Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives
in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same,
as follows:
Chapter 221 of the General Laws is hereby amended by
striking out section 15, as appearing in the 2002 Official Edition and
inserting in place thereof the following section:-
Section 15. The clerk of the supreme
judicial court for Suffolk county shall attend all sessions of the court,
except when sitting as a full court; shall record the proceedings and shall
preserve all the files and papers thereof, including electronic filings; shall
keep an electronic or paper docket record of all complaints,
petitions, including petitions for admission to the bar, or other processes
presented to the court. The clerk shall maintain care and custody
of all court forms, all electronic and paper dockets, all electronic
and paper information, including but not limited to notes, data, audit trails,
statuses, and statistics, all electronic and paper reports of every nature and
description, and all records, books and papers, both in electronic and paper
format, which are filed or deposited in the county clerk's office. The clerk
shall make copies of all papers on file in the court and of the docket record
thereof, if desired, and certify them under the seal of the court, shall issue
such writs or other processes as the court orders, shall charge the fees
provided by law for like services for clerks of courts, and if no express fee
is provided, the clerk shall receive a fair compensation for the services
required in analogy to like services for which a compensation is fixed by law.
Each assistant clerk shall under the direction of the clerk perform any of the
above duties of the clerk and shall pay over to the clerk all fees and amounts
received as such assistant. When the assistant clerk is so acting his
attestation as assistant clerk shall be sufficient without further designation.
The clerk of the supreme judicial court for Suffolk county shall have
responsibility for the internal administration of the clerk's office,
including personnel, staff services and record keeping.
Approved November 26, 2003.