The state-wide Superior Court system was established through St 1859 c 196, holding the same powers and jurisdiction as the Supreme Judicial Court. The statute called for civil and criminal business to be separated into exclusive court terms and recognized the necessity of having two or more sessions in the same county. As defined through St 1860 c 114, the Superior Court’s civil jurisdiction concerned all civil actions not exclusive to the Supreme Judicial Court, police courts, or justices of the peace, although it could hear appeals from lower courts on these matters. Through St 1891 c 379, the Superior Court's criminal jurisdiction was expanded to include exclusive original jurisdiction over capital crimes, an area which was previously reserved for the Supreme Judicial Court alone. An appellate division of the Superior Court was established through St 1943 c 558 to review certain sentences in criminal cases. For an expanded agency history, see: https://www.sec.state.ma.us/arc/arcpdf/collection-guides/FA_JU_SJC.pdf