BOSTON, January 27– On Thursday, Governor Maura Healey, Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Kimberly Budd, bar association leaders, and legal aid clients joined a virtual gathering of more than 1,000 people – including 755 members of the private bar and several dozen law students – for Talk to the Hill for Civil Legal Aid. The event kicked off the Equal Justice Coalition‘s campaign to support $49 million in the FY24 state budget for the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation, which funds civil legal aid organizations across the state. Civil legal aid organizations provide legal advice and representation at no cost to Massachusetts residents with low incomes. People and families with incomes at or below 125% of the federal poverty level ($37,500 per year for a family of four) qualify for civil legal aid.

The Walk to the Hill lobby day event, which engages members of the private bar and is now in its 24^th year, has been held in a virtual format since the COVID-19 pandemic.

After hearing from the program’s speakers, attendees joined breakout rooms with their legislators. These meetings offered a unique opportunity for private attorneys and law students to speak directly to legislators and share why they believe civil legal aid is critically important.

Maura Healey speaks at Talk to the Hill 2023

In her opening remarks, Governor Healey, a longtime supporter of civil legal aid, said she looks forward to “continuing this partnership to make sure that every Massachusetts resident has access to the legal representation they deserve, and to make our state more just and equal for all.”

Healey also noted that legal aid services have become even more critical throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. “That’s why we need legal aid to be strong,” she said. “Not only to handle the uptick of cases we’ve seen, but also to help us address systemic problems, level the playing field, and secure access to justice for everyone who needs it.”

Chief Justice Budd speaks during the program.

Chief Justice Budd spoke about the importance of legal aid in maintaining confidence in the legal system. She referenced a recent nationwide poll conducted by the National Center for State Courts that asked respondents if they believe the court system is fair.

“The responses from people of color were particularly concerning,” Chief Justice Budd said. “Approximately 60% of Black and Hispanic respondents said that the phrase ‘provide[s] equal justice to all’ does not describe state courts.

There are undoubtedly many complex factors that contribute to this perception of unfairness. But one concrete step that we can take … is to increase the availability of counsel for people who cannot afford a lawyer.”

Powerful testimonials

Simi shares her legal aid story.

Client speakers included Simi, a young woman who connected with the Children’s Law Center of Massachusetts for help with an immigration issue. Simi was 16 when her hometown in Nigeria was attacked by terrorists while she was studying at a summer program in New England, for which she’d earned a scholarship. “I got scared,” Simi said, “and I decided to not go back. It was one of the most difficult decisions I had to make.”

“Having access to organizations like the Children’s Law Center, and lawyers like Jay [McManus] … it’s like a ticket to hope,” Simi said. “I’ve moved from just having hope to actualizing dreams that I never thought I’d accomplish in life.” With help from her attorney, Simi secured a green card in late 2019. She graduated from Wesleyan University last May.

Jim, a legal aid client, shares his story.

A second client speaker, Jim, told his story of getting helped by his local legal aid with an unemployment issue. Jim worked in the bathroom remodeling business when the COVID-19 pandemic began. Afraid to risk his own health and the health of others (and heeding the advice of public health officials), Jim stopped going into other people’s homes for a period of time. He filed for Unemployment Insurance, and his application was approved. A year after he had received his benefits, however, Jim got a letter stating he was determined to be ineligible and needed to repay more than $35,000.

“I was shocked, to say the least,” says Jim. He contacted MetroWest Legal Services and an attorney took his case right away. The attorney represented Jim at a hearing and presented evidence supporting his appropriate refusal of jobs during a global pandemic. The judge ruled him eligible to receive Unemployment Insurance, and he did not have to repay any amount of the money he had rightfully received.

“When I contacted legal aid and found out they were willing to work with me on this case, I was relieved tremendously,” Jim told the Talk to the Hill crowd. “It meant a significant difference to my emotional and financial health.”

More funding in FY24 is critical

Louis Tompros, Partner at WilmerHale in Boston, serves as Chair of the Equal Justice Coalition which coordinates the event each year. Tompros says the impact of increased state appropriated funding is evidenced by improvements in the number of eligible residents served. A few years ago, 57% of people who met financial requirements and applied for help were denied representation; today that number is 47%.

While it is encouraging that organizations are accepting more cases, Tompros emphasizes that “nearly half of the people who are eligible still do not receive representation simply because staff resources are insufficient.”

Lynne Parker, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation, says that since the pandemic began, “We’ve seen dramatic increases in housing cases and unemployment cases, for example. Responding to these and other urgent needs requires a robust workforce of legal aid staff. More funding will help recruit and retain skilled advocates needed to make justice for all a reality in Massachusetts.”

The recorded program is available for viewing at ejctalktothehill.org.

List of Speakers:

• Governor Maura Healey
• Chief Justice Kimberly Budd, Supreme Judicial Court
• Grace V.B. Garcia, President of the Massachusetts Bar Association
• Chinh H. Pham, President of the Boston Bar Association
• Lynne Parker, Executive Director, Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation
• Jacquelynne J. Bowman, Executive Director, Greater Boston Legal Services
• Legal aid clients who received help over the past year
• Host: Louis Tompros, Chair, Equal Justice Coalition

Additional Coverage of Talk to the Hill for Civil Legal Aid:

• The Boston Globe: Mass. SJC chief justice calls for increase in state funding for civil legal aid for low-income residents
• CommonWealth Magazine: Budd urges more increases in state legal aid
• Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly: SJC chief calls for more funding for civil legal aid
• State House News Service: Chief Justice Calls for More Civil Legal Aid $$$
• Politico: Mass. SJC chief justice calls for increase in state funding for civil legal aid for low-income residents
• GBH News: Healey, state’s top judge rally for $49M state investment into legal aid for low-income residents 
• WBUR: Legal aid for lowest earners has been on the rise. But chief justice says Mass. needs more
• Gloucester Daily Times: SJC chief justice urges more spending on civil legal aid
• The Salem News: SJC chief justice urges more spending on civil legal aid

Their message: Massachusetts’s civil legal aid organizations are delivering on the promise of “justice for all” – and they need more support

BOSTON, January 12 – 63 general counsels sent a letter to Governor Healey this week in support of the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation’s and the Equal Justice Coalition’s FY24 state budget request of $49 million for civil legal aid organizations.

Civil legal aid organizations provide representation, guidance, and resources at no cost to people who have low incomes and are facing problems that threaten their access to basic needs. Issues commonly addressed include housing, health care, employment, family issues, and domestic violence.

The letter’s signatories – who constitute a diverse group of attorneys from the Massachusetts business community – agree: civil legal aid changes lives. Most importantly, they say, our state’s civil legal aid organizations need more funding to meet the demands of a Commonwealth emerging from a global pandemic.

“There is no right to an attorney for most types of civil legal cases – including cases that could lead to loss of housing, domestic safety, or financial stability,” says Paul T. Dacier, General Counsel at Indigo, who signed the letter. “These are fundamental issues that significantly impact the most important people in our society. We should all want our systems to be fair and just – because when both sides have representation, justice is best served.”

On January 26, at 11am, Dacier and his fellow letter writers will join other attorneys and law students from across the state for an online event that marks the 24^th annual lobby day for civil legal aid. “Talk to the Hill” for Civil Legal Aid is organized by the Equal Justice Coalition to support the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC)’s request for increased funding from the state legislature. MLAC, established by the legislature in 1983, is the largest funder of civil legal aid in the Commonwealth.

“By engaging members of the private bar to speak directly with legislators, ‘Talk to the Hill’ demonstrates the enormous level of support civil legal aid funding has across the Massachusetts legal community, including the corporate legal community,” says Dacier. “Our neighbors across the state are facing hard times right now. Housing instability, in particular, is a major issue. Legal aid organizations have seen a significant increase in demand for representation in housing cases since pandemic-era eviction moratoria expired.”

You can read the general counsels’ letter in its entirety at equaljusticecoalition.org/letter-campaign. The January 26 event is free and open to the public. Media are welcome and encouraged to attend. Speakers will include Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Kimberly Budd, leaders from the Massachusetts and Boston Bar Associations, and clients who benefited from civil legal aid last year.

To register for “Talk to the Hill,” visit ejctalktothehill.org. Please register by January 24.

$6 million increase will address heightened need for legal services due to COVID-19

BOSTON, July 28, 2022 – Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker signed into law the FY23 Budget of the Commonwealth, including $41 million to fund civil legal aid through the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation, line item 0321-1600. That is a $6 million increase over FY22, and the amount requested by MLAC to fund civil legal aid organizations across the state.

“We want to express our deepest gratitude to Governor Baker and the legislature for their continued commitment to increasing access to justice through civil legal aid funding,” said Lynne Parker, executive director of MLAC. “Though we look toward recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still thousands of low-income residents across the Commonwealth facing serious non-criminal legal problems that threaten their health, safety, and financial stability. For these residents, access to civil legal aid is essential to helping them preserve their housing, income, benefits, and education.”

People with an income at or below 125 percent of the federal poverty level—$34,688 for a family of four in 2022—are eligible for civil legal aid.

Parker also thanked the members of the House and Senate for their support for this increase, noting that the legislature has continually demonstrated a deep commitment to expanding access to justice for their constituents and other residents across the Commonwealth.

Parker recognized the ongoing civil legal aid advocacy of the Equal Justice Coalition, including the Massachusetts Bar Association, the Boston Bar Association, the Women’s Bar Association, managing partners of many of the state’s largest law firms, corporate in-house counsel, law schools, and advocates with social services organizations across the Commonwealth.

With amendment, total appropriation for MLAC rises to $41M

BOSTON, May 26, 2022 – Yesterday, the Massachusetts Senate approved an amendment to increase civil legal aid funding an additional $1 million for Fiscal Year 2023, for a total increase of $6 million. This brings the total annual funding included in the Senate budget to $41 million for the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation, line item 0321-1600.

“On behalf of MLAC and the civil legal aid organizations it funds, I would like to express my gratitude to Senate President Karen Spilka and Senate Ways and Means Chair Michael Rodrigues for their leadership in providing this much-needed increase,” said Lynne Parker, MLAC executive director. “We also thank Senate Majority Leader Cynthia Creem and Senate Judiciary Chair James Eldridge for their ongoing leadership and support of critical funding for civil legal aid and for championing the amendment adding $1 million in funding for civil legal aid, and the 22 other senators who co-sponsored it.”

“By approving this budget amendment, the Senate has recognized the heightened need for civil legal aid across the Commonwealth due to the continuing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Legal aid attorneys provide vital services to low-income people, assisting with serious civil legal issues such as unemployment compensation, housing, income supports and education,” Parker said. “While the pandemic has widened existing inequities that low-income people face, civil legal aid organizations have rapidly innovated to address the rise in cases. It is important that organizations have additional resources to continue addressing COVID-19’s lasting impacts.”

In FY21, MLAC-funded civil legal aid organizations assisted 92,000 Massachusetts residents. Due to recent funding increases, civil legal aid organizations have reduced the percentage of eligible people turned away to 57 percent, down from 64 percent five years ago.

“Increasing access to civil legal aid is a public good, and we all must advocate for a more expansive vision of legal aid,” Majority Leader Creem said.

“I am very proud of what the Legislature has done over the past few years,” Chair Eldridge said. “Low-income people are disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, housing insecurity, inflation and other threats to stability that often require civil legal assistance. I’m extremely proud of the legal aid agencies that have stepped up.”