On January 26, Davis Malm shareholder and Chair of the Massachusetts Equal Justice Coalition Sandy Moskowitz led over one third of Davis Malm’s attorneys and nearly 700 other attorneys in the 13th annual Walk to the Hill in support of civil legal aid. The goal of this year’s Walk was to lobby state legislators to increase funding for programs that provide civil legal aid to low-income Massachusetts residents. These attorneys were seeking increased funding to offset the severe reduction of Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts (IOLTA) funds, the largest non-state funding source for legal aid in Massachusetts, and to prevent further erosion of legal services for the poor. On the day before the walk, Governor Patrick proposed funding for FY13 at $12 million, which is an impressive jump over last year’s $9.5 million, though still short of the Equal Justice Coalition’s request for $14.5. In his address, Mr. Moskowitz stressed the need for increased funding for the civil legal aid line item, “to avoid further devastating program cuts.”

The Walk to the Hill was co-sponsored by the Equal Justice Coalition, Boston Bar Association, Massachusetts Bar Association, and 31 local and specialty bar associations. Davis Malm attorneys who participated included, Michael Malm, Kenneth Mickiewicz, John Lynch, Marjorie Suisman, Howard Speicher, George Chimento, Josh Grossman, Rob Diettrich, Neal Bingham, Dan Janis, Jim Gallagher, and Avi Lev.

For more information contact: Joanne Thorud; (617) 589-3894; jthorud@davismalm.com

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