Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 208, § 34B (2026)

Order to vacate marital home

✓ current as of July 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section MAmalegislature.gov (official) JustiaChapter on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

Section 34B. Any court having jurisdiction of actions for divorce, or for nullity of marriage or of separate support or maintenance, may, upon commencement of such action and during the pendency thereof, order the husband or wife to vacate forthwith the marital home for a period of time not exceeding ninety days, and upon further motion for such additional certain period of time, as the court deems necessary or appropriate if the court finds, after a hearing, that the health, safety or welfare of the moving party or any minor children residing with the parties would be endangered or substantially impaired by a failure to enter such an order. The opposing party shall be given at least three days' notice of such hearing and may appear and be heard either in person or by his attorney. If the moving party demonstrates a substantial likelihood of immediate danger to his or her health, safety or welfare or to that of such minor children from the opposing party, the court may enter a temporary order without notice, and shall immediately thereafter notify said opposing party and give him or her an opportunity to be heard as soon as possible but not later than five days after such order is entered on the question of continuing such temporary order. The court may issue an order to vacate although the opposing party does not reside in the marital home at the time of its issuance, or if the moving party has left such home and has not returned there because of fear for his or her safety or for that of any minor children.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 13 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1973–2023 · leading case: Champagne v. Champagne, 708 N.E.2d 100 (Mass. 1999).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Champagne v. Champagne, 708 N.E.2d 100 (Mass. 1999). · cites it 4× “Protective orders may also be issued during a pending divorce to order a spouse to vacate the marital home, G. L. c. 208, § 34B, and for temporary relief from actual abuse or immediate threats of physical harm.”

Litchfield v. Litchfield, 770 N.E.2d 554 (Mass. App. Ct. 2002). · cites it 3× “2 Prior to issuing the order in question, the judge, who was familiar with the case, having presided over the parties’ divorce and having issued or extended orders under G. L. c. 208, § 34B, 3 held a hearing and heard from both parties, individually.”

Dee v. Dee, 296 N.E.2d 521 (Mass. App. Ct. 1973). · cites it 4× “The order which was entered cannot be supported by anything found in G.L.c. 208, § 34B, inserted by St. 1970, c.”

Comins v. Comins, 595 N.E.2d 804 (Mass. App. Ct. 1992). “See G. L. c. 208, § 34B; G. L. c. 209A. The judge found facts which neither support the wife’s allegation of cruel and abusive treatment nor her version of her departure from the marital home.”

Kraytsberg v. Kraytsberg, 696 N.E.2d 124 (Mass. 1998). · cites it 2× “A judge in the Middlesex Probate and Family Court issued the first restraining order on February 16, 1993, under G. L. c. 208, § 34B, pursuant to the court’s jurisdiction over the divorce between the petitioner and his wife, one of the respondents in this case.”

Lantsman v. Lantsman, 711 N.E.2d 163 (Mass. 1999). “1008, 1009 (1998) (recognizing that, as for protective orders *1019 issued by Probate Court under G. L. c. 208, § 34B, an aggrieved party may seek review in the Appeals Court pursuant to G.”

Greco v. Suffolk Div. of the Prob. & Fam. Court Dep't, 635 N.E.2d 243 (Mass. 1994). “See G. L. c. 208, §§ 34B, 34C (1992 ed.). Notwithstanding the requirement of Rule 201 of the Supplemental Rules of the Probate Court (1994) that such a proceeding *154 be recorded electronically and made available to a party on request, the tape has not been provided to the…”

Arnold v. Arnold, 451 N.E.2d 729 (Mass. App. Ct. 1983). “The provisions of G. L. c. 208, § 34B, have been expanded from the provisions (see § 34B, inserted by St.”

Commonwealth v. Blessing, 683 N.E.2d 724 (Mass. App. Ct. 1997). · cites it 5× “The defendant was convicted of violating a protective order issued pursuant to G. L. c. 208, § 34B (three counts). On appeal, he alleges that the trial judge erred in denying his motion for a required finding of not guilty.”

Greco v. Suffolk Div. Of Prob. & Fam. Court Dept, 635 N.E.2d 243 (Mass. 1994). “See G.L.c. 208, §§ 34B, 34C (1992 ed.). Notwithstanding the requirement of Rule 201 of the Supplemental Rules of the Probate Court (1994) that such a proceeding *154 be recorded electronically and made available to a party on request, the tape has not been provided to the…”

Kelso v. Kelso, 33 Mass. L. Rptr. 386 (Mass. Super. Ct. 2013). “Kelso to vacate the marital home under G.L.c. 208, §34B. The next day, Ms. Cappadona, through a series of events, induced Mr.”

J.C. v. A.C. (Mass. App. Ct. 2023). · cites it 2× “0 The plaintiff (wife) in the underlying divorce action filed a motion and supporting affidavit under G. L. c. 208, § 34B, seeking an order directing the defendant (husband) to vacate the marital home.”

Show all 13 citing cases →

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.