BERKMAN TECHNOLOGY REPORT RELEASED
The Special Advisor for Access to Justice Initiatives in the Trial Court, Hon. Dina Fein, has released the longawaited Report of the Berkman Center on “Best Practices in the Use of Technology to Facilitate Access to Justice Initiatives” has been released to the access to justice community. The Report’s main topics relate activities in other states to provide clear, simple and uptodate web content, facilitate completion of court forms online, employ better case management approaches, utilize efiling and offer “human assistance.” The Report was prepared for the Trial Court as part of the work of the Special Advisor for Access to Justice Initiatives.
LSC TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION GRANT
Equally longawaited, the Legal Services Corporation is expected to finally announce the Technology Innovation Grants (TIG) this month. The awards can be expected by Thanksgiving, according to LSC Board Chairman John Levi in a speech at the Civil Caucus on November 10 at the annual conference of the National Legal Aid and Defender Association. Earlier in the month LSC announced that all applicants who were not receiving grants had been notified. The application of the Massachusetts Justice Project, supported by the Trial Court and the Commission, was not rejected, so it appears highly likely that a TIG grant to support development of online interview protocols, uniform forms and efiling is coming to Massachusetts. Because of the delay, the process for awarding the next round of grants begins in January.
ACCESS TO JUSTICE FEE ACCUMULATES $302,000 IN FIRST TWO MONTHS
The Access to Justice Fee, an addon to the annual attorney registration fee, accumulated more than $300,000 during the first two months of contributions. At this rate, contributions will total nearly $1 million during the first twelve months. Attorneys are free to “opt out” of the fee, and many are doing so, but the rate at which attorneys are choosing to help support legal assistance for low income residents is heartening.
COMMISSION ASKS CITIZENS BANK NOT TO LOWER IOLTA RATES
At its meeting November 17, the Commission adopted a letter to the President of Citizens Bank asking the Bank to rescind its plan to withdraw from its longstanding position as an IOLTA “leadership bank.”
Citizens has announced its intention to abandon the 1% leadership rate in favor of rates as low as 0.3%.
Citizens is the largest IOLTA depository bank in the Commonwealth. If it implements the lower rates, Citizens will take about $2 million away from IOLTA revenue. The letter noted Citizens’ advertising claim to “good citizenship” and questioned whether abandoning the legal needs of the poor in this time of hardship was consistent.
COMMISSION SUPPORTS MBA RESOLUTION ON LIMITED ASSISTANCE REPRESENTATION
On November 17 the Commission also adopted a letter urging the Massachusetts Bar Association to adopt a resolution supporting Limited Assistance Representation programs in the Trial Court. The resolution passed on the following day.