All administrative orders, standards, procedures, schedules and forms promulgated or established by the Supreme Judicial Court or any of its Justices, the Chief Justice of the Superior Court or the Chief Judge of the District Court that are generally applicable to civil actions shall be published by them and made available to all clerks of court and all members of the bar.
Rule 87.Publication of Orders and Standards
Last amended January 1, 2001 · Last verified July 8, 2026
In one sentenceRule 87 requires the Supreme Judicial Court, the Chief Justice of the Superior Court, and the Chief Judge of the District Court to publish any administrative order, standard, procedure, schedule, or form that generally applies to civil actions, and to make it available to court clerks and the bar.
Full Text of Rule 87
Advisory Committee’s Notes & Reporter’s Notes
Advisory Committee’s Note — January 1, 2001
Former Rule 87 prescribed admission to the bar. It was abrogated effective November 1, 1978 with the promulgation of the Maine Bar Rules. New Rule 87, requiring publication of orders and standards promulgated or established by the courts, is taken from now-abrogated Rule 76(f). New Rule 87 makes explicit the current practice of the Supreme Judicial Court, its justices, the Chief Justice of the Superior Court, and the Chief Judge of the District Court to publish and make available to the clerks and the bar all administrative orders, standards, procedures, schedules and forms they may promulgate or establish from time to time.
Reporter's Notes — December 1, 1959
This rule [former Rule 87 prescribing admission to the bar] replaces Supreme Judicial Court Rule 1.
Plain-English Summary
Courts issue administrative orders, standards, schedules, and forms outside the formal rulemaking process, and Rule 87 makes sure the bar and the clerks who process filings have access to them. Anything of that kind promulgated by the Supreme Judicial Court or any of its Justices, the Chief Justice of the Superior Court, or the Chief Judge of the District Court, that generally applies to civil actions, must be published and made available to every clerk of court and every member of the bar. An earlier version of Rule 87 dealt with admission to the bar; that provision was abrogated when the Maine Bar Rules took over that subject, and the rule was repurposed for this publication requirement instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kinds of materials must be published under Rule 87?
Administrative orders, standards, procedures, schedules, and forms promulgated by the Supreme Judicial Court, the Chief Justice of the Superior Court, or the Chief Judge of the District Court that generally apply to civil actions.
Who is entitled to receive these published materials?
All clerks of court and all members of the bar.
Did Rule 87 always require publication of administrative orders?
No, the original Rule 87 governed bar admission; it was abrogated when the Maine Bar Rules were promulgated, and the rule number was reused for this publication requirement.
Source & verification. The rule text and Advisory Committee’s Notes / Reporter’s
Notes are reproduced verbatim from the official Maine Rules of Civil Procedure (Me. R. Civ. P. 87), prescribed by the
Supreme Judicial Court of Maine (4 M.R.S. § 8, the Rules Enabling Act). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 8, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: publication of administrative orders Maine courtscourt standards and schedules published