January 14, 2021

Community Legal Aid Names Leticia Medina-Richman as Chief Operating Officer

BY LAURA HANCOCK BARRY, DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR, COMMUNITY LEGAL AID(508) 425-2798 / LHBARRY@cla-ma.org

Community Legal Aid, a non-profit organization that provides free legal services annually to over 8,000 low-income and elderly residents of Central and Western Massachusetts, is pleased to announce that Leticia Medina-Richman has been named as the organization’s first Chief Operating Officer. As COO, Attorney Medina-Richman will help oversee the day-to-day administrative and operational functions of Community Legal Aid.

With a significant rise in demand for services during the COVID-19 pandemic, Community Legal Aid has hired new staff attorneys, paralegals, case managers and support staff, and the organization now employs approximately 140 staff across its five-county service area. Attorney Medina-Richman will provide supervision and resources to other legal managers throughout the organization’s five offices in Fitchburg, Worcester, Northampton, Springfield and Pittsfield. She will also work as part of the management team on improvements and best practices in operations and systems to enable the organization to continue providing high-quality legal services as it expands to meet the needs of its client communities.

Originally from the Bronx, Attorney Medina-Richman graduated from Smith College, with honors, and Northeastern University School of Law. She joined Community Legal Aid’s predecessor organization, Legal Assistance Corporation of Central Massachusetts in 1998 as an elder law attorney and later became a specialist in housing law, including landlord-tenant, foreclosure defense, and housing discrimination work. In January of 2014, she was named Director of the Central West Justice Center (CWJC) where she has overseen a growing staff of attorneys and paralegals in Worcester, Springfield, Northampton and Pittsfield practicing in the areas of immigration, food security, employment, benefits, and housing Law. CWJC also houses the statewide Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Project.

“Becoming the new COO of Community Legal Aid is an exciting next step in my career,” said Attorney Medina-Richman. “I feel extremely privileged and honored to have the opportunity to put my stamp on this new role. I am grateful to be part of this organization and look forward to helping Community Legal Aid and its subsidiary, the Central West Justice Center, to continue to grow and flourish.”

Attorney Medina-Richman lives in Worcester with her spouse and three children. She currently serves on the Worcester Business Improvement District Board and the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission of the Supreme Judicial Court.

“Leticia has devoted her entire career to working in legal aid, and she cares enormously about ensuring that we provide the best services possible to our clients, that all staff get the support they need to do their jobs, and that our systems are well-thought-out but open to change as the organization grows and evolves,” said Community Legal Aid’s Executive Director, Jonathan L. Mannina. “We are thrilled that she is taking on this new challenge as she advances in her legal aid career and are excited about the work she will do to strengthen our systems and organization.”

About 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.