Public Policy > Our Policy Positions

Our Policy Positions

Our Positions

  • Access to Justice

    Access to justice means ensuring adequate funding for both civil legal services for the poor and for the courts, so that those who need to turn to the justice system to protect their rights or resolve their disputes will find the sufficient staff and resources to assist them.

  • Criminal Justice

    The BBA believes that the primary concern of a criminal justice system should be promoting public safety and ensuring fair treatment for all citizens. In pursuit of this goal, the BBA has a long history of advocating for policies which are consistent, fiscally responsible and guarantee that the administration of justice in Massachusetts is impartial.

  • Civil Rights & Civil Liberties

    The Massachusetts Constitution — the nation's first and oldest — stands as a beacon for fair and equal treatment under the law for every citizen. It is fitting, then, that the BBA has a long record of voicing opposition to and mobilizing resources against threats to civil rights and civil liberties. Our work in this area spans affirmative action, the right to vote, and same-sex marriage. It also includes the right to privacy, freedom of speech, the balance between liberty and security.

  • Practice of Law

    The BBA inspires the vigorous pursuit of ideas, critical analysis and civic engagement in order to advance the practice of law as a business and a profession and has always worked to integrate opportunities for dynamic change and to exercise judgment and creativity in offering solutions for problems.

  • Children & Families

    The BBA is attentive to legislative matters regarding the care, protection, and support of children, as well as other family-related legal issues. Our vibrant Family Law Section frequently concerns itself with procedural and administrative matters relating to the Probate and Family Court and maintains a continuing dialogue with its judges.

News

Legislative Action Alert from BBA President J.D. Smeallie

Thank you for your continued commitment to funding civil legal aid for low-income residents of Massachusetts. Our civil legal aid programs are sorely underfunded and the dramatic decrease in IOLTA revenue has made the state appropriation more important than ever before. We need your help.
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Issue Spot: As We’ve Been Saying, Corrections Reform Is Long Overdue

Could it be that Massachusetts is making the move from “tough on crime” to “smart on crime”?  Not quite yet, according to a recent report “Crime, Cost, and Consequences: Is It Time to Get Smart on Crime” published by Community Resources for Justice (CRJ) and MassInc.  We were pleased to read this 40 page report, produced by two institutions well-regarded for their public policy work. That’s because the report reinforces what the BBA and the organization now know as CRJ discovered during the course of a study in 1991 — that Massachusetts’ criminal justice policies are unduly harsh and fail to improve public safety. 
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Boston Bar Files Amicus Brief Urging SJC to Say It's OK for Trustee to Distribute Property From One Trust to Another

In a case with significant ramifications for trusts and estates practitioners and the clients they serve, the Boston Bar Association today filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) to recognize that the power of a trustee to distribute trust property to beneficiaries also includes the power to distribute that property to another trust for the benefit of the beneficiary under Massachusetts law.In a case with significant ramifications for trusts and estates practitioners and the clients they serve, the Boston Bar Association today filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) to recognize that the power of a trustee to distribute trust property to beneficiaries also includes the power to distribute that property to another trust for the benefit of the beneficiary under Massachusetts law.

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As a well-known innovator and opinion leader, the BBA is at the forefront of promoting justice and improving access to the legal system in Massachusetts. The Business Litigation Session of the Superior Court, the Uniform Probate Code, and our successful argument asserting the First Amendment rights of private parties, including bar associations, found in the R.E.B.A. v. N.R.E.I.S amicus brief are just three of the positive changes we have helped make a reality.