Cumberland Farms, Inc. v. Framingham Division of the District Court Department

In this case we are asked to resolve whether an assistant clerk-magistrate presiding over a small claims action has the authority to act on contested motions. We conclude that an assistant clerk-magistrate does.

Facts. Cumberland Farms, Inc. (Cumberland), filed an action in the small claims session of the District Court against Casella Waste Management, Inc. (Casella), after power lines attached to one of Cumberland’s stores were struck and damaged by a *733Casella truck three years earlier.2 Cumberland originally sought damages in the amount of $17,528.12.3 Approximately eleven months later,…