SJC sends bar advocate pay issue back to Beacon Hill
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
The fight for increased attorney pay on Beacon Hill may not be over.
The big picture: The Legislature allocated millions of dollars last year for the Committee for Public Counsel Services to hire more public defenders and raise wages for volunteer lawyers, known as bar advocates.
- The CPCS says it's not enough to meet the demand from defendants who can't afford legal representation, but the request comes as lawmakers grapple with rising costs and limited revenue.
Driving the news: CPCS asked the Supreme Judicial Court to intervene and order a pay increase beyond what the Legislature set.
- The SJC denied the request, ruling that it would be "inappropriate" to intervene in the Legislature's responsibilities, potentially violating the state's separation of powers doctrine.
What they're saying: The SJC wrote that letting elected representatives, rather than the executive or judicial branch, determine legislative policy is "especially important 'in times of limited fiscal resources.'"
- A House spokesperson said in a statement that the ruling confirms "the actions that the Legislature took to address this issue have successfully mitigated the impact that the bar advocate work stoppage had on the Commonwealth's criminal justice system."
- A spokesperson for Senate President Karen Spilka didn't immediately respond to requests for comment Monday afternoon.
Flashback: The Legislature announced a deal with CPCS last year to increase attorney pay by $20 an hour over two years, leading to a total pay of $85 an hour by Aug. 1.
- Lawmakers also allocated $40 million to the CPCS to hire 320 new public defenders by the end of 2027, effectively doubling its staff to rely less on bar advocates.
- The deal aimed to boost attorney pay, which trailed other states' pay rates.
Between the lines: It also was meant to satisfy the state's requirements for legal representation under the Lavalle protocol.
- That requires judges to release defendants who've spent more than seven days in custody without an attorney.
Yes, but: CPCS' fight for higher wages continued in the courts even after that deal was announced.
- An attorney for CPCS argued that thousands of defendants remained unrepresented in Middlesex and Suffolk counties even after the pay increase.
The other side: Robert McGovern, a CPCS spokesperson, said the organization is "going to continue our advocacy efforts in the State House to ensure that the private attorneys who take our cases are compensated appropriately."
- "This effort is also essential to recruiting enough talented private attorneys interested in taking our cases," he added.
What we're watching: House and Senate budget leaders plan to unveil their budget proposals in the next two months, which may reveal whether they're willing to consider any additional pay increases for fiscal 2028.
- Meanwhile, public defenders proposed a ballot measure to let them unionize, which could go to voters in November.