The Massachusetts Bar Foundation (MBF) recently awarded $2
million to 84 programs conducted by 56 different nonprofit
organizations through its annual IOLTA grants program.
"MBF grantees are working hard every day to meet the increasing
demand for civil legal assistance," said MBF President Janet F.
Aserkoff of Boston's Rappaport, Aserkoff & Gelles. "We are
proud to be able to support these critically needed programs that
provide services to communities throughout the Commonwealth."
MBF IOLTA grants support projects that either offer civil legal
services to people who could not afford them, or improve the
administration of justice in the Commonwealth. Grants providing
direct legal services include support to domestic violence
programs, special education advocacy, humanitarian immigration
assistance, and homelessness prevention. Grants to improve
the administration of justice support efforts such as
court-connected mediation and lawyer of the day programs.
The MBF is grateful for the assistance of 90 members of the MBF
Society of Fellows, who volunteered their timing reviewing grant
applications and making funding recommendations to the MBF
Trustees. Their efforts help ensure these funds get to where
they are needed most. The MBF Society of Fellows is comprised
of Massachusetts lawyers and judges who are committed to giving
back to the profession and supporting legal services for the poor
in our state. Through generous contributions to the Foundation,
they help ensure that the MBF is a resource through which the legal
community can come together and support initiatives that make
access to justice a reality for those in need.
The MBF is one of three charitable entities in Massachusetts
that distributes funds from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial
Court's Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts Program.
Additional information about the Massachusetts Bar Foundation and
its IOLTA Grants Program, as well as a complete listing of the
2017/2018 IOLTA grant recipients is available at www.MassBarFoundation.org.