. If you are looking for probate records or family court filings in Bristol County, those are in a separate department with different clerks and rules.
Some defendants in the Superior Court also become subject to probation under the Massachusetts Probation Service, which is distinct from the Clerk's Office. Sentences, conditions of probation, and violations are docketed in the case file but enforced by probation staff. Victims seeking release notifications can use VINELink after sentencing. Appeals from Superior Court go to the Massachusetts Appeals Court, not back to the same court.
Bristol County Superior Court Locations
Three courthouses serve Bristol County Superior Court business. Each location is designated for a specific category of cases. Filing in the wrong location can cause delays, so confirm whether your matter is criminal or civil before appearing or mailing documents to the Clerk.
| Location | Address | Phone | Matters Handled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taunton | 9 Court St., Taunton, MA 02780 | (508) 823-6588 | Criminal matters only; Mon-Fri 8:00-4:30 |
| Fall River | 186 S. Main St., Fall River, MA 02721 | (508) 491-3300 | Criminal matters only; Mon-Fri 8:30-4:30 |
| New Bedford | 441 County St., 1st Floor, New Bedford, MA 02740 | (508) 996-2051 | Civil matters only |
The Taunton location is the county's primary Superior Court address. Clerk of Courts Jennifer Sullivan is based here. The Bristol Law Library is in the same building and provides free research help to anyone, including litigants who cannot afford an attorney. Email for the Taunton Clerk's Office is Bristol.clerksoffice@jud.state.ma.us.
The Taunton Superior Court location page on Mass.gov is shown below. The page lists the address, clerk phone, hours, ADA coordinator contact, and nearby transit information for the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority.
The Taunton page confirms the 9 Court Street address, clerk phone, and that the location handles criminal matters only, which is relevant when deciding where to file or request records.
Fall River's Superior Court sessions run at 186 S. Main St., the same building that houses the Fall River District Court on the second floor. Street parking is metered nearby; the SRTA serves the area. The Fall River Superior Court page is shown below.
The Fall River page confirms the criminal-only designation and provides parking and accessibility details for that courthouse.
New Bedford's civil sessions run at 441 County St. The Elm Street parking garage is several blocks away, and the SRTA terminal at 25 North Sixth Street is about three blocks from the courthouse. The New Bedford Superior Court page is shown below.
The New Bedford page confirms the civil-only designation and the first-floor suite location inside 441 County Street.
Note: All three locations are part of the single Bristol County Superior Court department; the Clerk of Courts office in Taunton holds administrative authority for the county.
Superior Court vs District Court in Bristol County
People often contact the wrong court when looking for records or filing papers. Massachusetts keeps the Superior Court and the District Court as distinct departments of the Trial Court, each with different civil limits, criminal scope, and appeal paths. The table below shows the key differences as they apply in Bristol County.
| Feature | Superior Court | District Court |
|---|---|---|
| Civil money limit | Over $50,000; no upper cap | Up to $50,000 (small claims under $7,000) |
| Criminal scope | All felonies; exclusive first-degree murder jurisdiction | Misdemeanors; some felony arraignments and lower-level criminal matters |
| Where appeals go | Massachusetts Appeals Court, then Supreme Judicial Court | Appeals Court (or de novo retrial in some civil/criminal instances) |
| Bristol County locations | Taunton (criminal), Fall River (criminal), New Bedford (civil) | Attleboro, Fall River, New Bedford, Taunton |
A civil claim for $30,000 goes to District Court. A claim for $150,000 goes to Superior Court in New Bedford. A misdemeanor assault case stays in District Court. An indicted felony assault case moves to Superior Court in Taunton or Fall River. The District Court in Bristol County also hosts Adult Drug Courts in all four of its locations; the Superior Court does not run those specialty programs.
If you are searching for criminal records and cannot find a case in MassCourts under Superior Court, try the District Court department and the same location. Many criminal cases begin in District Court and either stay there or transfer to Superior Court after indictment, so both dockets may be relevant to the same defendant and the same set of charges.
How a Case Moves Through the System
Massachusetts cases follow different paths depending on whether they are civil or criminal. Both paths can eventually reach the state's top appellate courts, but the steps differ and the timing varies. The diagrams below reflect the statewide structure as it applies to Bristol County cases.
Criminal case flow:
Arrest and booking at a local police department or BCSO facility › Arraignment in District Court (bail set, charges read) › Grand jury indictment by the Bristol County DA's office › Superior Court arraignment (Taunton or Fall River for Bristol County criminal matters) › Pretrial conferences and motions › Trial or plea › Sentencing › Massachusetts Appeals Court › Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (if further review is granted)
Civil case flow:
Complaint filed in Superior Court (New Bedford for Bristol County civil matters) › Service on defendant › Answer filed › Discovery and pretrial conferences › Mediation or settlement if reached › Trial › Judgment › Massachusetts Appeals Court › Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (if further review is granted)
The Uniform Rules on Public Access to Court Records govern what information is available remotely versus what requires a visit to the Clerk's office. Rule 5 notes that general public remote access does not currently cover PDFs, audio, or video recordings. Docket entries, party names, and scheduled hearings are typically viewable online, but document images usually require an in-person or written request to the Clerk.
Searching Bristol County Superior Court Cases on MassCourts
The MassCourts Trial Court Electronic Case Access portal is the official free search tool for state court dockets. It covers all Trial Court departments including Superior Court. You can search by party name or by docket number. Mass.gov's docket guidance page recommends identifying the likely court department first so you can narrow the results.
For Bristol County Superior Court cases, select "Superior Court" as the department and then choose the Bristol County division. Criminal dockets are split between Taunton and Fall River; civil dockets are under New Bedford. If you are unsure which location a case was filed at, try searching by name first without filtering by division, then narrow from the results list.
Massachusetts docket numbers typically combine a two-digit year, court division letters, a case-type code, and a sequence number. An example format for a Bristol Superior criminal case would look something like 25-CR-00000; the exact format appears on arraignment paperwork, bail notices, or prior court filings. Having the docket number speeds up any request for certified copies from the Clerk.
Public portal access is free and requires no login for basic docket data. Attorneys who register with the Trial Court under Uniform Rule 5 have broader access. Impounded records, sealed records, juvenile cases, and certain victim-sensitive material will not appear in the public view even if they are technically part of the same docket. The portal reflects what the court's case management system reports; it is not the official court record. Official records and certified copies come from the Clerk of Courts office.
For full case document access and certified copies, contact the Bristol County Superior Court Clerk's Office in Taunton at (508) 823-6588 or by email at Bristol.clerksoffice@jud.state.ma.us. Bring or provide the docket number, party names, case type, and filing year to speed up the request.
Note: Mass.gov's official docket-search guidance states that hard copies and official public records must be obtained from the Clerk, Register, or Recorder office where the case was filed, not from the online portal alone.
Bristol County Superior Court Records and Certified Copies
A certified copy of a Superior Court record has an official stamp or seal from the Clerk's office. Courts, government agencies, and many legal proceedings require certified copies rather than printed screenshots or uncertified docket pages. Certified copies cost a fee set by the Trial Court's schedule. The Clerk's office can tell you the current fee when you call or email. Fees generally apply per page for copies and per certificate for certified documents.
The types of records the Clerk of Courts maintains for Bristol County Superior Court include criminal indictments, arraignment records, pretrial conference entries, trial transcripts (when filed), judgments, sentencing orders, and appellate transfer records. On the civil side, records include complaints, answers, motions, discovery-related docket entries, injunctions, and judgments. Not all documents in the case file are public. Impounded material, grand jury proceedings, victim and witness identifiers, and sealed portions of a record will not be provided to a general public requester.
To request copies, contact the Clerk of Courts office. Provide the docket number, the names of the parties, the case type, and the specific documents you need. The Clerk's office can confirm whether the documents are available to the public and what the current fee is. In-person requests can be made at 9 Court St. in Taunton during regular hours, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Written or mail requests are also accepted; include a self-addressed stamped envelope and a check or money order for the estimated fee.
For general court records guidance across all Bristol County departments, including District Court, Probate and Family Court, and Housing Court, see the court records page, which covers how each office handles public requests and what access rules apply.
Appeals from the Bristol County Superior Court
A party that loses at the Superior Court level can appeal to the Massachusetts Appeals Court. The Appeals Court is the intermediate appellate court in Massachusetts. It receives most appeals from all Trial Court departments, including Superior Court criminal convictions and civil judgments. The Appeals Court can affirm, reverse, or remand a decision. It does not hold new trials; it reviews the record and written briefs, then hears oral argument in some cases.
Above the Appeals Court sits the Supreme Judicial Court, the highest court in Massachusetts. The SJC hears further appellate review in cases where it grants leave. In capital cases and certain other matters, the SJC may take the case directly from Superior Court. The SJC also supervises the judiciary and issues decisions that bind all Massachusetts courts.
Defendants convicted of first-degree murder at the Superior Court level have a direct right of appeal to the SJC. That is the one category of Superior Court criminal case that skips the Appeals Court entirely. All other Superior Court criminal and civil appeals go through the Appeals Court first unless the SJC grants direct review.
For cases involving court dockets from the appellate level, PACER is not the right tool. Appellate Massachusetts court opinions are published by the Appeals Court and SJC and are searchable through Mass.gov's law library resources and through CourtListener for opinions that have been entered in that database. The dockets for pending Appeals Court and SJC cases are separate from MassCourts, so a different search may be needed if the case has moved past the Superior Court stage.
Bristol County felony defendants who want to appeal a conviction should work with counsel, or contact the Committee for Public Counsel Services if they qualify for appointed representation. Filing deadlines for notices of appeal are short, typically 30 days after judgment in criminal matters, and missing them can forfeit the right to appeal.
Note: The Massachusetts Appeals Court and Supreme Judicial Court are statewide courts; there are no separate Bristol County appellate courthouses.