---
title: "Anne Kenney Chaplin | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/anne-kenney-chaplin-ma"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-10-07"
---

# Anne Kenney Chaplin

Massachusetts Housing Court · Recall Justice

## Profile

- Court: Massachusetts Housing Court
- State: Massachusetts
- Role: Recall Justice
- Service status: recalled

## Summary

Anne Kenney Chaplin — Massachusetts Housing Court

## Sources

- [Housing Court Justices](https://www.mass.gov/info-details/housing-court-justices)

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## Biography

### Professional career

- Respected Massachusetts Housing Court justice, widely regarded as “a judge’s judge” for her thoroughness, fairness, and collegiality

### Education

- University of Virginia School of Law in — J.D. (1978)

### Additional information

- Served in New Bedford, Taunton, and Fall River before retiring in 2019, but continued as a recall judge until her death
- In 2000, she was nominated by then-Governor Paul Cellucci to the Massachusetts Housing Court bench.
- Began her legal career in Boston, working at several firms, including Chaplin & Chaplin, McCullough, Stievater & Polvere, and LeBouef, Lamb, Lieby & MacRae.
- She specialized in landlord–tenant law.
- Notable fact: She once said her childhood dream was to play left field for the Red Sox, but when that didn’t happen, she aspired to be a judge — a goal she achieved without pretense



## Published courtroom rules

### Shared court rules

- [Supreme Judicial Court Rule 1:19: Electronic access to the courts](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-20acbd9da185f40e1f10b2b2) — Scope is limited to the court class in the source claim.  Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://www.mass.gov/supreme-judicial-court-rules/supreme-judicial-court-rule-119-electronic-access-to-the-courts). Collected 2026-07-26.