Probate and Family Court

The Probate and Family Court is a court where a judge decides family matters like:

• divorce,
• separate support,
• paternity,
• child support,
• custody,
• visitation, and
• 209A protective orders.  

You can also file other kinds of cases in Probate and Family Court, like adoption, guardianship, and name change cases.

Every county in Massachusetts has a Probate and Family Court.  If you have to go to court about one of these matters, you can usually go to the Probate and Family Court in your own county. You can find your county Probate and Family Court on the Massachusetts Court system website.