Innovators for Access to Justice Panel

A panel of innovators in access to justice will present immediately following the Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice Annual Meeting.

Dan Jackson
NuLawLab
Northeastern University

Gabriel Teninbaum
Institute on Legal Innovation & Technology
Suffolk Law School

Bill Palin
Access to Justice/Technology Fellow
Harvard Law School

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Join us to hear these experts from local law schools discuss their work using technology and other innovations to expand access to justice.

Date: Tuesday, June 12, 2018

Time: 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm

Location: Sherin and Lodgen LLP, 101 Federal Street, Floor 31, Boston, MA 02110

Northeastern University, Suffolk Law School, and Harvard Law School alumni are especially encouraged to attend!

The panelists’ presentation will be followed by a brief reception with refreshments.

Email Madeline at madeline@massappleseed.org to RSVP today!

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Action Alert

The Senate’s FY’19 budget recommendations, while including some big wins for the housing court and homeless youth, do not include funding for several critical areas.

Senators have submitted their amendments, and now the debates are on!

This is your chance to join us and stand up for civil legal aid, low-income kids in schools, and an exciting new amendment focusing on parents and students facing language barriers in the classroom! One quick call to your senator could make the difference.

Civil Legal Aid

Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporations (MLAC) has requested an additional $5 million in state support this year (for a total of $23 million).

The Senate Committee on Ways and Means’ budget includes $19 million in funding for MLAC, which is $1 million less than the House’s budget and still short of MLAC’s request of $5 million in additional funding

MLAC is the largest provider of civil legal aid services in the state and without full funding, civil legal aid programs will be forced to turn away thousands of people in need.

Senator Creem and Senator Brownsberger have filed Amendment #992 that would provide the full $23 million in funding MLAC has requested and help provide aid to those with critical unmet legal needs across the state.

Action You Can Take:

Click here to email your senator TODAY and ask them to support Amendment #992.

Lunch Shaming and Student Hunger

Lunch shaming is the practice of humiliating and punishing children who are unable to afford lunch, and is unfortunately the policy of many schools in Massachusetts. With a recent bill aiming to ban lunch shaming that we supported unlikely to pass this session, Senator Creem has filed Amendment #167.

This amendment would require cities and towns to publish their meal charge policies so that parents are fully informed about the consequences of accruing school meal debt. It would also enable advocates like us to track different schools’ meal policies to better combat lunch shaming.

This would be an important step in the fight to protect children from harmful lunch shaming policies.

The publication of meal policies will allow us, along with our community partners, to hold school districts accountable and continue this important discussion at the local and statewide levels.

Action You Can Take:

Click here to find your senator’s contact information and ask them to support Amendment #167.

Language Access in Schools

Despite federal laws and regulations outlining the responsibilities schools have in communicating with limited English proficient (LEP) parents in a language they understand, too many families continue to face staggering language access barriers, in up to as many as 113 school districts in the state.

In response to this widespread problem, Senator Welch has introduced Amendment #284. This amendment would enable the creation of a Task Force to develop recommendations regarding the training, assessment, and certification of interpreters in educational settings to improve language access for LEP parents.

Too often, bilingual school staff – including secretaries, school counselors, janitors, and cafeteria workers – are being asked to stand in and interpret, despite not being appropriately trained as an interpreter.

The establishment of this Task Force will set standards for interpreters and will allow schools to better serve the needs of each unique child and family, regardless of the language they speak.

Action You Can Take:

Click here to find your senator’s contact information and ask them to support Amendment #284.

Thank you for standing with us throughout this budget process as we fight for necessary funding and policy changes in these critical areas. Please join us again and tell the Senate why these issues are important to you. When we stand up and we speak out, we win!

 

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Action Alert

Last month, the House Committee on Ways and Means released its 2019 budget proposal and you stood with us to defend Massachusetts’ most vulnerable populations.

We need your help once again.

Yesterday, the Senate Committee on Ways and Means released its fiscal year 2019 budget proposal, and there is plenty of good news to go around! The Senate Committee has recommended $3,300,000 for services and support for unaccompanied homeless youth, a massive increase from last year’s $675,000! Additionally, the Senate has recommended the full $2.6 million in funding necessary for the expansion of the Housing Court!

Your ongoing support has shown our legislators that they need to prioritize these issues. Let’s remind them once more about the importance of access to justice! We’re asking you to join us again and raise your voice in support of civil legal aid.

Civil legal aid programs across the state are forced to turn away nearly 45,000 people each year due to lack of funding.

Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC), the largest provider of legal aid services in the state, has requested an additional $5 million in state support this year to meet the unmet need of legal services for low-income folks.

The Senate Ways and Means’ budget includes $19 million in funding for MLAC, which is $1 million less than the House’s budget and still short of MLAC’s request of $5 million in additional funding.

Without full funding, civil legal aid programs will be forced to turn away thousands more people in need of representation.

Senator Creem and Senator Brownsberger will be filing an amendment to increase funding by $4 million, for a total of $23 million. This amendment is an important step in providing access to justice for some of the most at-risk residents in Massachusetts.

Action You Can Take:

Contact your state senator TODAY to ask them to co-sponsor Senators Creem and Brownsberger’s amendment for civil legal aid.

Don’t wait! The deadline to file amendments is Monday, May 14th at NOON!

Click here to email your senator today.

As the second budget battle of the season commences, I want to thank you once again for your continued commitment to our work. With your help, we can guarantee greater civil legal support for low-income families and individuals in 2019.

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A Letter from the Executive Director

Dear Friends,

You did it!

After so many months of tireless advocacy, you did it. On Friday, Governor Baker signed the omnibus criminal justice reform bill into law. The bill is now Chapter 69 of the Acts of 2018. And with that, you’ve brought us one step closer to dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline.

This is huge.

Thanks to you, we can now stop kids in Massachusetts schools from being arrested for the vague crime of “disturbing school assembly.” We can keep school resource officers from involving themselves in routine disciplinary situations they are not trained for. And we can start collecting important data on school arrests in the state.

For every phone call you made to your senators and representatives, for every email you sent in support of our provisions, for your time and energy – thank you. 

This was no easy journey, and there were moments when it looked like our provisions to keep kids in class might not make it to the finish line. But you raised your voice time and time again and because you did, we won!

Find your legislators here and thank them for leading the charge to make this bill a reality.

The fight to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline is by no means over. But together, we just took a huge step forward.

Thank you for your continued involvement and support.

Warmly,

Deborah Silva
Executive Director

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Action Alert

It’s that time of year again.

Budget season.

Yesterday, the House Committee on Ways and Means (HWM) released its fiscal year 2019 budget proposal. And we have some work to do if we want to ensure the unaccompanied homeless youth of Massachusetts have the support they need and the Housing Court and civil legal aid have enough funding to provide greater access to justice across the state.

Each year, we fight to make sure our most vulnerable and at-risk populations are cared for, and your advocacy is the reason we’ve been successful in the past. Now, we need your help once more as we enter the first battle of the budget season.

With your help, we will win!

Homeless Youth

The HWM budget recommendations include $1 million for housing and services for unaccompanied homeless youth. While this would be an increase over the FY’18 appropriation, it would be less than the spending level last year AND less than the FY’19 Governor’s recommendation of $2 million.

These services for homeless youth can prove life-saving.

Representative O’Day will be filing TWO youth homelessness amendments:

  • To increase funding for youth housing and services to $4 million;
  • To include specific language in the Executive Office of Health and Human Services line item that will provide $150,000 for the important work of the Massachusetts Commission on Unaccompanied Homeless Youth.

Action You Can Take:

Call your State Representative TODAY and ask them to sign on to both amendments by contacting Cinda Danh in Rep. O’Day’s office: cinda.danh@mahouse.gov.

Deadline: By 3:00 p.m., Friday (tomorrow).

Click here to find your Representative’s contact information.

Housing Court

The Housing Court expansion is a critical component of expanding access to justice for people across the state facing eviction, gentrification, and other housing crises.

But the HWM has only provided partial funding for the expansion of the Housing Court in the amount of $1.5 million. The Governor proposed $2.6 million for the Housing Court, which would enable full funding of the expansion.

The expansion of the Housing Court is an important step forward in achieving access to justice for Massachusetts residents.

Representative Walsh will be filing an amendment to provide the full funding, $2.6 million, for the Housing Court expansion.

Action You Can Take:

Call your State Representative TODAY and ask them to sign on to Representative Walsh’s Housing Court amendment.

Deadline: By NOON, Friday (tomorrow).

Click here to find your Representative’s contact information.

Civil Legal Aid

Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC) is the largest funding source for civil legal aid in the state, and thousands of low-income residents unable to afford an attorney rely on their services.

The HWM’s budget includes $20 million in funding for MLAC, which is $2 million over the FY’18 appropriation, but still short of MLAC’s request of $5 million in additional funding.

As the federal access to justice office shutters its doors, funding civil legal aid is more important than ever.

Representative Cronin and Representative Balser have filed an amendment seeking an additional $2 million in funding.

Action You Can Take:

Call your State Representative TODAY to ask them to co-sponsor and support Amendment #243.

Deadline: By the end of the day, Friday (tomorrow).

Don’t wait! Click here to find your Representative’s contact information.

 

Thank you for joining us in this important push to protect these necessary services. Your advocacy is vital this time of year, and we’re so grateful for your continued commitment to our work.

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Action Alert

BREAKING: On Friday, March 23rd, the Conference Committee working on the Omnibus Criminal Justice Reform bill reported out the final compromise language and the Senate and House are expected to pass the final bill today! The school discipline reform that we advocated for was included in Sections 27, 159, and 160. We believe these provisions will advance our goal to decrease the number of kids being arrested and removed from school for minor misbehavior.

We are so grateful for your advocacy!

But we’re not done yet! Now, more than ever, is the time to raise our voices and be heard.

Once the legislature passes the bill, the next step is that the bill will advance to the Governor’s desk and he will have 10 days to sign or veto it. It will only become law if the Governor signs it! Governor Baker has not yet stated his position on the compromise bill. Please join us by contacting Governor Baker and urging him to sign S.2371, the omnibus criminal justice reform legislation, which includes sections 27, 159, and 160 related to student arrests and School Resource Officers (SROs).

As a reminder, these provisions would:

  1. Decriminalize non-violent misconduct in schools; and
  2. require that MOUs between schools and police departments include certain provisions clarifying that SROs should not be involved in routine disciplinary actions for non-violent school infractions; and
  3. outline data collection methods and responsibilities.

If this legislation becomes law, these provisions will keep students from undergoing the trauma of arrest for simply acting out, and ensure that school resource officers (SROs) are trained in child development, de-escalation techniques, and implicit bias. For more information about the bills the final language originated from, check out this fact sheet on our website.

Will you help us ensure these important reforms become Massachusetts law?

Research shows that arrests of students for non-violent behavior disproportionately affect students of color and students with disabilities, and the impact can be devastating. A student who is arrested in school is three times more likely to drop out, and is subsequently more likely to go to prison, earn less income, and rely more on public benefits.

Please call Governor Baker, and urge him to sign S.2371 into law!

Click here to find Governor Baker’s contact information.

No child deserves to feel unsafe when they walk into their school. We need to urge Governor Baker to pass these common sense reforms that will prevent unnecessary arrests and be an important step in keeping kids in class and out of the school-to-prison pipeline.

Thank you for your continued support.

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Honoring Senator William “Mo” Cowan, Vice President of Litigation and Legal Policy of GE

On March 29, 2018, the Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice (“MA Appleseed”) honored former Senator William “Mo” Cowan with its 11th annual Good Apple Award. The event began with a reception, which began at 6:00 pm, in the Wharf Room at the Boston Harbor Hotel. Every year, MA Appleseed presents a “Good Apple” award to someone in the Massachusetts legal community who demonstrates the principles of social justice and equal opportunity that MA Appleseed was itself founded on. The event, which serves as Massachusetts Appleseed’s annual fundraiser, raises money to support the organization’s program and outreach efforts.

 

2018 Good Apple Award Recipient (PDF)
2018 Good Apple Invitation (PDF)

 

2018 Good Apple recipient Senator William "Mo" Cowan

2018 Good Apple recipient Senator William “Mo” Cowan

For Immediate Release

Honoring Senator William “Mo” Cowan, Vice President of Litigation and Legal Policy of GE

Boston, MA – On March 29, 2018, the Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice (“MA Appleseed”) honored former Senator William “Mo” Cowan with its 11th annual Good Apple Award. The event began with a reception, which began at 6:00 pm, in the Wharf Room at the Boston Harbor Hotel. Every year, MA Appleseed presents a “Good Apple” award to someone in the Massachusetts legal community who demonstrates the principles of social justice and equal opportunity that MA Appleseed was itself founded on. The event, which serves as Massachusetts Appleseed’s annual fundraiser, raises money to support the organization’s program and outreach efforts.

“We are thrilled and proud to present Senator Cowan with this year’s Good Apple Award,” said Martha Mazzone, chair of the Board of Directors of MA Appleseed. “Mo’s commitment to inclusion, justice and civic engagement – don’t turn your back on the system, work to improve it – mirrors the Appleseed mission perfectly. Add in his dedication to the Boston legal community, his huge circle of friends and family and colleagues and mentees, and he’s the perfect Good Apple recipient. Everyone wants a chance to say thank you to Mo.”

Featured speaker at the event, Attorney General Maura Healey remarked, “I am grateful to be able to recognize Massachusetts Appleseed for their critical work in developing and advocating for systemic solutions to social justice issues while celebrating this year’s Good Apple, my dear friend Mo Cowan. Mo is a champion for social justice whose life and legacy represents the best our community has to offer.”

Senator Cowan is a graduate of Duke University and Northeastern University School of Law. In 2013, he represented Massachusetts as interim U.S. Senator, filling the vacancy left by John F. Kerry when he was appointed Secretary of State. Senator Cowan served as Chief Legal Counsel, Chief of Staff, and Senior Advisor to the Governor in the administration of former Governor Deval L. Patrick and, in the Fall of 2013, Senator Cowan was a Fellow at the Harvard University Institute of Politics. In 2017 Sen. Cowan assumed the position of VP of Global Litigation and Legal Policy at GE, after having served Of Counsel to Mintz Levin and as President and CEO of ML Strategies.

“I am humbled to receive this great honor from the Appleseed Center,” Senator Cowan said. “I deeply appreciate the recognition and cherish the opportunity to be associated forever with an organization committed every day to social justice and the rule of law, and to follow in the footsteps of the distinguished past honorees. Thank you for helping me make my family proud!”

Senator Cowan is on the Board of Directors for Eastern Bank Corporation, Partners Healthcare, and is Co-Chair of the Greater Boston YMCA Board of Overseers. He further serves our community as a Trustee of Northeastern University, the Massachusetts General Hospital, and is a member of the Boston Club Corporate Advisory Board, Duke University Trinity Board of Visitors, Cambridge College President’s Council, and U.S. Association of Former Members of Congress.

Senator Cowan is an active civic leader committed to the same principles of inclusion and justice that is at the foundation of all of MA Appleseed’s work. When appointing Cowan to serve as interim U.S. Senator, former MA governor Deval Patrick described him as having “brought preparation, perspective, wisdom, sound judgment, and clarity of purpose” every step of the way, with the needs of Massachusetts’ residents always on the forefront of his mind.

“Mo’s evenhanded approach to difficult issues and his persistence in pursuing a better, fairer world is an inspiration to many. We are proud to present him with this year’s Good Apple Award,” said Deborah Silva, Executive Director of MA Appleseed.

2018 Good Apple Award Recipient (PDF)
2018 Good Apple Invitation (PDF)

 

Recent past recipients of the Good Apple award include Jonathan Chiel, Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Fidelity Investment; Paul Dacier, former General Counsel of EMC Corporation (now Dell); Susan Alexander, Chief Legal Officer of Biogen Idec; Lon F. Povich, Former Executive Vice President and General Counsel of BJ’s Wholesale Club, Inc.; Stephanie S. Lovell, Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts; and Jeffrey N. Carp, Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of State Street Corporation.

About the Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice:

Massachusetts Appleseed’s mission is to promote social justice and equal rights for Massachusetts’ residents by developing and advocating for systemic solutions to issues of systemic inequality.

At Massachusetts Appleseed, we dedicate ourselves to remedying social injustices for at-risk and underserved children, youth, and adults residing within our state. Working with volunteer lawyers, community partners, and others, we identify and address gaps in services and opportunities in areas such as education, homelessness, and the accessibility of the Massachusetts court system. Through in-depth research, consensus building, and community problem solving, we develop powerful solutions for reforming the systems and structures responsible for injustice. Our work seeks to level the playing field and transform communities. Every year we honor someone in the legal professional equally committed to these principles through our “Good Apple” award.

 

Dear Friends:

Thank you so much for your work on behalf of vulnerable immigrants and refugees, and your interest in Appleseed’s Manual, “Protecting Assets and Child Custody in the Face of Deportation: A Guide for Practitioners and Immigrants.”

Late in 2017, we began working on a few updates to the Manual, particularly about the Executive Orders issued in early 2017. Those updates are now complete and both the full version of the Manual, as well as individual chapters, are posted to our website.

We hope you will download, review, and share individual chapters or the entire Manual with as many people as possible. We also have a limited number of print copies to share with those of you doing direct service work in your communities; to request a copy, fill out the form at the bottom of the Manual page. Our goal is to provide an indispensable product for you and other groups and people who are so incredibly dedicated to helping vulnerable immigrants and refugees. We are proud to be part of this effort, and to work with so many of you.

And we are not done yet! You can stay tuned over the next several weeks and months for a full Spanish translation of the Manual, shorter, more user-friendly versions of various chapters and more. If you know someone who should be subscribed for these updates in the future, please forward this email and encourage them to sign up for email updates.

Finally, we want to extend our deepest thanks to the many pro bono partners that researched, wrote, and edited chapters of the manual. They include: Adams and Reese LLP, Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-based Violence, ASISTA, Ballard Spahr LLP, Cooley LLP, Hogan Lovells LLP, Norton Rose Fulbright, O’Melveny & Myers, The William Alanson White Institute Center for Public Mental Health and White & Case. We also want to thank the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the Ford Foundation for their support of this work.

Thank you for your support, comments, suggestions and for the work that you do every day to help immigrant families. We look forward to continuing to work with you!

The Appleseed Team

Action Alert

For months now, you’ve worked alongside us to pass meaningful legislation that will be a serious blow to the school-to-prison pipeline.

And now we’re almost there. 

Right now, a Conference Committee of six legislators is meeting to reconcile two versions of the omnibus criminal justice reform bill. The version that passed the Senate (S.2200) included the necessary provisions we support from H.328/S.876, An Act decriminalizing non-violent and verbal student misconduct.

These provisions include:

  1. decriminalizing non-violent misconduct in schools by eliminating the crime of disturbing school assembly; and
  2. requiring that MOUs between schools and police departments include certain provisions clarifying that SROs should not be involved in routine disciplinary actions for non-violent school infractions; and
  3. outlining data collection methods and responsibilities.

 

We need these important provisions to be included in the final bill.

Research shows that arrests of students for non-violent behavior disproportionately affect students of color and students with disabilities, and the impact can be devastating. A student who is arrested in school is three times more likely to drop out and is subsequently more likely to go to prison, earn less income, and rely more on public benefits. And as of right now, there is no check on this practice or accountability. 

Representative Aaron Vega is sending  a joint letter with Senator Patricia Jehlen to the Conference Committee in support of at-risk students. 

Please call or email your legislators NOW and ask them to sign on to the Vega/Jehlen letter!

These are common-sense reforms that would prevent unnecessary arrests and ensure school resource officers are trained in child development, de-escalation techniques, and implicit bias. With your help, this will be a major step in keeping kids in class and out of the school-to-prison pipeline. 

The DEADLINE for having representatives and senators to sign on in support is TODAY, January 9th at 5 p.m.

Click here to find your legislators’ contact information and call TODAY!

You can find the text of the letter on our website here. Thank you for your continued support.

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