Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 243, § 6 (2026)

Actions against farming operations; limitations

✓ text as last checked Sept. 2026 (this copy records no edition or section history)
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Section 6. No action in nuisance may be maintained against any person or entity resulting from the operation of a farm or any ancillary or related activities thereof, if said operation is an ordinary aspect of said farming operation or ancillary or related activity; provided, however, that said farm shall have been in operation for more than one year. This section shall not apply if the nuisance is determined to exist as the result of negligent conduct or actions inconsistent with generally accepted agricultural practices. For the purposes of this section, ''agriculture'' and ''farming'' shall be as defined in section one A of chapter one hundred and twenty-eight.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 2 cases, 1999–2013 · leading case: Smith v. Wright, 2013 Mass. App. Div. 24 (Mass. Dist. Ct., App. Div. 2013).
Smith v. Wright, 2013 Mass. App. Div. 24 (Mass. Dist. Ct., App. Div. 2013). “Wright and Komeeka Farm argue that their activity was protected by G.L.c. 243, §6, which the trial judge summarized to the jury and which states: No action in nuisance may be maintained against any person or entity resulting from the operation of a farm or any ancillary or…”
Francisco Cranberries LLC v. Gibney, 1999 Mass. App. Div. 223 (Mass. Dist. Ct., App. Div. 1999). · cites it 3× “This appeal further raises the issue of whether the court erred in finding the pile of sand to constitute a nuisance in light of M.G.L.c. 243, §6 which is protective of farms or any ancillary or related activity.”
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