Litigation is one way to resolve a dispute, and often the leverage it creates is what produces the settlement. The question worth asking first is what outcome is realistic and what it will cost to reach.

How long you have

Contract claims in Massachusetts generally carry a six-year limitations period under MGL c. 260, s. 2. Most tort claims are three years. The clock often starts when the breach occurred rather than when you discovered the consequences, which catches people out.

Chapter 93A changes the arithmetic

Massachusetts consumer protection law, MGL c. 93A, applies to unfair or deceptive acts in trade or commerce. For consumer claims it ordinarily requires a written demand letter at least thirty days before suit, and it allows multiple damages and attorney’s fees where the conduct was wilful or knowing and the response to the demand was unreasonable.

That demand letter is not a formality. A well-drafted one often resolves the matter, and a poorly drafted one can forfeit the strongest part of the claim.

Which court hears it

Smaller matters are heard in the District Court and larger ones in the Superior Court, with the dividing line turning on the damages at stake. Title and boundary matters may belong in the Land Court, and disputes over an estate in the Probate and Family Court. Filing in the wrong forum costs time you may not be able to recover.

How Sofio Law helps

An honest assessment of the claim before you spend money on it, demand letters and negotiation where that resolves matters, and pleadings, discovery, motions and trial where it does not. We handle contract disputes, consumer claims, landlord and tenant matters, property and boundary disputes, and business disagreements.

The initial consultation is free and lasts 30 minutes. Call (774) 801-9774 or email info@sofio.law.

This page is general information about Massachusetts law, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Limitations periods and procedural requirements depend on the facts of each case.