Mass. Housing Courts by County: http://www.mass.gov/courts/courtsandjudges/courts/housingcourt/index.html#county Frequently Asked Questions prepared by the Mass. Housing Court for Tenant/Landlord Disputes including Mediation as an option
The Lawyers Clearinghouse provides pro bono legal services to nonprofit organizations, groups seeking nonprofit status, and guests of area homeless shelters . We offer lawyers meaningful and rewarding pro bono opportunities. We also provide educational programs for nonprofit organizations and lawyers
2008 edition of Legal Tactics: Tenants' Rights in Massachusetts . This handbook provides practical information about tenants' rights in private housing—housing that is owned by an individual or a privately owned company. In each chapter, reference is made to sample letters and court forms. To get these forms see the list below or go to Self Help Forms where these same forms are organized by topic. If you live in public housing , go to the Public Housing section. You may also purchase Legal Tactics from Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education by calling 1-800-966-6253
"Student Mental Health and the Law ", a new document from the JED Foundation, is a comprehensive resource developed in collaboration with leading experts in higher education law, administration and mental health. This guide provides clarification of FERPA (the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act ), disability law, and other legal issues colleges face, and includes guidelines for addressing campus mental health and working with students in distress
Campus Mental Health: Know Your Rights!
A guide for students who want to seek help for mental illness or emotional distress. Produced by the Leadership21 Committee of the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law. Chapters include: You are Not Alone, Seeking Help, Privacy, Academic Accomaodations, Discipline, Involuntary Leave of Absence, Going to a Psychiatric Hospital, Forced Medication, Resources
Parenting & Child Custody Issues Toolkit for People with Behavioral Health Problems
The UPenn Collaborative on Community Integration has developed a free tool kit for parents with serious mental illnesses. Research indicates that mothers with serious mental illnesses are almost three times more likely than mothers without such illnesses to have been involved in the child welfare system or to have lost custody of their children. The tool kit helps parents who have lost custody or are at risk of losing custody of their children, helps parents in recovery from mental illnesses with parenting issues, and offers guidance for professionals as well. The tool
kit, "Helping Behavioral Health Clients with Parenting & Child Custody Issues,"
Mass. Trial Court Law Libraries, Forms etc. for granparent visitation, healthcare proxy, etc.
Dial-A-Lawyer, free legal advice is available on the first Wednesday of each month. Attorneys volunteer at the MBA's Boston headquarters by providing free, basic legal information by phone to callers from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. , to assist anyone and everyone, but particularly those who are not eligible for free legal services or cannot afford to hire a lawyer.
To use Dial-A-Lawyer, call (617) 338-0610
Legal aid services throughout the state.
Know your rights, various brochures from the Mental Health Legal Advisory Committee (tenant rights, patient rights, DMH complaint process, etc.)
Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination
Center for Public Representation, dedicated to serving individuals with disabilities
Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), Hotline in English and Spanish M-F 1:30-4:30pm , HIV related protections, Gay/Straight Alliances, transgender issues and helps with harassment
Volunteer Lawyers Project, handles cases in the Metro Boston area, mainly housing (including foreclosure or bankruptcy), family (divorce), consumer related, public benefits (primarily SSI), and wills and probate for the elderly
Law library online, reference library which provides some resources for legal help with mental health issues
American Bar Association, Lawyer Referral & Information Service, Massachusetts :
Parents, educators, advocates, and attorneys come to Wrightslaw for accurate, reliable information about special education law, education law, and advocacy for children with disabilities
Committee for Public Counsel (CPC), Mental Health Litigation Unit, provide trial and appellate representation to indigent persons against whom are filed petitions seeking commitment to public or private psychiatric facilities or judicial authorization to administer or terminate certain types of treatment (e.g., antipsychotic medication, aversive behavior modification, life-support mechanisms). The CPC also trains, and is available to assist, criminal defense attorneys in respect to mental health issues that arise in the criminal justice context (e.g., competency to stand trial, criminal responsibility).
Committee for Public Counsel (CPC), Children and Family Law (CAFL) Program provides legal representation to children and indigent parents in child welfare matters, including care and protection proceedings, children in need of services cases (CHINS), actions to terminate parental rights, state agency-sponsored guardianships, and any other child custody proceeding where the Department of Social Services (DSS) is a party or where the court is considering granting custody to DSS. In Massachusetts , both children and indigent parents have a right to representation by counsel in child welfare cases
Fair Housing Center of Greater Boston , non-profit organization soley focused on ending illegal housing discrimination in the greater Boston area, serving the communities in Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk , Plymouth , and Suffolk counties
Find a lawyer in your area
FindLaw for the Public, thousands of articles and resources in scores of categories to help the public with a wide range of legal issues, from bankruptcy to landlord/tenant law to selecting a lawyer
The Youth Advocacy Project offers legal representation and advocacy to children under 17 years old who are charged as delinquents or youthful offenders. The Youth Advocacy Project provides these services at a number of stages. The Youth Advocacy Project can offer advice and consultation on general delinquency issues.
Minority Law Resources:
The CORI Reader, (38 page PDF prepared by Mass. Law Reform Institute)
Mass. Executive Office of Public Safety & Security, Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI)
Mass. Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Find a Lawyer:
Tenant's Rights: What Tenants in Forclosed Properties Need to Know:
LEGAL SERVICES to DISADVANTAGED CHILDREN :
Children's Law Center of Massachusetts, providing direct representation to low income children in Eastern Massachusetts, and technical assistance and training to lay and professional communities throughout New England on issues affecting children's education, civil rights, custody, health and welfare.
Massachusetts Advocates for Children, non-profit organization dedicated to being an independent and effective voice for children who face significant barriers to equal educational and life opportunities
Commonwealth of Massachusetts – legislators, legislation, laws, committees, etc.
To find your election information, who are your state and federal legislators, how to register to vote, etc.
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
