November 14, 2024

Community Legal Aid Managing Attorney Inês Kenney named to Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission

BY Community Legal Aid

Fitchburg, MA Community Legal Aid, a nonprofit organization that provides free legal services to low-income and elderly residents of Central and Western Massachusetts, is pleased to announce that Inês Kenney, Managing Attorney of its Fitchburg Office, has been named to the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission. The goal of the Commission is to achieve equal justice for all persons in the Commonwealth. It strives to accomplish this goal by providing leadership and vision to, and coordination with, the many organizations and interested persons involved in providing and improving access to justice for those unable to afford counsel. It was created by order of the Supreme Judicial Court in 2005 to provide leadership, vision and coordination for the many organizations dedicated to improving access to justice for all persons in the Commonwealth who are unable to afford counsel for their essential civil legal needs. The Supreme Judicial Court appoints Commissioners representing a wide range of access to justice stakeholders in the Commonwealth.

Attorney Kenney joined Community Legal Aid in 2021 as the Education Law staff attorney in the Fitchburg office where she represented students with special needs and students facing suspension or expulsion. A 2016 graduate of Suffolk University Law School, Kenney worked for one year with Northeast Legal Aid’s Housing Unit as an AmeriCorps member. She then joined the Victim Rights Law Center, where she represented survivors of rape, sexual assault, and stalking in matters involving eviction defense, reasonable accommodations, the Title IX process in K-12 and college campuses, and abuse/harassment prevention orders. Born in Lisbon, Portugal, Kenney grew up in Western Mass and attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. An avid hiker, Kenney aspires to hike all 48 of New Hampshire’s “4,000 Footers.”

As Managing Attorney, Kenney oversees a team of attorneys, paralegals, and support staff who provide civil (non-criminal) legal assistance to elders facing abuse or exploitation, at-risk students needing school-based services, victims of domestic violence seeking protective orders and/or family law assistance, individuals and families facing the threat of eviction and homelessness, and those in need of public benefits, including food stamps, Social Security/SSI, and unemployment compensation. She will also spearhead community outreach to the residents of northern Worcester County who may be eligible for services from Community Legal Aid.  Attorney Kenney joins a team of attorneys who manage Community Legal Aid’s offices in Worcester, Springfield, Northampton, Pittsfield, and Greenfield.

To learn more about the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission, visit: https://massa2j.org.

Community Legal Aid:

Community Legal Aid provides free civil legal services to the low-income and elderly residents of the five counties of Western and Central Massachusetts (Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, and Worcester), and maintains offices in Worcester, Fitchburg, Springfield, Northampton, and Pittsfield. CLA works to assure fairness for all in the justice system, protecting homes, livelihoods, health and families. For more information, please visit www.communitylegal.org.