§ Rule 77 Superior and District Courts and Clerks

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Rule 77. Superior and District Courts and Clerks

    (a) Courts Always Open. The Superior and District Courts shall be deemed always open for the purpose of filing any pleading or other proper paper, of issuing and returning mesne and final process, and of making and directing all interlocutory motions, orders, and rules. Filings after normal business hours and at places other than appropriate for the venue of the proceeding are governed by Rule 5(g).

    (b) (1) Trials and Hearings; Orders in Chambers. All trials upon the merits shall be conducted in open court and so far as convenient in a regular court room. All other acts or proceedings may be done or conducted by a justice or judge in chambers, without the attendance of the clerk or other court officials and at any place either within or without the county or division where the action is pending.

        (2) Recording. In District Court, 24 hours advance notice is required for recording of any civil proceeding. Except by special order of the court, no record will be made in any court of civil nontestimonial matters.

    (c) Clerk's Office and Orders by Clerk. The clerk's office with the clerk or a deputy in attendance shall be open during such hours as the Chief Justice of the Superior Court, or Chief Judge of the District Court as the case may be, may designate, on all days except Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, and except such other days as the Chief Justice or Chief Judge may designate. All motions and applications in the clerk's office for issuing mesne process, for issuing final process to enforce and execute judgments, for entering defaults or judgments by default, and for other  proceedings that do not require allowance or order of the court are grantable of course by the clerk; but the clerk's action may be suspended or altered or rescinded by the court upon cause shown.

    (d) Notice of Orders or Judgments. Immediately upon the entry of an order or judgment the clerk shall serve a notice of the entry in a manner provided for in Rule 5 upon every party who is not in default for failure to appear, and shall make a note in the docket accordingly. In lieu of serving a notice of the docket entry, the clerk may serve a copy of the order or judgment in a manner provided for in Rule 5. Any such service is sufficient notice for all purposes for which notice of the entry of an order is required by these rules; but any party may in addition serve a notice of such entry in the manner provided in Rule 5 for the service of papers. Lack of notice of the entry by the clerk does not affect the time to appeal or relieve or authorize the court to relieve a party for failure to appeal within the time allowed, except as permitted in the Maine Rules of Appellate Procedure.

    (e) Facsimile Signature of the Clerk. A facsimile of the signature of the clerk imprinted at the clerk's direction upon any summons, writ, subpoena, judgment, order or notice, except executions and criminal process, shall have the same validity as the clerk's signature.