State Court Motion in Limine - Massachusetts

MOTION IN LIMINE

Superior Court Rule 9A filing: First serve the motion papers, including a separate supporting memorandum, on all parties. Opposition is ordinarily due 10 days after service, with the Rule 9A(b)(3) extension where applicable. After opposition is served, file the assembled Rule 9A Package within 10 days; if none is received, follow Rule 9A(b)(2)(ii)’s no-opposition filing procedure. Promptly serve all parties with a separate Notice of Filing listing every document in the package, and file that notice with the package, unless a governing e-filing rule or order changes the procedure.
(Commonwealth of Massachusetts — [________________] Superior Court Department of the Trial Court)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Caption
2. Motion in Limine
3. Motion in Limine
4. Evidence Sought to Be Excluded

5. Memorandum of Law in Support
   5.1 Introduction
   5.2 Legal Standard
   5.3 Argument — Grounds for Exclusion
   5.4 Request to Instruct and Admonish

6. Request for Oral Argument

7. Conclusion and Prayer for Relief
8. Signature Block
9. Rule 9A and Rule 9C Certificates
10. Certificate of Service
11. Exhibit A — Proposed Order

1. CAPTION

COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
[________________] SUPERIOR COURT DEPARTMENT
OF THE TRIAL COURT, CIVIL ACTION

2. MOTION IN LIMINE

[Plaintiff / Defendant] [Moving Party Name] moves for the order described below. The supporting memorandum, cited evidence, and proposed order accompany the motion under Superior Court Rule 9A. If the Court grants the hearing request in Section 6, the Court will set its date and time and notify the parties under Rule 9A(c)(1).

3. MOTION IN LIMINE

[Moving Party Name] ("Movant"), by and through undersigned counsel and pursuant to Mass. G. Evid. Sections 401, 402, and 403 and the additional sections cited below, respectfully moves this Court for an order in limine ruling, before any such evidence is offered, displayed, or mentioned at trial, that the matters described in Section 4 are inadmissible and shall be excluded. A motion in limine allows the Court to resolve admissibility outside the presence of the jury so that prejudicial matter never reaches the jurors and the parties are not left to rely on curative instructions that may be inadequate. In support, Movant relies on the accompanying Memorandum of Law.

4. EVIDENCE SOUGHT TO BE EXCLUDED

Movant seeks an order excluding the following categories of evidence, testimony, argument, and reference (select and complete each applicable item; renumber as needed):

☐ (a) [Describe specific evidence/testimony/exhibit].
☐ (b) [________________________________].
☐ (c) [________________________________].
☐ (d) [________________________________].
☐ (e) [________________________________].

5. MEMORANDUM OF LAW IN SUPPORT OF THE MOTION IN LIMINE

5.1 Introduction

This action is set for trial on [__/__/____]. Movant anticipates that the opposing party will attempt to introduce the matters identified in Section 4, none of which is admissible under the Massachusetts Guide to Evidence. Because even the mention of these matters before the jury would cause unfair prejudice that no instruction could fully cure, Movant asks the Court to rule on admissibility now, in limine, and to instruct counsel and witnesses accordingly.

5.2 Legal Standard

Relevance — Mass. G. Evid. Sections 401, 402. Evidence is relevant if it has any tendency to make a fact more or less probable than it would be without the evidence and the fact is of consequence in determining the action. Section 401. Irrelevant evidence is not admissible. Section 402.

Unfair Prejudice — Mass. G. Evid. Section 403. The Court may exclude relevant evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by a danger of unfair prejudice, confusing the issues, misleading the jury, undue delay, wasting time, or needlessly presenting cumulative evidence. Section 403.

Character and Crimes/Other Acts — Mass. G. Evid. Section 404. Evidence of a person's character or character trait is not admissible to prove that the person acted in accordance with the character or trait on a particular occasion; evidence of a crime, wrong, or other act is not admissible to prove propensity, though it may be admissible for another purpose (e.g., motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake or accident). Section 404. Impeachment by character for truthfulness and by prior convictions is governed by Mass. G. Evid. Sections 608 and 609 (and G.L. c. 233, Section 21).

Subsequent Remedial Measures — Mass. G. Evid. Section 407. Evidence of measures taken after an injury or harm that would have made it less likely to occur is not admissible to prove negligence or culpable conduct in connection with the event. The Court may admit it for another purpose under Section 407(b).

Compromise Offers and Negotiations — Mass. G. Evid. Section 408. Evidence of furnishing, offering, or accepting a valuable consideration in compromising or attempting to compromise a claim, and statements made in compromise negotiations, is not admissible to prove or disprove the validity or amount of a disputed claim.

Liability Insurance — Mass. G. Evid. Section 411. Evidence that a person was or was not insured against liability is not admissible to prove whether the person acted negligently or otherwise wrongfully.

Hearsay — Mass. G. Evid. Sections 801 et seq. Out-of-court statements offered for their truth are inadmissible unless they fall within an exclusion or exception.

Expert Testimony / Reliability — Mass. G. Evid. Section 702; DAUBERT-LANIGAN. A qualified expert may testify only if (a) the expert's specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact; (b) the testimony is based on sufficient facts or data; (c) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods; and (d) the expert has reliably applied the principles and methods to the facts. Mass. G. Evid. Section 702. The judge is the "gatekeeper," and "the touchstone of admissibility is reliability." The proponent may establish reliability either by showing general acceptance in the relevant scientific community (Frye) or through a Daubert-Lanigan analysis. Commonwealth v. Lanigan, 419 Mass. 15, 24-26 (1994); Commonwealth v. Davis, 487 Mass. 448 (2021). Even where the foundational requirements are met, the judge retains discretion to exclude expert testimony under Section 403.

Golden Rule / Sympathy / Improper Argument. Argument inviting jurors to place themselves in a party's shoes ("golden rule"), or appealing to passion, prejudice, sympathy, or community sentiment rather than the evidence, is improper and should be precluded.

5.3 Argument — Grounds for Exclusion

GROUND 1 — Irrelevant Evidence (Sections 401, 402). The evidence described in Section 4[____] has no tendency to make any fact of consequence more or less probable, because [________________________________], and is therefore inadmissible.

GROUND 2 — Unfair Prejudice Substantially Outweighs Probative Value (Section 403). Even if marginally relevant, the evidence in Section 4[____] should be excluded because its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, misleading the jury, and waste of time. Specifically, [explain why no limiting instruction would cure the harm: ________________________________].

GROUND 3 — Improper Character / Prior Acts (Sections 404, 608, 609). The evidence in Section 4[____] is offered only to suggest that [party/witness] acted in conformity with a character trait or prior act and is inadmissible propensity evidence serving no permitted Section 404(b) purpose; any impeachment use is barred or limited by Sections 608-609 because [________________________________].

GROUND 4 — Inadmissible Hearsay (Sections 801 et seq.). The statement(s) in Section 4[____] are out-of-court statements offered for their truth and fall within no exclusion or exception. [Identify statement and declarant: ________________________________].

GROUND 5 — Subsequent Remedial Measures (Section 407). The evidence in Section 4[____] concerns measures taken after the [incident/injury] that would have made the harm less likely, offered to prove negligence or culpable conduct in connection with that event. [Describe: ________________________________].

GROUND 6 — Settlement / Compromise (Section 408). The evidence in Section 4[____] concerns settlement communications or offers of compromise and is inadmissible to prove or disprove the validity or amount of the disputed claim. [Describe: ________________________________].

GROUND 7 — Liability Insurance (Section 411). Any reference to whether a party is or is not insured against liability is inadmissible on the issue of fault and is unfairly prejudicial. [Describe: ________________________________].

GROUND 8 — Unreliable Expert Opinion (Section 702; Lanigan / Daubert). The opinion(s) of [expert name] in Section 4[____] should be excluded because the testimony fails the gatekeeping requirements of Section 702 and Lanigan: the methodology is neither generally accepted nor otherwise shown to be reliable, and/or the principles and methods were not reliably applied to the facts. Specifically, [identify the deficiency — untested theory, no peer review, unknown error rate, analytical gap, ipse dixit: ________________________________].

GROUND 9 — Golden-Rule / Sympathy / Improper Argument. The opposing party should be precluded from making "golden rule" appeals, inviting jurors to imagine themselves or their families in a party's position, or otherwise appealing to passion, sympathy, or prejudice rather than the evidence. [Describe: ________________________________].

GROUND 10 — [Additional Ground]. [State section and basis: ________________________________].

5.4 Request to Instruct Counsel and Admonish Witnesses

Because the prejudice from even a single improper reference may be incurable, Movant respectfully requests that the Court, if it allows this Motion:

1. Instruct opposing counsel to refrain from offering, mentioning, or alluding to the excluded matters — directly or indirectly — in voir dire, opening, examination, exhibits, or closing;
2. Direct opposing counsel to admonish and instruct each of its witnesses, before they testify, not to volunteer or refer to the excluded matters before the jury;
3. Require counsel to approach the bench and obtain a ruling outside the hearing of the jury before offering, referencing, or eliciting any excluded matter; and
4. Reserve to Movant all objections and the right to seek a mistrial or other appropriate relief upon violation.

6. REQUEST FOR ORAL ARGUMENT

Pursuant to Mass. Super. Ct. R. 9A(c)(2), Movant requests a hearing because a pretrial ruling may streamline the trial, reduce sidebar interruptions, and prevent the jury's exposure to inadmissible, prejudicial matter. The Court will decide whether to hold a hearing.

7. CONCLUSION AND PRAYER FOR RELIEF

WHEREFORE, Movant respectfully requests that this Court:

1. Allow this Motion in Limine;
2. Exclude the categories of evidence, testimony, argument, and reference identified in Section 4;
3. Instruct counsel and admonish witnesses as set forth in Section 5.4;
4. Require advance notice and a bench conference before any party offers or references the excluded matters; and
5. Enter the Proposed Order attached as Exhibit A and grant such other relief as the Court deems just and proper.

8. SIGNATURE BLOCK

Respectfully submitted,

[MOVING PARTY NAME(S)]
By [its/their] attorneys,

______________________________
[ATTORNEY NAME], BBO # [________________]
[FIRM NAME]
[STREET ADDRESS]
[CITY], MA [ZIP]
Tel.: [________________]
Email: [________________]

Dated: [__/__/____]

9. RULE 9A AND RULE 9C CERTIFICATES

I, [________________], counsel for Movant, hereby certify pursuant to Mass. Super. Ct. R. 9A(b)(1) that I served this Motion in Limine and supporting memorandum on counsel of record on [__/__/____]; that the opposing party's response period has expired or been waived; and that I have assembled and am filing the complete Rule 9A package with the Clerk in accordance with Rule 9A.

Under Rule 9C(a), I initiated a conference with opposing counsel before filing this motion. ☐ We conferred by [telephone / in person] on [__/__/____] at [____], with [participants], and made a good faith effort to narrow the dispute. ☐ No conference occurred despite these reasonable efforts to speak by telephone or in person: [dates, steps, and results].

______________________________
[ATTORNEY NAME]

10. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I, [________________], hereby certify that on this ______ day of [________________], 20____, I caused a true and correct copy of the foregoing Motion in Limine, together with the supporting memorandum and proposed Order, to be served upon all parties of record via [hand delivery / first-class mail / email as agreed] in compliance with Mass. R. Civ. P. 5(b).

______________________________
[ATTORNEY NAME]

EXHIBIT A — PROPOSED ORDER

COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS
[________________] SUPERIOR COURT DEPARTMENT
OF THE TRIAL COURT, CIVIL ACTION

ORDER ON MOTION IN LIMINE

After consideration of [Moving Party]'s Motion in Limine, the supporting memorandum, any opposition, and argument of counsel, it is hereby ORDERED:

☐ The Motion is ALLOWED. The opposing party, its counsel, and its witnesses are precluded from offering, mentioning, referring to, or eliciting the following before the jury, absent a prior ruling of this Court obtained outside the hearing of the jury:

  ☐ [________________________________]
  ☐ [________________________________]
  ☐ [________________________________]

☐ The Motion is ALLOWED IN PART as follows: [________________________________].
☐ The Motion is DENIED.

Counsel shall instruct and admonish their witnesses to comply with this Order, and shall approach the bench for a ruling before offering or referencing any excluded matter.

SO ORDERED.

______________________________
Justice of the Superior Court
Dated: [__/__/____]

Sources and References

• Massachusetts Guide to Evidence, Section 401 (Test for Relevant Evidence) — https://www.mass.gov/guide-to-evidence
• Massachusetts Guide to Evidence, Section 403 (Excluding Relevant Evidence for Prejudice, Confusion, Waste of Time, or Other Reasons)
• Massachusetts Guide to Evidence, Section 404 (Character; Crimes or Other Acts); Sections 608, 609 (Impeachment)
• Massachusetts Guide to Evidence, Section 407 (Subsequent Remedial Measures); Section 408 (Compromise); Section 411 (Liability Insurance)
• Massachusetts Guide to Evidence, Section 702 (Testimony by Expert Witnesses) — https://www.mass.gov/guide-to-evidence/section-702-testimony-by-expert-witnesses
• Commonwealth v. Lanigan, 419 Mass. 15 (1994) — https://law.justia.com/cases/massachusetts/supreme-court/volumes/419/419mass15.html
• Commonwealth v. Davis, 487 Mass. 448 (2021)
• Mass. R. Civ. P. 5, 7; Mass. Super. Ct. R. 9A — https://www.mass.gov/