FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Boston, MA, February 18, 2025 – Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, a social justice research and advocacy nonprofit, welcomed Melina Muñoz Turco and Lyndsey Stults to its Board of Directors on November 18, 2024.
Melina Muñoz Turco, Turco Legal, P.C.
Melina Muñoz Turco (she/her/hers) is Turco Legal, P.C.’s Director of Community Engagement, leading the firm’s philanthropic efforts and managing projects that make legal information more accessible to the public. She began her public service career as a legislative aide, first in the Boston City Council and then in the Massachusetts State Senate. She later joined the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center as the statewide Forensics Legal Advocate, an experience which inspired her to pursue a legal career. Melina brings extensive understanding of the ways legal issues impact people’s ability to live healthy lives from her time supporting the medical-legal partnership at both the Central West Justice Center and the Children’s Law Center of Massachusetts. She eventually went on to serve as a staff attorney at the Boston Court Service Center, where she provided information and assistance to pro se litigants. Melina dedicates her time as a volunteer with the Massachusetts Bar Association and additionally serves on the Racial Justice Committee of the YWCA Greater Newburyport. In 2023, she won a Massachusetts Bar Association Volunteer Recognition Award for her work and, in 2024, received an Excellence in the Law: Up and Coming Lawyers Award from Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. Melina is also the Co-Founder of JusticeApp, a free mobile app designed to help those with legal issues more easily navigate the court process.
“I’m deeply honored to join the Massachusetts Appleseed Board and am eager to support the organization in advancing its mission,” said Ms. Muñoz Turco. “Throughout my legal career, I’ve witnessed the profound and meaningful impact of Appleseed’s work in promoting equity and justice. I hope to draw on my knowledge and experience to help strengthen its efforts in creating transformative, systemic change.”
Lyndsey Stults, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP
Lyndsey Stults (she/her/hers) is a Partner at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, where she focuses on complex commercial litigation and counseling institutions of higher education. She brings significant appellate experience as a former assistant district attorney at the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, where she wrote appellate briefs and argued several cases before the Massachusetts Appeals Court. Her commitment to advancing civil rights blossomed in law school as she worked with a range of organizations and agencies, including the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Family Equality Council, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, Equality Illinois, and the John Marshall Law School Veterans Legal Clinic. An active volunteer with MA Appleseed, Lyndsey has contributed hours and expertise to the organization’s Access to Justice Initiative alongside her Nelson Mullins colleagues, helping examine language access policies across the country to inform recommendations for change in Massachusetts’ own courts.
“I am deeply honored to join the Board of Massachusetts Appleseed, an organization at the forefront of advocating for system solutions to promote justice, access, and opportunities across Massachusetts,” said Ms. Stults. “I look forward to supporting Massachusetts Appleseed’s mission, and I am excited to collaborate with fellow Board members and advocates along the way.”
“I am thrilled with the recent election of two new Directors to our Board, Melina Munoz Turco of Turco Legal, P. C., and Lyndsey Stults of Nelson Mullins LLP, all of whom have long shared and supported the values we embrace at Appleseed,” said John Shutkin, Appleseed’s newly elected Board Chair.
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About Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice
MA Appleseed is driven by a mission to promote equal rights and opportunities for Massachusetts residents by developing and advocating for systemic solutions to social justice issues. Through policy analysis and research, coalition building, education and training, community organizing, and advocacy, the nonprofit seeks systems-level change so all Massachusetts families and youth can exercise their legal rights, build pathways out of poverty and crisis, and thrive. Responding to emerging and enduring inequities, MA Appleseed addresses an array of complex issues including self-representation in the civil justice system, language access for immigrant families, the school-to-prison pipeline, and youth homelessness. To explore recent research, find resources, sign up for opportunities to take action, or donate, please visit massappleseed.org.
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