About District and Superior Court
Massachusetts has 62 district courts, each responsible for criminal cases arising within a defined geographic area.
Lowell District Court serves Billerica, Chelmsford, Dracut, Lowell, Tewksbury, and Tyngsborough. It is located inside the Lowell Justice Center at 370 Jackson Street in Lowell.
District court is where the overwhelming majority of criminal cases are handled from start to finish, including arraignments, bail hearings, pretrial conferences, motions, and trials. More serious felonies are indicted and transferred to Middlesex Superior Court, which sits in both Woburn and Lowell. Cases from throughout Middlesex County may be heard at the Lowell session, at 370 Jackson Street.
Juvenile matters are handled by Lowell Juvenile Court, also at 370 Jackson Street, serving a wider area including Ashby, Ayer, Billerica, Boxborough, Burlington, Chelmsford, Dracut, Dunstable, Fort Devens, Groton, Littleton, Lowell, North Reading, Pepperell, Reading, Shirley, Stoneham, Tewksbury, Townsend, Tyngsborough, Westford, Wilmington, Winchester, and Woburn.
The Lowell Justice Center houses five court departments together: District, Superior, Housing, Juvenile, and Probate and Family Court.
If you served in the military, the Middlesex County Veterans Treatment Court sits at Framingham District Court, and a case from Lowell District Court may be able to transfer there. Learn how we represent veterans.
Lowell District Court is one of 12 District Courts in Middlesex County. Our overview of Middlesex County criminal courts covers the rest.
The Lowell Justice Center opened on March 20, 2020, consolidating the previous, separate Lowell District Court building on Hurd Street and the former Superior Courthouse on Gorham Street into this single facility. A 209A abuse prevention order session also runs parallel to the criminal docket in this building.
Serious Felony Charges: Middlesex Superior Court
More serious felony charges, including rape, armed robbery, assault with intent to murder, and drug trafficking, are indicted and transferred to Middlesex Superior Court, also located at 370 Jackson Street in the Lowell Justice Center.
Superior Court carries much higher stakes, including long potential sentences in state prison. Cases involve more complex procedures and evidence. Serious felony charges in Superior Court require a more experienced and skilled lawyer. We have defended people in serious felony cases in Superior Court for over 30 years, with a successful history of negotiation and at trial. If your case is, or could be, headed to Superior Court, that experience matters.
Clerk Magistrate Hearings at Lowell District Court
Many cases at Lowell District Court begin, and sometimes end, at a Clerk's Hearing.
Before a criminal complaint is formally issued in many Massachusetts cases, a Clerk Magistrate Hearing, also called a "show cause hearing," takes place at the courthouse. At this hearing, the clerk magistrate reviews an application for a complaint and determines whether there is probable cause to issue it.
This hearing is one of the most important opportunities in a criminal case. If the clerk magistrate finds insufficient probable cause, no criminal complaint is issued, meaning no arraignment, no criminal record, no case.
Even when a complaint does issue, a skilled defense attorney can use the hearing to develop the facts, assess the evidence, and begin building a defense before the case moves forward. Importantly, there may be an opportunity to resolve the matter without a complaint issuing even if there is probable cause.
You are not required to have an attorney at a clerk magistrate hearing, but appearing without one is a serious mistake. The Commonwealth will have a police officer or prosecutor present the case for a complaint. You should have someone equally prepared to present your side.
We regularly represent clients at clerk magistrate hearings at Lowell District Court. If you have received a notice for a clerk magistrate hearing, call us immediately. These hearings move quickly, and early intervention makes a significant difference.
UMass Lowell and Student Cases
UMass Lowell sits within Lowell District Court's jurisdiction, and college-related charges bring a distinct population through this courthouse.
Alcohol offenses, fake ID charges, and disorderly conduct are common, and many of these cases begin at a clerk magistrate hearing rather than an arraignment, making that first hearing especially important for a student's record and future.
Sexual assault allegations also arise in the campus context, often involving disputes over consent, conflicting accounts, and parallel Title IX proceedings at the university running alongside any criminal case. These cases carry serious, life-altering consequences for a student, on top of the criminal exposure itself.
We have an excellent trial record defending against sex offense charges, and we understand the particular pressures a student and their family face when a college disciplinary process and a criminal case are unfolding at the same time. If your son or daughter is a UMass Lowell student facing any criminal charge, from a first alcohol offense to a serious sex offense allegation, we can help.
OUI Charges Near Route 3, I-495, and the Lowell Connector
Lowell sits at the junction of Route 3, Interstate 495, and the Lowell Connector, and OUI stops arising from these roads are common in this jurisdiction.
Whether you were stopped by Massachusetts State Police on Route 3 or I-495, or by local police within Lowell itself, the same defense principles apply: careful examination of the traffic stop, the field sobriety tests administered, and the breath or blood evidence collected.
We have defended OUI charges arising from this corridor for over 30 years.
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