| The Massachusetts Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) Committee is launching a new public education campaign, “Bank on Justice,” to celebrate the contributions of the banking community in preserving access to justice by providing foundational funding for programs that provide civil legal assistance to low income Massachusetts residents.
The IOLTA Committee is proud of the contribution of its partner banks, particularly leadership banks, which have agreed to pay an interest rate on IOLTA accounts of no less than 75 percent of the federal funds target rate. Leadership banks benefit in a number of direct and indirect ways.
Leadership status can boost state and federal CRA submissions. IOLTA is seen as one part of a broad definition of qualified CRA investment, and regulators routinely recognize leadership banks during their evaluations.
Leadership banks have increased access to the members of state and county bar associations. Already, a large majority of county bars include in their mailings to local lawyers and law firms materials promoting individual leadership banks’ exceptional support of the IOLTA program. As part of the Bank on Justice campaign, the IOLTA Committee is making presentations on the contribution of leadership banks at bar associations across the state.
New attorneys learn about the importance of leadership banks through the informational material disseminated at their swearing-in ceremonies. The new attorneys read these materials closely, as they provide guidelines for practicing law in Massachusetts. Twice a year, approximately 2,500 new attorneys receive this information as they are sworn into the Massachusetts bar.
IOLTA funds are an important source of revenue for civil legal aid in Massachusetts, with almost 200 participating institutions currently maintaining over 20,000 IOLTA accounts across the state. Civil legal aid programs offer essential support to low-income Massachusetts residents with non-criminal but critical legal problems. For these individuals, assistance from civil legal aid programs can make the difference between a downward spiral and a fresh start.
But the funding of civil legal aid in Massachusetts is inadequate. A Boston Bar Association report found that the number of Massachusetts residents eligible for civil legal aid is at least 1 million, but due to funding, civil legal aid programs throughout Massachusetts are only able to service 30 percent of these individuals.
Civil legal aid programs have for decades relied on the interest earned on IOLTA accounts from participating banks, in active partnership with Massachusetts lawyers, to carry out its important mission. However, as interest rates have dropped over the past decade, so have the IOLTA funds available to support civil legal aid.
Leadership banks have stepped in, and this should be a cause for substantial pride for the banking community. The IOLTA Committee is determined to give credit to the leadership banks that make IOLTA more effective in providing funds to support civil legal aid in Massachusetts. The “Bank on Justice” campaign is one way to show our gratitude.
Hannah L. Kilson is chair of the Massachusetts IOLTA Committee.
