Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature
| Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts |
|
|---|---|
 |
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| Established | 1692 |
| Country |
Massachusetts  , United States 
|
| Location | Boston, Massachusetts |
| Composition method | Executive appointments with quasi-legislative consent |
| Authorized by | Massachusetts Constitution |
| Decisions are appealed to | Supreme Court of the United States |
| Website | Official website |
| Chief Justice | |
| Currently | Ralph Gants |
| Since | July 28, 2014 |
Coordinates: 42°21′33″N 71°03′39″W / 42.359297°N 71.060954°W
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The SJC has the distinction of being the oldest continuously functioning appellate court in the Americas, with a recognized history dating to the establishment of the Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature in 1692 under the charter of the Province of Massachusetts Bay.
Although it was historically composed of four associate justices and one chief justice, the court is currently composed of six associate justices and one chief justice.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court traces its history back to the high court of the British Province of Massachusetts Bay, which was chartered in 1692. Under the terms of that charter, Governor Sir William Phips established the Superior Court of Judicature as the province's local court of last resort (some of the court's decisions could be appealed to courts in England). When the Massachusetts State Constitution was established in 1780, legislative and judicial records show that the state's high court, although renamed, was a continuation of provincial high court. During and after the period of the American Revolution the court had members who were appointed by royal governors, the executive council of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress (which acted as the state's executive from 1775 to 1780), and governors elected under the state constitution.
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