Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 228 § 5
In civil proceedings which are not governed by said Massachusetts Rules of Civil Procedure or the District-Municipal Courts Rules of Civil Procedure the death shall be suggested on the record, and the executor or administrator may, within such time as the court shall allow, appear and prosecute or defend the action, which shall thenceforth be conducted in the same manner as if it had been originally commenced by or against the same executor or administrator. If the executor or administrator does not voluntarily appear, the surviving party may take out a citation from the court requiring the executor or administrator to appear and take upon himself the prosecution or defense of the action.
Such citation shall be returnable at such time as the court may order and shall be served fourteen days at least before the return day; but it shall not issue after the expiration of one year from the time such executor or administrator has given bond unless in accordance with section five A.
Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 228, § 5