About Us
Mass Pro Bono is an online resource for lawyers, law students, paralegals, and others who want to give their time to meet the legal needs of vulnerable people in Massachusetts. Through this website, you can find pro bono opportunities that fit your interests and schedule.
History
Mass Pro Bono was developed by the Volunteer Lawyers Project in the early 2010s through a Legal Services Corporation Technology Initiative Grant, contracting with Pro Bono Net, a nonprofit that hosts legal aid and pro bono websites throughout the U.S. and Canada, and the Massachusetts Legal Aid Websites Project at the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute. Mass Pro Bono also partnered with the Massachusetts Bar Association, which had built an extensive statewide listing of pro bono opportunities.
Mass Pro Bono has undergone many changes over the years to best fit the changing needs of those who use it, In 2020, in partnership with the Access to Justice Commission’s COVID-19 Task Force, Mass Pro Bono launched the Massachusetts COVID-19 Pro Bono Portal which supported organizations in listing projects related to the pandemic, designing remote pro bono opportunities, and recruiting volunteers during this time of urgent and great need. As a result of this work, several remote clinics and programs remain as ways to get involved with pro bono work across the state.
Mass Pro Bono today
As of June 2023, Mass Pro Bono is managed by the Legal Aid Websites Project at Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, which houses a comprehensive suite of websites geared toward making legal information accessible to different audiences, including Mass Legal Services to support legal aid advocates, Mass Legal Help to provide understandable legal information to the public, and the Legal Resource Finder, to help Massachusetts residents find free and low cost legal help. These statewide websites offer a network of resources for legal aid and nonprofit advocates, the private bar, law students and others engaged in pro bono, self-represented litigants, and members of the public seeking legal information.
In 2025, we partnered with Paladin, a platform for connecting the pro bono community and empowering legal teams to do more pro bono, to enhance the Mass Pro Bono opportunity guide. Today, Mass Pro Bono remains the primary place for legal volunteers to find a range of opportunities to give back across Massachusetts.
