M.B. v. J.B. (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-093-14)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports. If you find a typographical error or other formal error, please notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Judicial Court, John Adams Courthouse, 1 Pemberton Square, Suite 2500, Boston, MA 02108-1750; (617) 557-1030; SJCReporter@sjc.state.ma.us 13-P-204 Appeals Court M.B. vs. J.B. No. 13-P-204. Worcester. January 10, 2014. – August 7, 2014. Present: Kantrowitz, Vuono, & Sullivan, JJ. Abuse Prevention. Practice, Civil, Venue, Waiver. Jurisdiction, Probate Court. Waiver. Complaint for protection from abuse filed in the Worcester Division of the Probate and Family Court Department on June 22, 2012. A motion to extend an abuse prevention order and a motion to dismiss were heard by Denise L. Meagher, J. Lawrence F. Army, Jr. for the defendant. B.J. Krintzman for the plaintiff. SULLIVAN. J. This is an appeal from an abuse prevention order issued on an ex parte basis, and extended after notice and a hearing by a judge of the Worcester Division of the Probate and Family Court Department. The defendant contends that the Worcester Probate and Family Court lacked jurisdiction to enter the orders, and that the plaintiff failed to establish that she was in reasonable fear of imminent serious physical harm. We affirm. 1. Background. This case has a complex procedural history which we set forth in some detail to provide context for the issues raised on appeal.[1] The parties separated in August of 2011, and M.B. moved from the marital home in Worcester County to a second home on Cape Cod. The divorce action was filed on November 9, 2011, in the Worcester Probate and Family Court. Beginning on November 11, and continuing until December 9, 2011, J.B., then age 53, sent M.B. multiple electronic mail (e-mail) and text messages, called M.B. repeatedly, had her cable and internet service cut off, appropriated her bank password, took money out of her bank account, took two of her cellular telephones, changed her telephone service provider account password, and attempted to access her telephone records. On December 9, 2011, the parties agreed to a stipulation in the divorce case which included an order restricting all communication except e-mail related to visitation of their teenage son. The probate judge entered the stipulation as a temporary order. However, J.B. continued to text and call M.B.[2] The judge orally ordered him to cease contact in February of 2012, and issued a written order on March 19, 2012. J.B. continued to contact M.B. M.B. filed an application for an abuse prevention order on May 10, 2012 in the Worcester Probate and Family Court. […]