What does ss mean in a legal document?

Answer 1

The precise etymology of ss. is unknown. The following are comments from contributors:

It's an abbreviation for the latin word "scilicet," which means "in particular" or "namely" or "that is to say". (The correct name is phonetically pronounced silla-set.)

The letters are specifically ­used in the statement of venue which follows the caption of a legal document and especially between the name of the state and the particular subdivision (as county). It is used in acknowledgments to indicate the County where the document was notarized and is traditionally included to the right of the venue in a notarial certificate. (Hampden ss. means Hampden County.) It is used is court documents to indicate the County where the issuing court is located. It has been theorized that one early formbook writer included it into his forms and it has been perpetuated mindlessly ever since

I was taught in law school that "ss." is the preamble to an affidavit, signifiying to the reader that it is a Sworn Statement made under penalties of perjury before a notary or an officer of the court of that state (many times these sworn statements, as well as unsworn statements, go on for many pages and this eliminates the need to flip to the back to see it is in fact a sworn statement. It follows the state and county so that the reader knows where it was sworn.