Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 231, § 13B (2026)

Ad damnum or monetary amount claimed

✓ current as of July 2026

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

Section 13B. No complaint in any civil action shall contain an ad damnum or monetary amount claimed against any defendant, unless such ad damnum or monetary amount claimed indicates damages which are liquidated or ascertainable by calculation and a statement under oath by a person having knowledge thereof is attached to such complaint setting forth the manner in which the amount of said damages was calculated. For the purposes of this section complaint shall include a claim, crossclaim or counterclaim. In civil actions in the superior court, parties, through their counsel, may suggest a specific monetary amount for damages at trial.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 21 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1987–2025 · leading case: Hermanson v. Szafarowicz, 927 N.E.2d 982 (Mass. 2010).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Hermanson v. Szafarowicz, 927 N.E.2d 982 (Mass. 2010). · cites it 3× “820 (1974), which provides that a default judgment may not exceed the amount claimed in the demand for judgment, and implicitly requires a plaintiff to state a specific amount of damages, and G. L. c. 231, § 13B (§ 13B), which prohibits a plaintiff from including in her…”

Friedman v. Globe Newspaper Co., 646 N.E.2d 159 (Mass. App. Ct. 1995). · cites it 4× “In violation of G. L. c. 231, § 13B, which prohibits the inclusion in a complaint of the amount of money claimed, unless that amount is liquidated (e.”

Christopher v. Stanley-Bostitch, Inc., 240 F.3d 95 (1st Cir. 2001). “Christopher did not allege specific monetary damages in accordance with Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 231, § 13B (West 2000): "No complaint in any civil action shall contain an ad damnum or monetary amount claimed against any defendant, unless such ad dam-num or monetary amount…”

Scannell v. Ed. Ferreirinha & Irmao, Lda., 514 N.E.2d 1325 (Mass. 1987). “9 Subsequent to the entry of the judgment in this case, the General Court enacted G. L. c. 231, § 13B (1986 ed.), effective July 1, 1987, which states: “No complaint in any civil action shall contain an ad damnum or monetary amount claimed against any defendant, unless such ad…”

U.S. Funding, Inc. of Am. v. Bank of Boston Corp., 551 N.E.2d 922 (Mass. App. Ct. 1990). “The defendant moved to strike the complaint for two reasons: first, violation of G. L. c. 231, § 13B, prohibiting the inclusion of an ad damnum or specific monetary amount unless damages are liquidated or are ascertainable by calculation and supported by an affidavit setting out…”

Buffum v. Town of Rockport, 632 N.E.2d 414 (Mass. App. Ct. 1994). “Consequences of G. L. c. 231, § 13B, and its application to default situations.”

Zazzara v. Townsend, 1994 Mass. App. Div. 61 (Mass. Dist. Ct., App. Div. 1994). · cites it 2× “Chapter 208 of the Acts of 1986, codified at G.L.c. 231, §13B, which became effective July 1, 1987, abolished the use of “an ad damnum or monetary amount claimed against any defendant, unless.”

Dias v. Genesco, Inc., 365 F. Supp. 3d 158 (D.D.C. 2019). “See Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 231, § 13B. Consequently, Massachusetts permits a demand for a specific sum, even though it regulates the cases in which a plaintiff can make such a demand.”

Reznik v. Garaffo, 2006 Mass. App. Div. 25 (Mass. Dist. Ct., App. Div. 2006). “The defendants indicate that Reznik violated G.L.c. 231, §13B by including an unverified statement in his complaint of the dollar value of the damages he claims.”

Big D Carpets, Inc. v. Welch Grp., Inc., 639 N.E.2d 1085 (Mass. App. Ct. 1994). “See G. L. c. 231, § 13B, inserted by St. 1986, c.”

Tynan v. Nelson, 686 N.E.2d 484 (Mass. App. Ct. 1997). “” The addition of G. L. c. 231, § 13B, by St. 1986, c. 708, § 5, made effective on July 1, 1987, banned the ad damnum from complaints except when claimed damages are liquidated or ascertainable by calculation.”

Chapian v. Car Wash Sys., Inc., 1996 Mass. App. Div. 98 (Mass. Dist. Ct., App. Div. 1996). “In violation of G.L.c. 231, §13B, the plaintiffs included in their complaint specific claims for monetary damages.”

Show all 21 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.