CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

Commonwealth of Massachusetts

COURT CAPTION

Superior Court:
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
[____________________] COUNTY
SUPERIOR COURT
CIVIL ACTION NO.: [____________________]

________________________________________,
Plaintiff,

v.

________________________________________,
Defendant.
District Court:
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
DISTRICT COURT DEPARTMENT
[____________________] DIVISION

________________________________________,
Plaintiff,

v. No.: [____________________]

________________________________________,
Defendant.
Probate and Family Court:
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
[____________________] DIVISION
PROBATE AND FAMILY COURT DEPARTMENT
DOCKET NO.: [____________________]

In re: [________________________________]
Business Litigation Session (BLS), Suffolk Superior Court:
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
SUFFOLK COUNTY
SUPERIOR COURT DEPARTMENT
BUSINESS LITIGATION SESSION

________________________________________,
Plaintiff,

v. Civil Action No.: [____________]

________________________________________,
Defendant.
(Select and complete the appropriate caption. Massachusetts uses "Commonwealth
of Massachusetts" rather than "State of Massachusetts." Delete captions not used.)

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

IMPORTANT NOTE: Under Mass. R. Civ. P. 5(d) (as amended effective December 1,
2023), the last page of every paper served must contain a brief certificate of
service showing: (1) the date and manner of service; (2) the names and addresses
(mailing or email) of all counsel (or parties) served; and (3) the party
represented by each counsel served. This certificate satisfies that requirement.

I, [________________________________], hereby certify that pursuant to Mass. R.
Civ. P. 5 and the Massachusetts Rules of Electronic Filing, on [__/__/____],
I served a true and correct copy of the following document(s):

Document(s) Served:

1. [________________________________]
2. [________________________________]
3. [________________________________]
   (add rows as needed)

upon all parties or their counsel of record as identified below, by the method(s)
indicated.

SECTION I — PARTIES / COUNSEL SERVED

Party / Counsel No. 1

Method of Service (check all that apply):

☐ eFileMA Electronic Service (Mass. R. Elec. F. 7(b)) — Filed and served
through eFileMA (Massachusetts Electronic Filing Service Provider); upon filing
acceptance, the system automatically transmits service to all registered
participants in the case.
- eFileMA Transaction / Reference No.: [________________________________]
- Date/Time of eFileMA Acceptance: [__/__/____] at [________] ☐ AM ☐ PM
- Service through eFileMA is deemed complete upon successful transmission by
the Electronic Filing Service Provider.

☐ Electronic Mail (Email) — Mass. R. Civ. P. 5(b)(1) — Served by email with
agreement of the parties (or without agreement under the December 1, 2023
amendment which authorizes email service regardless of agreement when email
address is known).
- Email address(es) served: [________________________________]
- Date/Time Transmitted: [__/__/____] at [________] ☐ AM ☐ PM
- Email service is deemed complete upon hitting "send" unless the server
receives notice or reasonably should be aware that transmission failed.
- ☐ 3-day extension applies (Rule 6(e)) — response deadline extended by 3 days

☐ Delivery (Hand Delivery)
- Person who received delivery: [________________________________]
- Date/Time: [__/__/____] at [________] ☐ AM ☐ PM
- Location: [________________________________]

☐ U.S. First-Class Mail, Postage Prepaid
- Mailed from: [________________________________], Massachusetts
- Date Mailed: [__/__/____]
- Note: Under Mass. R. Civ. P. 6(e), 3 additional days are added to any
response period triggered by service by U.S. Mail.

☐ Certified Mail / Return Receipt Requested
- USPS Tracking No.: [________________________________]
- Date Mailed: [__/__/____]
- 3-day extension also applies to certified mail service.

☐ Commercial Carrier (Overnight)
- Carrier: [________________________________]
- Tracking No.: [________________________________]
- Date Tendered: [__/__/____]

☐ Leaving with Clerk of Court — Address not known and party not appearing;
documents left with the clerk per Rule 5(b)(1).

☐ Other (describe): [________________________________]

Party / Counsel No. 2

Method of Service (check all that apply):

☐ eFileMA Electronic Service
- eFileMA Reference No.: [________________________________]
- Date/Time: [__/__/____] at [________] ☐ AM ☐ PM

☐ Electronic Mail (Email) — Mass. R. Civ. P. 5(b)(1)
- Email address(es): [________________________________]
- Date/Time Transmitted: [__/__/____] at [________] ☐ AM ☐ PM

☐ Delivery (Hand Delivery)
- Date/Time: [__/__/____] at [________]
- Location: [________________________________]

☐ U.S. First-Class Mail
- Mailed from: [________________________________], Massachusetts
- Date Mailed: [__/__/____]

☐ Certified Mail
- USPS Tracking No.: [________________________________]

☐ Commercial Carrier
- Carrier: [________________] Tracking No.: [________________]

☐ Other: [________________________________]

(Duplicate Party / Counsel block as needed for additional parties)

SECTION II — MULTIPLE-PARTY SERVICE TABLE

(Use when serving three or more parties; attach continuation sheets if needed)

SECTION III — SELF-REPRESENTED PARTY SERVICE

A self-represented party who is not a registered eFileMA user and who has not
provided an email address will not receive auto-service through eFileMA. Manual
service is required.

☐ The following self-represented party was served by manual means:

• Pro Se Party Name: [________________________________]
• Last Known Address: [________________________________]
• City, State, Zip: [________________________________]
• Method of Service:
  ☐ U.S. First-Class Mail — Date Mailed: [__/__/____]
  ☐ Hand Delivery — Date/Time: [__/__/____] at [________]
  ☐ Certified Mail — Tracking No.: [________________________________]
  ☐ Email (with agreement per Rule 5(b)(1)) — Date: [__/__/____]
  ☐ Left with clerk (no address known) — Date: [__/__/____]
• Notes: [________________________________]

SECTION IV — PROBATE AND FAMILY COURT SERVICE

In Probate and Family Court matters, service may be required on non-party
interested persons (e.g., heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, other persons
with a legal interest). Document service on all required interested persons
separately from the parties of record.

☐ The following interested person(s) were served in connection with this matter:

SECTION V — SUPERIOR COURT RULE 9B

Under Superior Court Rule 9B, certificates of service in Superior Court matters
must include: (a) the date of service; (b) the method of service; (c) the names
and addresses of all counsel and self-represented parties served; and (d) the
party each attorney represents.

☐ I confirm this certificate complies with the requirements of Superior Court
Rule 9B.

SECTION VI — eFileMA PORTAL NOTES

eFileMA (Massachusetts Electronic Filing). Massachusetts courts use
eFileMA, operated under Trial Court Administrative Directive 17-2. eFileMA
provides automatic service notification to registered participants upon filing
acceptance. Always confirm registered service contacts in the eFileMA case
before filing.

December 1, 2023 Amendments. Amendments to Mass. R. Civ. P. 5 and 6
effective December 1, 2023 authorized email service without the need for a
prior written agreement between the parties, provided the serving party
reasonably knows the recipient's email address. The 3-day extension under
Rule 6(e) was clarified to apply to email service as well as mail service.

Business Litigation Session (BLS). The BLS in Suffolk Superior Court may
have specific standing orders regarding service and submission of filings.
Check current BLS standing orders at the time of filing.

SECTION VII — TIME COMPUTATION / THREE-DAY RULE

Under Mass. R. Civ. P. 6(e) (as amended December 1, 2023), when a party must
act within a prescribed period after service, three (3) additional calendar days
are added when service is made by:

• U.S. Mail
• Email pursuant to Rule 5(b)(1)
• Otherwise electronically, including through the Electronic Filing Service
  Provider pursuant to Mass. R. Elec. F. 7(b)

The three-day extension does not apply to hand delivery or personal service.

Example: A 14-day response period triggered by mail service becomes
17 days from the date of mailing.

If the final day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the deadline
extends to the next court day under Mass. R. Civ. P. 6(a).

DECLARATION

I declare under the penalties of perjury that the foregoing Certificate of
Service is true and correct.

Date: [__/__/____]

_____________________________________________
[________________________________]
BBO No.: [____________________]
[________________________________] (Firm Name)
[________________________________] (Street Address)
[________________________________] (City, State, Zip)
Telephone: ([____]) [____]-[________]
Facsimile: ([____]) [____]-[________]
Email: [________________________________]
Attorney for [________________________________]

PRACTITIONER NOTES

1. Rule 5(d) — Certificate on Last Page. Under the December 1, 2023
amendments to Mass. R. Civ. P. 5(d), every paper served must include a
certificate of service on the last page. This comprehensive form satisfies that
requirement when attached to or incorporated at the end of the served document.

2. Email Service Without Prior Agreement. The December 1, 2023 amendments
permit email service without a prior written agreement, provided the serving
party knows (or reasonably should know) the recipient's email. Retain evidence
of the email address used and any confirmation of delivery.

3. Three-Day Extension — Email and eFileMA. The December 1, 2023 amendments
clarify that the 3-day extension under Rule 6(e) applies to email service and
EFSP service through eFileMA, not just mail service. Calendar all response
deadlines accordingly.

4. BBO Number. Massachusetts attorney bar numbers are called "BBO Numbers"
(Board of Bar Overseers). Include the BBO number in all filings and certificates.

5. Business Litigation Session. The BLS in Suffolk Superior Court has its
own standing orders. Review current BLS standing orders for any special service
or filing requirements.

6. Probate and Family Court — Interested Persons. Service in Probate Court
proceedings often extends beyond parties to include interested persons (heirs,
creditors, etc.). Use Section IV to document all such service.

7. "Commonwealth of Massachusetts." Always use "Commonwealth" (not "State")
in court captions and certificate headers. This is standard Massachusetts
practice.

8. Trial Court Administrative Directive 17-2. This directive governs
mandatory electronic filing through eFileMA for most Trial Court departments.
Confirm current applicability to your specific court and case type.

Sources and References

• Mass. R. Civ. P. 5: https://www.mass.gov/rules-of-civil-procedure/civil-procedure-rule-5-service-and-filing-of-pleadings-and-other-papers
• Mass. R. Civ. P. 5 and 6 Amendments (Dec. 1, 2023): https://www.mass.gov/doc/amendments-to-rules-5-and-6-of-the-rules-of-civil-procedure-reporters-notes-effective-dec-1-2023/download
• Mass. R. Civ. P. 6 (Time): https://www.mass.gov/rules-of-civil-procedure/civil-procedure-rule-6-time
• Superior Court Rule 9B: https://www.mass.gov/superior-court-rules/superior-court-rule-9b-certificates-of-service
• Massachusetts Rules of Electronic Filing: https://www.mass.gov/