Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation Board Welcomes Appointment of Three New Members
Bilek, Rafik, and Stone Appointed by Supreme Judicial Court
BOSTON, December 1, 2015 – The board of directors of the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC), the largest funding source for civil legal aid in the Commonwealth, welcomes three new members, Mary Lu Bilek, Mala Rafik, and Mary Jeanne Stone, who were recently appointed by the Supreme Judicial Court.
Mary Lu Bilek has served as Dean and Professor of Law at UMass School of Law in Dartmouth since 2012. Prior to her appointment at UMass, Dean Bilek was an Associate Dean and Professor of Law at the CUNY School of Law. She serves on the statewide Access to Justice Commission and as the co-chair of its Access to Attorneys Committee. She chaired the ABA Section on Legal Education Diversity Committee in 2010-11.
Mala Rafik is a partner at Rosenfeld Rafik & Sullivan, which represents clients denied access to health care as well as individuals seeking short and long-term disability, life and long-term care benefits from private insurance carriers. She is Chair of the Board of Directors of Health Law Advocates, and a member of the Board of Directors of Prisoners’ Legal Services. She taught Disability Law at New England School of Law in Boston.
Mary Jeanne Stone is the immediate past President of the Bristol County Bar Association and a member of the Joint Bar Committee on Judicial Appointments. She is a sole practitioner focusing on bankruptcy, family law, and alternative dispute resolution. She works in Fall River and is of Counsel to the Law Office of Nancy C. Stanton. She is a Massachusetts Bar Association Fellow, and serves on its IOLTA Grants Committee.
MLAC is governed by an 11-member Board of Directors. Ten members are appointed by the Supreme Judicial Court, and the 11th is the Chief Justice for Administration and Management of the Trial Court or that Justice’s designee.
ABOUT MLAC
The Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation was established by the state legislature in 1983 to ensure that low-income people with critical, non-criminal legal problems would have access to legal information, advice and representation. For more information, visit http://www.mlac.org.
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