reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 252 - Improvement of Low Land and Swamps › Section 22 - Fees

Section 22. The mayor and aldermen or selectmen shall each receive two dollars for each day's service upon such petition, and the city or town clerk shall receive for recording a petition or order thereon the fee provided by clause (68) of section thirty-four of chapter two hundred and sixty-two.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 252 - Improvement of Low Land and Swamps › Section 23 - Appeal

Section 23. A party aggrieved by the refusal of the mayor and aldermen or selectmen to make such order, may, within one year thereafter, petition the county commissioners, who shall thereupon proceed in all respects as though the petition had been originally filed with them.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 1 - Erection of Mills and Mill Dams

Section 1. A person may, as hereinafter provided, erect and maintain a water mill and a dam to raise water for working it, upon and across any stream not navigable.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 2 - Dams; Injury to Existing Mill; Prohibition

Section 2. Such dam shall not be erected to the injury of a mill lawfully existing above or below it on the same stream, nor to the injury of a mill site on the same stream on which a mill or mill dam has been lawfully erected and used, unless the right to maintain a mill on such last mentioned site has been lost by abandonment or otherwise; nor shall a mill dam be erected or raised to the injury of any such mill site which has been occupied as such by the owner thereof, if, within a reasonable time after commencing such occupation, he completes and puts in operation a mill for the working of which the water of such stream is applied; nor shall a mill or dam be placed on the land of any person without such grant, conveyance or authority from the owner as would be necessary to convey land.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 4 - Overflow or Injury to Land; Action for Compensation; Limitation; Venue

Section 4. The owner or occupant of land which has been overflowed or otherwise injured by such dam may bring a civil action to obtain compensation therefor. Such action shall be commenced within three years next after the event complained of in the superior court for the county where the land or any part thereof lies; but if the land overflowed or injured is outside the commonwealth such action shall be brought in the superior court for the county where the dam or any part thereof is maintained.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 7 - Jury View of Land

Section 7. Such action shall be tried by a jury and, if either party requires it, the jury shall, under the direction of the court, view the land alleged to be injured.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 8 - Assessment of Damages

Section 8. If the jury finds that the plaintiff has suffered the injury complained of it shall assess the amount of damages sustained within three years last preceding the commencement of the action and to the date of their verdict, taking into consideration any damage caused by the dam to other land of the plaintiff as well as the damage caused thereby to the land overflowed reduced by any benefit caused thereby to the plaintiff's land.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 9 - Height of Dam; Determination by Jury

Section 9. If it is alleged in the plaintiff's complaint that the dam has been raised to an unreasonable height, or that it ought not to be kept up and closed during the whole year, the jury shall determine by their verdict how much, if at all, the dam shall be lowered and whether it shall be left open, and, if so, during what part of the year.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 10 - Annual and Gross Damages; Assessment by Jury

Section 10. They shall also determine by their verdict what amount, if any, to be paid annually to the plaintiff, would be a just and reasonable compensation for the damages that may be thereafter caused by the dam, so long as it is used in conformity with the verdict; and also what amount in gross would be a just and reasonable compensation for all damages thereafter to be caused by such use of the dam and for the right to maintain and use it forever as aforesaid.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 11 - Plaintiff; Right to Elect Gross Amount

Section 11. The plaintiff may, within three months after the verdict has been recorded elect, by a writing filed in the clerk's office, to take the amount so awarded in gross, instead of such annual compensation.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 12 - Gross Amount; Time for Payment

Section 12. The owner or occupant of the mill or dam shall, within three months after such election, pay to the plaintiff or secure to his satisfaction said amount with interest from the date of the verdict. After the expiration of said three months, and until payment of said damages and interest, such owner or occupant shall lose all benefit of the provisions of this chapter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 13 - Annual Compensation

Section 13. If the plaintiff does not file an election, as aforesaid, he and all persons claiming under him shall, so long as the dam is kept up and maintained, be entitled to receive from the owner or occupant of the mill the annual compensation so established by the jury, unless the amount is increased or diminished upon a new petition, as hereinafter provided.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 14 - Damages; Lien on Mill

Section 14. The person who is entitled to receive said annual compensation or gross damages shall have a lien therefor, from the time of the commencement of the original action, on the mill and mill dam with their appurtenances and on the land under and adjoining the same and used therewith; but such lien shall not extend to any amount due more than three years before the commencement of an action therefor.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 15 - Recovery of Damages; Enforcement of Lien

Section 15. Such person may recover, in contract in the superior court from the person who owns or occupies the mill when the action is brought, the whole amount due and unpaid for the three years last preceding, and costs, although the amount recovered is less than one hundred dollars.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 16 - Sale on Execution

Section 16. The execution issued on such judgment, if not otherwise satisfied, may, within thirty days after judgment, be levied on the land so subject to the lien; and the officer may thereupon sell, in the manner provided for the sale of land on execution, such land or so much thereof as is necessary to satisfy the execution and the expenses of the levy. Such sale shall be valid against any claim which has accrued within the time covered by the lien.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 17 - Redemption

Section 17. A person who is entitled to the land so sold may redeem the same within one year after the sale, upon paying to the purchaser or to the person holding under him the amount paid therefor, with interest at the rate of twelve per cent a year.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 19 - Remedies

Section 19. No action shall be maintained at common law for the recovery of damages for the erection, maintenance or use of a mill or mill dam, if a remedy therefor is provided in this chapter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 20 - Existing Mills and Dams; Effect of This Chapter

Section 20. This chapter shall not, except as herein expressly provided, affect the right to keep up, maintain and use any lawfully existing water mill and mill dam; but if the owner or occupant thereof makes any material change by raising the dam or by altering the machinery or the manner of using the water, so as to cause additional damage to the land of another, it shall be considered a new mill or dam, in respect to such additional damage, and the remedy for compensation therefor shall be substantially the same as in the case of a new dam.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 21 - Reassessment; New Action

Section 21. If either party is dissatisfied with the annual compensation established by proceedings upon a civil action under this chapter or corresponding provisions of earlier laws, a new action may be commenced for the increase or diminution of such compensation or for ascertaining the gross amount of the damages, and the action shall be conducted substantially in the manner provided for an original action; but if a plaintiff has declined to accept gross damages which have been awarded to him, they shall not be again assessed within ten years thereafter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 22 - Reassessment; Parties; Time

Section 22. Such new action may be maintained by and against either of the parties to the original action or by and against a person lawfully holding under either of them, but it shall not be brought until the expiration of one month after the payment of the year last preceding was due.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 23 - Costs; Avoidance by Offer to Pay Increased Compensation

Section 23. The owner of the mill or dam may, within said month, offer in writing to the owner of the land any increase of said annual compensation; and if the owner of the land does not agree to accept it, but brings an action to obtain an increase, he shall pay the costs, unless he recovers a greater annual compensation than was so offered.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 24 - Costs; Avoidance by Offer to Accept Smaller Compensation

Section 24. The owner of the land may, within said month, offer in writing to the owner of the mill or dam to accept a smaller amount than that established as said annual compensation; and if the owner of the mill or dam does not agree to pay such reduced compensation, but brings an action to obtain a diminution thereof, he shall pay the costs, unless the annual compensation is reduced by the verdict to an amount less than the offer.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 25 - Offer to Tenants

Section 25. Such offers may be made by or to the respective tenants or occupants of the land and of the mill or dam, in like manner and with like effect as if made by or to the respective owners, except that no agreement founded thereon shall bind said owners unless made with their consent.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 26 - Acceptance of Offer; Effect

Section 26. If the offer so made by either party is accepted by the other, it shall establish the annual compensation to be thereafter paid, as if it had been established by a judgment in a civil action, if a memorandum of such offer and acceptance and of the agreement, signed by the respective parties or by persons authorized by them, is filed and recorded in the office of the clerk of the court in which the former judgment was rendered, with a note of reference on the record of the former judgment to the book in which the agreement is recorded.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 27 - Verdict; Effect Upon Action for New Damages

Section 27. If, upon an action by the owner of the land, the jury return a verdict that he is not entitled to any annual compensation, the judgment thereon shall not bar a new action for damages alleged to have arisen after such verdict and for compensation for damages thereafter sustained.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 28 - Tender; Effect on Costs

Section 28. In every civil action brought by the owner of land alleged to be injured by a mill dam, the defendant may bring into court and there tender any amount which he considers proper to be paid to the plaintiff for the damages incurred up to the time of such tender, and may also offer to pay any certain annual compensation for the damages which may be thereafter caused by the dam. If the plaintiff does not accept the amount so tendered with his costs to that time, he shall, unless he recovers greater damages or greater annual compensation than was so offered, be entitled to his costs to the time of the tender, and the defendant shall be entitled to his costs after said time.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 29 - Tender; Judgment Upon Acceptance; Costs

Section 29. If the plaintiff accepts the amount so offered for the past damage and for future annual compensation, he shall have judgment therefor and for costs to that time; or the plaintiff may accept either the amount tendered for past damages or the offer for future annual compensation, and proceed to trial on the residue of the complaint under the same liability for costs.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 30 - Action; Joinder of Parties

Section 30. Two or more persons who are jointly or separately interested in the land injured may join in a civil action, and the jury may assess joint or several damages as the interest and title of the plaintiffs may require; and judgment and execution shall conform thereto.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 32 - Reversal of Judgment for Plaintiff; New Action; Time Limit

Section 32. If a judgment for the plaintiff is reversed for error, the plaintiff, or any person claiming under him, may commence a new action for the same cause within one year after the reversal of the judgment, and recover all damages sustained during the three years last preceding or at any time after the commencement of the original action.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 33 - Overflowing Public Ways; Petition

Section 33. If a person who owns, erects or maintains a water mill or a dam to raise water for working such mill upon or across a stream not navigable desires to raise, erect or maintain a dam at such a height or in such a manner as to overflow or otherwise injure an existing public way, he may apply by petition to the commissioner of environmental protection, hereinafter called the commissioner, stating the height at which it is desired to maintain such dam and the ways which may be injured thereby, and asking for the alteration, change of grade or specific repairs of such ways.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 34 - Notice

Section 34. Notice of the hearing upon such petition shall be given to the towns where the ways are situated, and to the owners or occupants of the land affected thereby, in like manner as notice of the laying out of highways is given.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 35 - Change of Grade of Ways; Power of Commissioner to Order

Section 35. The commissioner may, after a hearing, order such alteration, repairs or change of grade of such ways as will in his judgment enable the petitioner to raise, erect and maintain such dam without overflowing or otherwise injuring such ways, and they may give written direction and authority to the petitioner to make at his own expense such alterations, changes of grade and repairs within a reasonable time. He shall record all such orders and shall cause certified copies thereof to be filed and recorded in the office of the clerk of each town in which such alterations, changes of grade or repairs are ordered.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 36 - Damages; Duty of Commissioner to Assess

Section 36. The commissioner shall assess and order the petitioner to pay all damages sustained by any person or town by reason of the alterations, changes of grade or repairs ordered by him, and any person or town aggrieved by such assessment may, on application within one year from the entry of such order, have the damages assessed by a jury in the manner provided in chapter seventy-nine.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 37 - Costs

Section 37. The costs of proceedings under the preceding four sections shall be paid by the petitioners, who may be required by the commissioner to give bond with sufficient sureties for the payment thereof.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 38 - Order of Commissioner; Compliance; Exoneration From Criminal Liability

Section 38. The order of the commissioner, duly issued under section thirty-five, shall authorize the petitioner to do all acts necessary to be done in compliance therewith; and if it is shown that the petitioner has substantially complied with such order, no indictment shall be maintained for the flowage of, or injury to, the ways mentioned in such order, which may be caused by the dam.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 39 - Dam to Flow Cranberry Land; Erection; License

Section 39. An owner or lessee of land appropriated or which he desires to appropriate to the cultivation and growth of cranberries may erect and maintain a dam upon and across a stream to flow and irrigate said land, subject to this chapter so far as applicable; but he shall not erect and maintain a dam across a navigable stream or across the outlet of a great pond, without a license therefor from the department of environmental management.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 40 - Expense; Apportionment; Appeal

Section 40. If a dam has been so erected or maintained or if a person has at his own expense made, kept open or repaired any ditches or drains for the improvement or cultivation of such tract of land, any owner or lessee of a like tract, who uses such dam, ditches or drains or who by more remote means receives benefit thereby for the flowing, irrigating or draining of such last mentioned tract, shall pay to the person who has erected or maintained such dam or incurred such expense his proportionate part thereof, which shall be determined by the aldermen of the city or the selectmen of the town and certified to such owner or lessee. Any person aggrieved by such determination may within three months after notice thereof appeal therefrom to the superior court for the county where the dam, ditches or drains are situated, and shall be entitled to a jury trial; but before taking his appeal he shall give one month's notice, in writing, to the aldermen or selectmen of his intention so to appeal, and shall therein specify particularly his objections to the determination, to which specification he shall be confined upon the hearing by jury. If such owner or lessee fails to pay to the person entitled such proportionate part as finally determined, within said three months if there is no appeal, otherwise within seven days after final determination, he shall pay double the amount so determined with all expenses arising from such failure; and such person may recover the same in contract in his own name. But no covenants or agreements by or between the owners or lessees of such land shall be affected by this section.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 41 - Ice Ponds; Erection of Dams; Consent of Owners; Damages

Section 41. An owner or lessee of land used for an ice pond may erect and, between November first and March first, maintain a dam across a stream not navigable, for the purpose of making an ice pond by flowing adjoining land, subject to this chapter so far as applicable, if he annually pays to the owner of land which may be overflowed or injured thereby the amount of the tax which may from time to time be assessed on such land; but such dam shall not be erected without the consent of all of the owners of the land which would be flowed by it, unless the person proposing to erect it shall furnish to such owners as do not consent to the erection security, satisfactory to them or approved by a justice of a court of record or by a master in chancery, for the payment of any damages which may be caused by flowing the land of such owners.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 42 - Domestic Reservoir Corporations; Land Flowed; Compensation

Section 42. A domestic reservoir corporation may flow the land of other persons by its reservoir dam, and a person whose land or property has been flowed or injured by such dam, unless compensation has been otherwise made, may obtain compensation therefor as provided in this chapter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 43 - Security From Corporations

Section 43. The court in which an action for such compensation is pending shall, if requested by the plaintiff, require such corporation to give satisfactory security for the payment of all damages and costs which may be awarded thereon, and if the court finds that the security has become insufficient, it shall require the corporation to give further security. If the corporation neglects for one month or for such further time as the court allows to comply with any such order, it shall lose all rights under this chapter, and the court may restrain it from flowing or injuring such land or property until such security has been given.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 45 - Dam Registration Form; Failure to File; Penalties; Notice on Transfer of Legal Title or Change

Section 45. The owner of any dam shall file with the commissioner on or before July 1, 2003, and before operating any dam constructed thereafter, on such form or forms prescribed by the commissioner, a dam registration form containing the name of the owner, the location and the dimensions of the dam and such other information as the commissioner may require by regulation. A registration form shall not be deemed received by the commissioner until all information specifically required by statute or regulation is submitted. Failure to file a dam registration form by the time prescribed shall subject the owner to fines prescribed by regulation, and an inspection by the commissioner who may enter the property of the owner to obtain the requisite information. The registered owner of any dam shall notify the commissioner, by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, of the transfer of legal title of the dam and any of changes for which the department may require notice by regulation, not later than 10 days after the date of such transfer or change. Upon receipt and approval of the dam registration form, the department shall issue a certificate of registration to each dam owner.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 45a - Construction or Alteration of Dams; Permit Approval

Section 45A. No person shall construct or materially alter a dam without applying for and receiving permit approval from the department. The approved permit shall be recorded at the registry of deeds in the county where the dam lies prior to commencement of construction. The application for a permit shall be made on such form or forms as prescribed by the commissioner. The application shall be accompanied by plans, specifications and related documents certified by a registered professional civil engineer. The commissioner shall approve or deny an application within 60 days after receipt. Construction of the dam shall be performed under the supervision of a registered professional civil engineer retained by the applicant and shall conform with the permit and its accompanying plans, specifications and related documents. The commissioner may require the engineer to submit periodic construction reports and drawings upon completion. If, after investigation of such periodic construction reports, the commissioner determines that construction does not conform to such plans and specifications, the commissioner may order the discontinuance of the project until such time as he is satisfied that the work shall be performed in accordance with such plans. The engineer shall certify, upon completion of the work, that the dam has been constructed in accordance with the permit.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 46a - Dam Approval; Certificate of Compliance

Section 46A. When a dam has been deemed safe, removed, repaired or constructed pursuant to an order of the commissioner; or a dam has been evaluated, constructed, repaired or altered to the satisfaction of the commissioner under a properly issued permit, the commissioner shall issue a certificate of compliance to the owner approving the dam or the safe removal of the dam but subject to such terms and conditions, if any, as the commissioner deems necessary for the protection of life and property or such terms and conditions, if any, as the commissioner, in consultation with the commissioner of fish and game, deems necessary for the protection of the environment. Such certificate shall be recorded by the owner in the registry of deeds in the county where the dam lies.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 47 - Unsafe or Inadequate Dams; Action by Commissioner; Enforcement; Regulations

Section 47. (a) If the owner fails to take corrective action or fails to file an evaluation report, within the time specified in the order, as required in section 46, or if the owner of the dam cannot be determined, the commissioner may take such action as he deems necessary to repair or mitigate the unsafe condition and put the dam in an acceptable structural and operational condition or remove the dam in accordance with the existing rules and regulations of the department. Any emergency action taken by the owner of a dam pursuant to the commissioner's order or any emergency action taken by the commissioner may be taken without any prior filing with the conservation commission under section 40 of chapter 131. If water has been drawn off or the structure has been altered pursuant to an order by the commissioner, the impoundment shall not be refilled without approval of the commissioner. The commissioner may enter private property to take action to enforce sections 44 to 47, inclusive. The commissioner may enter into contracts to take actions, draw off water or make temporary repairs without complying with the competitive bidding requirements in chapter 149, if such action is necessary to abate a threat to safety or property.
(b) Any person performing substantial repairs without complying with sections 44 to 48A, inclusive, or who fails to comply with the provisions of this chapter or of any order, regulation or requirement of the department relative to dam safety, shall be fined an amount not to exceed $5,000 for each offense, to be fixed by the court. Each violation shall be a separate and distinct offense and, in case of a continuing violation, each day's continuance thereof shall be deemed to be a separate and distinct offense.
(c) The attorney general, upon notice by the commissioner, shall institute an action to recover such fine and to enjoin the alteration, construction and use of such structure.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 48 - Costs; Lien; Enforcement

Section 48. The commissioner shall make such orders as he may deem just as to the payment by the owner to the commonwealth or other party of the costs and expenses incurred by them under the preceding 4 sections, with interest, from the time they were paid by the commonwealth. Notice shall be given to the state treasurer and the owner or other party for the amount due to the commonwealth. Any action taken by the commissioner pursuant to section 47 shall create a lien upon the lot of land on which the dam is situated and upon the buildings and structures on said lot to secure payment for all costs incurred by the commissioner in correcting the unsafe condition, plus interest. The attorney general, upon notice by the commissioner, shall institute an action to enforce such lien.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 48a - Dam Inspection and Regulation Program; Effectiveness Report

Section 48A. During each fiscal year, the department of environmental management shall prepare a report on the overall effectiveness of the dam inspection and regulation program under sections 44 to 48, inclusive, including, but not limited to, the number of inspections conducted per year, a listing of identified deficient dams in the commonwealth and steps taken to remedy deficiencies. The department shall submit the report to the joint committee on natural resources and agriculture and to the senate and house committees on ways and means, and shall make it available to all interested parties.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 48b - Liability of Owner

Section 48B. The owner of a dam shall be responsible for liability for damage to property of others or injury to persons, including but not limited to loss of life, resulting from the operation, failure of or misoperation of a dam. The provisions of sections 44 to 48, inclusive, shall not relieve from or lessen the responsibility of any person owning, or operating a dam from any damages to persons or property caused by dam defects, nor shall the commissioner be held liable by reason of the inspections required or permits issued.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 49 - Acts of Commissioner; Effect on Liability of Owners

Section 49. No order, approval, request or advice of the commissioner shall impair the legal duties and obligations of the owners of reservoirs, reservoir dams or mill dams or their liability for the consequences of their illegal acts or of the neglect or mismanagement of their servants or agents.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 50a - Roll Dams; Warning Signs; Failure to Comply

Section 50A. The department of environmental management shall, subject to the appropriation of funds for such purpose, erect signs in the vicinity of all roll dams owned or under the control of the commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions to warn boaters of the location of said dams. For the purposes of this section a roll dam shall mean any broad crested weir, sharp crested weir or design head weir, the purpose of which is to change the flow of rivers from a critical to a noncritical flow.
Failure to comply with the provisions of this section shall not be used as evidence in any action commenced under the provisions of chapter two hundred and fifty-eight.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 51 - Repairing and Rebuilding Mills and Mill Dams; Power of Majority

Section 51. If a mill which is owned by joint tenants or tenants in common, or the dam or appurtenances of such mill, require repairs or rebuilding in whole or in part, and all the proprietors do not agree to join therein, a majority in interest of the proprietors may cause the work to be done at the expense of the whole in proportion to their respective interests.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 52 - Meeting of Proprietors

Section 52. One or more of the proprietors may call a meeting by a notice signed by the person or persons who call it, addressed to each of the other proprietors, stating that the mill, dam or appurtenances require repairs or rebuilding and that their attendance is requested at a meeting of the proprietors thereof at the mill at a time named to consult and agree upon the measures to be taken for such purpose.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 53 - Notice

Section 53. The notice shall be served by an officer qualified to serve civil process by delivering an attested copy thereof to each proprietor, or by leaving such copy at his last and usual place of abode, not less than seven nor more than thirty days before the day appointed for the meeting, and such officer's return, specifying the persons on whom he has served the notice and the time and manner of the service on each, shall be sufficient evidence thereof.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 54 - Repairs and Rebuilding; Mills and Dams

Section 54. At such meeting, or at any adjournment thereof, the majority in interest of the proprietors of the mill may take measures to cause the mill or the dam or appurtenances thereof to be repaired or rebuilt, as they shall consider most for the interest of all concerned therein.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 55 - Expense of Work; Apportionment

Section 55. Each proprietor shall, upon demand, after the work is completed, pay to the proprietors by whom it has been advanced his just and equal part of the expense of such repair or rebuilding, in proportion to his share or interest in the mill, with interest from the time of the advance.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 56 - Lien for Advancements

Section 56. The proprietors who advance the money so expended shall have a lien therefor on the rents and profits of the mill and may retain so much thereof as belongs to any proprietor indebted to them for such advance, to be applied to the payment of his debt; or they may maintain an action for the debt or for as much thereof as has not been received from the rents and profits.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 57 - Guardian; Powers

Section 57. The guardian of a proprietor may act for him in calling or attending a meeting of the proprietors, and may there vote and do all such other acts as the ward could do if competent to act.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 58 - Tenants and Remainderman; Apportionment of Expenses

Section 58. If part of the mill is held by a tenant for life or years, the amount due for the repairs and other expenses on that part of the mill shall be apportioned on the tenant for life or years and on the remainderman or reversioner in proportion to the value of their respective interest; and the person to whom the money is due from such remainderman or reversioner shall have a lien on the rents and profits belonging to him after his estate comes into possession, if not sooner paid, notwithstanding any limitation by lapse of time.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 59 - Mortgagor and Mortgagee; Apportionment of Expenses

Section 59. A mortgagee in possession shall be considered a proprietor for the purposes of this chapter; but if the action is brought against the mortgagor before his right of redemption has been foreclosed, he shall also be liable for all amounts so due on account of his share of the mill, so far as the same have not been recovered from the mortgagee. All amounts paid on this account by the mortgagee shall be allowed, between him and the mortgagor, as so much paid for repairs or improvements.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 253 - Mills, Dams and Reservoirs › Section 61 - Advancement for Repairs; Recovery

Section 61. All amounts due from one or more proprietors to another for money advanced under this chapter may be recovered in a civil action. The amount so recovered shall be apportioned by the court among the plaintiffs, if more than one, according to their respective rights.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 254 - Liens on Buildings and Land › Section 1 - Labor Performed; Limitation on Lien; Filing

Section 1. A person to whom a debt is due for personal labor performed in the erection, alteration, repair or removal of a building or structure upon land or improvement or alteration to real property, by virtue of an agreement with, or by consent of, the owner of such building or structure, or of a person having authority from or rightfully acting for such owner in procuring or furnishing such labor, shall, under the provisions of this chapter, other than section four, have a lien upon such building or structure and upon such interest in such real property, land, building, structure, or improvement owned by the party authorizing or consenting to said work, for not more than thirty days' work actually performed for the ninety days next prior to his filing a statement as provided in section eight.
A person or his assignee, agent, authorized representative or third party beneficiary, to whom amounts are due or for whose benefit amounts are computed and due for, or on the basis of, the personal labor of such person, may file a lien to secure the payment of such unpaid amounts including interest and agreed penalties for failure to pay the same.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part III - Courts, Judicial Officers and Proceedings in Civil Cases › Title IV - Certain Writs and Proceedings in Special Cases › Chapter 254 - Liens on Buildings and Land › Section 2 - Written Contract; Notice; Time for Filing; Form

Section 2. A person entering into a written contract with the owner of any interest in real property, or with any person acting for, on behalf of, or with the consent of such owner for the whole or part of the erection, alteration, repair or removal of a building, structure, or other improvement to real property, or for furnishing material or rental equipment, appliances, or tools therefor, shall have a lien upon such real property, land, building, structure or improvement owned by the party with whom or on behalf of whom the contract was entered into, as appears of record on the date when notice of said contract is filed or recorded in the registry of deeds for the county or district where such land lies, to secure the payment of all labor, including construction management and general contractor services, and material or rental equipment, appliances, or tools which shall be furnished by virtue of said contract. Said notice may be filed or recorded in the registry of deeds in the county or registry district where the land lies by any person entitled under this section to enforce a lien, and shall be in substantially the following form:
Notice is hereby given that by virtue of a written contract
dated , between , owner, and , contractor, said contractor is to furnish or has furnished labor and material or rental equipment, appliances or tools for the erection, alteration, repair or removal of a building, structure, or other improvement on a lot of land or other interest in real property described as follows:
(INSERT DESCRIPTION)
Such person may file or record the notice of contract at any time after execution of the written contract whether or not the date for performance stated in such written contract has passed and whether or not the work under such written contract has been performed, but not later than the earliest of: (i) sixty days after filing or recording of the notice of substantial completion under section two A; or (ii) ninety days after filing or recording of the notice of termination under section two B; or (iii) ninety days after such person or any person by, through or under him last performed or furnished labor or materials or both labor and materials.