Section 1 Housing court department; composition; definitions
Section 1. The housing court department, established under section 1 of chapter 211B, shall be composed of a western division, consisting of the cities and towns of Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire counties; a division for Worcester county, including the town of Bellingham in Norfolk county, the city of Marlborough and the towns of Ashby, Hudson and Townsend in Middlesex county, and the jurisdiction known as Devens established under chapter 498 of the acts of 1993; a northeastern division, including the cities and towns of Essex county and the city of Lowell and the towns of Acton, Ayer, Billerica, Boxborough, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord, Dracut, Dunstable, Groton, Littleton, Maynard, Pepperell, Shirley, Stow, Tewksbury, Tyngsborough, and Westford in Middlesex county; a southeastern division, including the cities and towns of Bristol and Plymouth counties; and a division for the city of Boston. Wherever the words “housing court” are used, or wherever in this chapter the word “court” is used in that context, they shall refer to a division of the housing court department; and the words “judge of the housing court” or the word “judge”, in context, shall mean an associate justice of the trial court appointed to a division of the housing court department.