Rental Property Management Services v. Hatcher, 97 N.E.3d 319 (2018)

Citation: Rental Property Management Services v. Hatcher, 97 N.E.3d 319 (2018)
Parent Document: Rental Property Management Services v. Hatcher, 97 N.E.3d 319 (2018)
Jurisdiction: Massachusetts (state)
Effective Date: 2018-05-15
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/4498231/rental-property-management-serv... ↗

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6 The agent in LAS Collection Mgt. v. Pagan, 447 Mass. 847,
848, 850 (2006) (LAS), not only filed and signed the complaint
as an agent of the property owner but also "managed the
prosecution of the complaint[] and cross-examined witnesses" at
an evidentiary hearing. Basile contends that, because the agent
in LAS did more than sign the complaint, our ruling in that case
was not that an agent engages in the unauthorized practice of
law by signing and filing the complaint alone, but that proof is
required that the agent also managed the prosecution of the
complaint and represented the property owner at a court
proceeding. We disagree; by concluding that the judge erred in
denying the motion to dismiss, which was decided early in the
litigation, we effectively ruled that the signing and filing of
the complaint was enough to constitute the unauthorized practice
of law.
                                                                 14 permitted to manage, prosecute or defend their own actions,

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