BOSTON – Today, Governor Baker nominated Attorney Claudine A. Cloutier as Associate Justice of the Superior Court
The Superior Court, the trial court of general jurisdiction for Massachusetts, is committed to delivering high quality justice in a timely and fair manner in accordance with the rule of law. The Court's 82 justices sit in 20 courthouses in all 14 counties of the Commonwealth. The Superior Court has original jurisdiction in civil actions over $25,000 and in matters where equitable relief is sought. It also has original jurisdiction in actions including labor disputes where injunctive relief is sought, exclusive authority to convene medical malpractice tribunals, appellate jurisdiction over certain administrative proceedings, and may hold sittings for naturalization in any city or town. The Superior Court also has exclusive original jurisdiction of first-degree murder cases and original jurisdiction of all other crimes.
For more information about the Superior Court, please visit their homepage.
Judicial nominations are subject to the advice and consent of the Governor’s Council. Applicants for judicial openings are reviewed by the Judicial Nominating Commission (JNC) and recommended to the governor. Governor Baker established the JNC in February 2015 pursuant to Executive Order 558, a non-partisan, non-political Commission composed of volunteers from a cross-section of the Commonwealth's diverse population to screen judicial applications. Twenty-one members were later appointed to the JNC in April 2015.
About Claudine A. Cloutier
Claudine A. Cloutier began her legal career in 1995 as a law clerk for the Massachusetts Superior Court. Then, in 1996, Attorney Cloutier joined Keches Law Group, P.C., first as an associate until 2006. Attorney Cloutier was then named Tort Department Manager, and later named partner in 2007, and currently still holds both roles. Attorney Cloutier is an active member of the community, serving as a trustee of the Fall River High School Alumni Scholarship Fund, a board member at the Foundation to Advance Catholic Education through the Diocese of Fall River and a member of the Suffolk University Law School Dean’s Cabinet. She received her bachelor’s degree from Yale University in 1992 and her Juris Doctorate from Suffolk University Law School in 1995.
