About Massachusetts Legal Assistance
Our mission is to provide leadership and support to improve civil legal services in Massachusetts through collaboration with the legal services community, the public, the bar, and the legislature.
Focus Areas
Housing & homelessnessEmployment-related servicesImmigrants' rights / immigrationFamily law & domestic violenceDisability rightsConsumer protectionElder affairsEducation advocacyVeterans legal servicesPrisoners' legal servicesHealth care access
Who They Fund
low-income individuals and familiesunderserved / marginalized community members
About Massachusetts Legal Assistance
Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corp concentrates its grantmaking on civil legal aid organizations in Massachusetts, with the largest recent awards going to Greater Boston Legal Services and Community Legal Aid for legal assistance programs. The foundation’s mission is to improve civil legal services in the state through collaboration with the legal services community, the public, the bar, and the legislature. Its funding supports direct legal services, organizational capacity, and statewide initiatives that advance access to justice. The recent grant record shows sustained support for a network of nonprofit providers rather than one-off project funding. Major recipients include South Coastal Counties Legal Services, Northeast Legal Aid, and Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, each receiving repeated awards across multiple years. Grants also extend to specialized legal-aid organizations serving particular client needs, including disability rights, children’s legal services, and prisoners’ legal services. The foundation funds organizations, not individuals, and its program list points to core support, access-to-counsel work, fellows and awards, and issue-specific legal services. Across the record, the pattern is consistent: MLAC backs Massachusetts-based legal aid infrastructure that delivers representation, advocacy, and related services to low-income residents and other people facing civil legal problems.
What Massachusetts Legal Assistance Funds
Housing and homelessness is a clear focus, reflected in general support for legal aid organizations that handle tenant and housing law alongside benefits and family law. The foundation also funds work tied to immigrants’ rights, including an Immigrants' Rights Fund for organizations providing legal services and advocacy for immigrants and immigrant communities in Massachusetts. Other cause areas show a similar legal-services approach. The Center for Law and Education received $780,503 in 2024 for legal assistance programs, connecting the foundation to education advocacy. Disability Law Center was funded at $1,458,405 in 2025 for legal assistance programs, aligning with disability rights work. Prisoners Legal Services also received support, including $865,724 in 2025, which fits MLAC’s focus on prisoners’ legal services and access to representation for people in custody.
How Massachusetts Legal Assistance Gives
Grant sizes range widely, with a p25 of $114,673, a median of $612,780, and a p75 of $2,049,332. The grant record is recurring rather than episodic: several organizations appear in multiple years, including Greater Boston Legal Services, Community Legal Aid, Northeast Legal Aid, South Coastal Counties Legal Services, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, Metro West Legal Services, Disability Law Center, Childrens Law Center of Massachusetts, Prisoners Legal Services, and Center for Public Representation. MLAC is a foundation-style grantmaker that funds organizations, not individuals, and its active programs emphasize core grants, fellowships, access to counsel, and issue-specific legal aid. The program listings also show that unsolicited applications are not accepted for the listed funding streams.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$72.6M
Total Assets
$24.2M
Total Revenue
$82.3M
Total Expenses
$78.3M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $115K and $2M, with a median of $613K.
25th Percentile
$115K
Median
$613K
75th Percentile
$2M
Geographic Reach
Local1 state funded
About 100% of grants go to recipients in MA.
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
LYNNE PARKER
Accepts unsolicited proposals
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