About MLAC
The Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC) was established by the Commonwealth in 1983 to ensure that low-income people with critical non-criminal legal problems would have access to legal information, advice and representation.
MLAC is the largest funding source for civil legal aid programs in Massachusetts.
Jury orders construction company to pay $650,000 to immigrant worker in retaliation case
/in Blog, Program News - Archives, Program News - CurrentThe Boston Globe reported on the verdict of a case involving an injured worker, represented by Greater Boston Legal Services attorney Audrey Richardson. A federal jury in Boston on Tuesday ruled that a construction company retaliated against the worker by reporting him to immigration officials in an effort to have him deported after he was […]
Tragedies fuel child welfare bill, pitched as attempt to improve system
/in Blog, Program News - Archives, Program News - CurrentChild welfare advocates, including Massachusetts Law Reform Institute Staff Attorney Susan Elsen and Retired Juvenile Court Judge Jay Blitzman, interim director of the Massachusetts Advocates for Children, scrutinized portions of an omnibus reform bill that in part seeks to rework the advising structure for the state’s Office of the Child Advocate while granting the office […]
State commission takes years to resolve discrimination cases
/in Blog, Program News - Archives, Program News - CurrentTom Murphy, supervising attorney at the Disability Law Center, was quoted in a May 30 WBUR article about a backlog of cases at the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, which has worsened during the pandemic. The backlog of old cases under investigation for more than 18 months has climbed more than five-fold since 2019, the agency’s […]
Lawmakers urged to make prison calls free in wake of SJC ruling
/in Blog, Program News - Archives, Program News - CurrentState lawmakers are being urged to make phone calls for prisoners free following a Supreme Judicial Court decision that allows county sheriffs to continue charging inmates and their families for the communications. Bonnie Tenneriello, a staff attorney for Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts — one of several groups, including the National Consumer Law Center, which […]
SafeRent Solutions accused of illegally discriminating against Black and Hispanic rental applicants
/in Blog, Program News - Archives, Program News - CurrentGreater Boston Legal Services, the National Consumer Law Center, and law firm Cohen Milstein filed a federal lawsuit on May 25 against SafeRent Solutions, LLC alleging that the national tenant screening provider has been violating the Fair Housing Act and related state laws for years. SafeRent, formerly known as CoreLogic Rental Property Solutions, provides tenant […]
MLAC Commends Senate Approval of Additional $1M Increase for Civil Legal Aid
/in Blog, News Coverage - Archives, News Coverage - Current, Press Release - Archives, Press Release - CurrentWith 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 […]
MLAC Backs Senate Budget Amendment to Increase Civil Legal Aid Funding
/in Blog, News Coverage - Archives, News Coverage - Current, Press Release - Archives, Press Release - CurrentBOSTON, May 10, 2022 – Massachusetts Senate Majority Leader Cynthia Creem and Senate Judiciary Chair James Eldridge have filed an amendment to increase civil legal aid funding by $1 million, for total funding of $41 million in the Senate budget. Today, the Senate Ways and Means Committee presented its Fiscal Year 2023 budget, including $40 […]
Report says DCF needs to incorporate family input into policies
/in Blog, Program News - Archives, Program News - CurrentThe Massachusetts Law Reform Institute released a report entitled Family Voices: Insights about prevention services from families and youth directly affected by the Massachusetts Child Welfare system, which examines the state’s child welfare system and provides recommendations for improving the system and services provided to families. The report was covered in a CommonWealth Magazine article […]