Legal Services in Massachusetts
Here is a listing of legal resources that cover a variety of issues throughout Massachusetts.
Attorney General’s Office
Andrea Joy Campbell – Attorney General
Contact the Attorney General’s Office
- Main Office Number: 617-727-2200
- TTY: 617-727-4765
- Consumer Protection Hotline: 617-727-8400
- Elder-Hotline: 888-243-5337
- Fair Labor/Business: 617-727-3465
- Health Care Hotline: (report scam) – 888-830-6277
Massachusetts District Attorney’s Offices
Massachusetts District Attorney’s offices can help in handling crimes against the elderly and people with disabilities including abuse and neglect. Some offices have Elder & Disabilities units.
Offices in Pittsfield and North Adams
Acushnet, Attleborough, Berkley, Dartmouth, Dighton, Easton, Fairhaven, Fall River, Freetown, Mansfield, New Bedford, North Attleborough, Norton, Raynham, Rehoboth, Seekonk, Somerset, Swansea, Taunton, and Westport
Covers Barnstable, Dukes and Nantucket Counties. Offices in Barnstable, Edgartown, Falmouth, Nantucket, Orleans
Amesbury, Andover, Beverly, Boxford, Danvers, Essex, Georgetown, Gloucester, Groveland, Hamilton, Haverhill, Ipswich, Lawrence, Lynn, Lynnfield, Manchester by the sea, Marblehead, Merrimac, Methuen, Middleton, Nahant, Newbury, Newburyport, North Andover, Peabody, Rockport, Rowley, Salem, Salisbury, Saugus, Swampscott, Topsfield, Wenham, West Newbury
Agawam, Blandford, Brimfield, Chester, Chicopee, East Longmeadow, Granville, Hampden, Holland, Holyoke, Longmeadow, Ludlow, Monson, Montgomery, Palmer, Russell, Southwick, Springfield, Tolland, Wales, West Springfield, Westfield, Wilbraham
Acton, Arlington, Ashby, Ashland, Ayer, Bedford, Belmont, Billerica, Boxborough, Burlington, Cambridge, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord, Dracut, Dunstable, Everett, Framingham, Groton, Holliston, Hopkinton, Hudson, Lexington, Lincoln, Littleton, Lowell, Malden, Marlborough, Maynard, Medford, Melrose, Natick, Newton, North Reading, Pepperell, Reading, Sherborn, Shirley, Somerville, Stoneham, Stow, Sudbury, Tewksbury, Townsend, Tyngsborough, Wakefield, Waltham, Watertown, Wayland, Westford, Weston, Wilmington, Winchester, Woburn
Avon, Braintree, Brookline, Canton, Cohasset, Dedham, Dover, Foxborough, Franklin, Holbrook, Medfield, Medway, Millis, Milton, Needham, Norfolk, Norwood, Plainville, Quincy, Randolph, Sharon, Stoughton, Walpole, Wellesley, Westwood, Weymouth, Wrentham
Covers Amherst, Ashfield, Athol, Belchertown, Bernardston, Buckland, Charlemont, Chesterfield, Colrain, Conway, Cummington, Deerfield, Easthampton, Erving, Gill, Goshen, Granby, Greenfield, Hadley, Hatfield, Hawley, Heath, Huntington, Leverett, Leyden, Middlefield, Monroe, Montague, New Salem, Northampton, Northfield, Orange, Pelham, Plainfield, Rowe, Shelburne, Shutesbury, South Hadley, Southampton, Sunderland, Ware, Warwick, Wendell, Westhampton, Whately, Williamsburg, Worthington
Abington, Bridgewater, Brockton, Carver, Duxbury, East Bridgewater, Halifax, Hanover, Hanson, Hingham, Hull, Kingston, Lakeville, Marion, Marshfield, Mattapoisett, Middleborough, Norwell, Pembroke, Plymouth, Plympton, Rochester, Rockland, Scituate, Wareham, West Bridgewater, Whitman
Boston, Chelsea, Revere, Winthrop
Ashburnham, Auburn, Barre, Bellingham, Berlin, Blackstone, Bolton, Boylston, Brookfield, Charlton, Clinton, Douglas, Dudley, East Brookfield, Fitchburg, Gardner, Grafton, Hardwick, Harvard, Holden, Hopedale, Hubbardston, Lancaster, Leicester, Leominster, Lunenburg, Mendon, Milford, Millbury, Millville, New Braintree, North Brookfield, Northborough, Northbridge, Oakham, Oxford, Paxton, Petersham, Phillipston, Princeton, Royalston, Rutland, Shrewsbury, Southborough, Southbridge, Spencer, Sterling, Sturbridge, Sutton, Templeton, Upton, Uxbridge, Warren, Webster, West Boylston, West Brookfield, Westborough, Westminster, Winchendon, Worcester
Better Business Bureaus
Eastern Massachusetts Better Business Bureau
Address: 5 Mt. Royal Avenue Suite 100
Marlborough, MA 01752
Phone: 508-652-4800
E-Mail: info@boston.bbb.org
Central and Western Massachusetts Better Business Bureau
Address: l40 Grove Street
Worcester, MA 01605
Phone: 508-755-3340
Email: info@cne.bbb.org
Legal Services and Free/Low Cost Legal Clinics
Boston College Legal Assistance Bureau (Lab)
At BCLS LAB, law students provide free legal services to low-income individuals and families under the supervision of law faculty who are licensed attorneys. The firm’s staff includes 8 supervising attorneys, a full-time staff social worker, an Administrative Assistant, an Intake Coordinator, 50-60 law students, and graduate level social work students who work as part of the legal team.
If you have a housing problem, want a divorce, or are having a problem with EAEDC, SNAP, SSI, SSDI, or Unemployment benefits, you must be low-income and live in Waltham, Watertown, Newton or Allston-Brighton. If you are looking for help with the kind of legal issues handled by our Community Enterprise Clinic, you must live in the Greater Boston area and not be able to afford a private attorney.If you have an immigration problem you must be referred by attorneys or other social and legal services providers.If you are looking for help from our Juvenile Rights Advocacy Program, you must be referred by the court or another agency.
Phone: 617-552-0248
Email: bclegalserviceslab@bc.edu
Center for Law & Education (CLE)
Attorneys train other attorneys, parents, educators about education rights
Phone: 617-451-0855
Center for Public Representation (CPR)
Nonprofit public law firm providing mental health law and disability law services(class action suits). Does not provide individual representation (only Social Security appeal representation)
Address: 55 Ferry Street, #314
Easthampton, MA 01027
Email: info@cpr-ma.org
Children’s Law Center, Inc.
Quality advocacy and legal services to low-income children and youth
Phone: 781-581-1977
Email: Info@CLCM.org
Boston (EdLaw Project)
Our team offers direct advocacy for students in many difficult situations including:
- School exclusion
- Having trouble reintegrating after detention or incarceration
- Receiving inadequate education while in state custody
- Struggling with undetected and underserved special needs
Offices of CPCS/Youth Advocacy Division
44 Bromfield Street
Boston, MA 02108
Phone: 617-910-5829
Email: Info@CLCM.org
Community Legal Aid
Provides free civil legal services to low-income and elderly residents of central and western Massachusetts regardless on income.Benefits and Employment, Elder Law, Family Law, Housing and Homelessness, and Immigration.
Offices in Northampton, Pittsfield, Springfield, and Worcester with satellite offices in Fitchburg, Greenfield, Holyoke, Milford, North Adams, and Southbridge.
Phone: 508-755-3260 TTY/TDD
Toll free: 855-252-5342
Disability Law Center (DLC)
DLC has experienced staff who provide services in the following issue areas. Please see our priorities for each of the issue areas:
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- Access to Community Services
- Special Education
- Health Care
- Disability Benefits,
- Rights and Conditions in Facilities
Boston: 617-723-8455 or 800-872-9992
Northampton: 413-584-6337 or 800-222-5619
Email: mail@dlc-ma.org
ADA Info Line – Department of Justice (DOJ)
Technical assistance on ADA standards for accessible design; ADA provisions that apply to business; how to file ADA complaints
Phone: 800-514-0301
TTTY: 1-833-610-1264
Springfield: 413-739-2145
Worcester: 508-453-9630
Gay & Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD)
Legal assistance for discrimination based on HIV or sexual orientation.
Call GLAD Answers Monday through Friday, 1:30 PM – 4:30 PM at 800-455-GLAD, or contact us by live chat or email at www.GLADAnswers.org
Phone: 617-426-1350 or 800-455-4523
Email: gladlaw@glad.org
Greater Boston Legal Services (GBLS)
GBLS provides free civil (non-criminal) legal assistance to low-income people in Boston and thirty-one additional cities and towns (See a list of towns in GBLS’s service area.) The help we offer ranges from legal advice to full case representation, depending on client need. Our work includes:
- Asian Outreach
- Children’s Disability Project
- Consumer Rights
- CORI and Re-Entry Project
- Elder, Health and Disability
- Elder Abuse Prevention Project
- School to Prison Pipeline Intervention Project
- Employment
- Family
- Housing
- Immigration
- Welfare
Our Intake Workers speak the following languages: Cantonese; English; Haitian Creole; Mandarin; Portuguese; Spanish. For other languages, our staff uses interpreters.
Main Office
Toll free: 800-323-3205
Phone: 617-371-1234
TDD: 617-371-1228
Cambridge & Somerville
Phone: 617-603-2700
TDD: 617-494-1757
Harvard Law School Tenant Advocacy Project (TAP)
Tenants We Help
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- Current public housing tenants or applicants
- Section 8 or MRVP voucher recipients
- Section 8 or MRVP voucher applicants
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Phone: 617-495-4394
Email: tap@law.harvard.edu
Health Law Advocates (HLA)
Represents low income on health care access and insurance matters. HLA does not handle medical malpractice cases. “Health Care For All” legal help.
Phone: 617-338-5241
Toll-free: 888-211-6168
Lawyer Referral Services (Massachusetts Bar Association)
The MBA’s Lawyer Referral Service (LRS), one of the largest legal referral services in the nation, makes it easy for you to find the right lawyer to answer your questions and help resolve your legal problems. Call us to speak to a trained LRS representative* (Mon.-Fri., 9 a.m. – 4:45 p.m.).
There is no cost to utilize LRS, but referrals are made to fee-charging attorneys, who may charge you no more than $25 for the initial half-hour consultation.
Phone: 617-654-0400
Toll Free: 866-627-7577
*Translation services are available.
Massachusetts Advocates for Children (MAC)
Education, Special Education, Child Welfare and Health
Phone: 617-357-8431
Helpline: 617-357-8431 ext 3224
Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD)
Discrimination services about employment, housing, public accommodations, services & education
Boston: 617-994-6000
Springfield: 413-739-2145
Worcester: 508-453-9630
New Bedford: 774-510-5801
Email: assistanttochairman@state.ma.us
Massachusetts Disabled Persons Protection Committee (DPPC)
Protects adults with mental and physical disabilities, ages of 18 and 59, from abuse and neglect by their caretakers. 24 Hour Hotline; conducts investigations; ensures protective services are provided; provides free training and education for service providers, consumers, law enforcement personnel and the public.
Phone: 617-727-6465
DPPC Hotline: 888-822-0350 TTY
Toll free: 1-800-426-9009 Voice
MassLegalHelp
Basic Legal Information
Can help you find legal aid in your area.
- Domestic Abuse & Crime Victims
- Housing, Apartments & Shelters
- Money & Debt
- Children, Families & Divorce
- Public Benefits & SSI
- Employment & Unemployment
- Immigration
- Courts, Hearings, & Language Rights
- Criminal Records (CORI) & Licenses
- Health & Disability Rights
- Schools
- Health Insurance & MassHealth
- Medicare
- Mental Health
- Dental
- Medical Debt
- Disability Rights
Mental Health Legal Advisors Committee (MHLAC)
State agency providing free legal representation for individuals, families, and associations involved in the mental health system.
Phone: 617-338-2345
Toll free- MA only: 800-342-9092
Email: MHLAC@mhlac.org
Massachusetts Office on Disability (MOD)
Advocacy accessibility specialists, training & technical assistance, “Client Service Program”
Phone: 617-727-7440
Toll free: 800-322-2020 (Voice/TTY)
Medicare Advocacy Project (Greater Boston Legal Services)
Gives advice or free legal representation to elderly & disabled whom are unfairly denied Medicare.
Phone: 617-371-1234 or 617-371-1228 (TDD) – Boston
Cambridge / Somerville: 617-603-2700 or 617-494-1757 (TDD)
Toll free: 800-323-3205
National Lawyers Guild Referral Service
Referral to attorneys who will represent you for a reduced fee
Phone: 617-227-7335
Please note that we do not conduct in person client intake for referrals or walk-ins.
For referral requests for attorneys call 617-227-7008. Please note the call volume is high. We advise all clients to utilize the online request form . Within one business day you will receive an email with an attorney’s telephone number.
Northeast Legal Aid
Family law, housing, income maintenance, elder law Lowell
Phone: 978-458-1465
Patient Advocacy Contact Info at Boston Hospitals
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- Beth Israel Hospital 617-313-1360
- Boston Medical Center 617-414-4970
- Brigham & Women’s 617-983-7425
- Mass General Hospital 617-726-3370
- New England Baptist Hospital 617-754-5147
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Patient Rights and Responsibilities – Massachusetts General Hospital
Patients’ Rights and Responsibilities – Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Patient Rights & Regulations – New England Baptist Hospital
Patient Privacy – Boston Medical Center
Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts
Provides civil legal assistance to persons incarcerated in Mass county & state correctional facilities. Does not provide criminal defense services.
Phone: 617-482-2773
Family and Friends call Monday from 1:00 to 4:00 (call Tuesday if Monday is a holiday): Toll free: 800-882-1413
South Coastal Counties Legal Services, Inc. (SCCLS)
SCCLS provides free legal help to low income and elderly clients in the following areas: housing law, family law, government benefits including social security disability, elder law, education law, and consumer law.
Brockton: 800-244-8393
Fall River: 800-287-3777
Hyannis: 800-742-4107
Women’s Bar of Massachusetts
The Women’s Bar Foundation is dedicated to ensuring access to justice for low-income women. We create a community committed to providing free legal assistance to low-income women and their families.
Family Law Project for Battered Women (pro-bono); Elder Law Project-wills health care, Women’s Prison and Re-Entry Project- attorneys meet with women and answer questions regarding family law, child custody, care and protection, housing, CORI, and criminal warrant clearing in Framingham and Suffolk County, Hampden County Housing Court Project – to help reduce the number of unrepresented people in Housing Court, Women’s Lunch Place Project – volunteer attorneys to staff a weekly clinic for the guests of The Women’s Lunch Place, a day shelter for homeless women in Boston.
Phone: 617-973-6666
Volunteer Lawyers Project
The Volunteer Lawyers Project (VLP) provides free civil legal assistance to low-income residents of Greater Boston, primarily through the pro bono services of private attorneys.
VLP Handles, Landlord/Tenant, Homeownership, Foreclosure Prevention, Family Law, Guardianship, Probate (Wills Consumer Debt, Assistance to Non-Profit Organizations)
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- If You are Under 60: 617- 603-1700 or 1-800-342-LAWS (5297)
- If you are 60 or older call ERLI’s Elder Helpline at 1-800-342-5297
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Children issues: DCF custody, guardianship, special education 766, suspension, expulsions and SSI. Serves low income children in eastern Massachusetts. The helpline hours vary depending on available staff.
Toll free: 888-KIDLAWS or 888-543-5297
Phone: 781-581-1977
Email: Info@CLCM.org
Fact Sheet last updated on: 9/10/2024
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Disclaimer: INDEX is pleased to provide you this information. Please note, this information is not comprehensive, nor is it intended to take the place of professional advice. We encourage you to check other resources of such information. No endorsement by the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, DisabilityInfo.org, INDEX, or affiliates, should be inferred. We reserve the right to remove, to modify, or to add any information at any time, for any reason, and without notice.
