About Senior Partners for Justice

"Senior Partners is about helping others and feeling good about it."

In 2002, Hon. Edward M. Ginsburg, a retired Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court, established an innovative new pro bono project: Senior Partners for Justice. The idea for this project grew out of Judge Ginsburg's observations, during his many years on the bench, of the struggles of pro se litigants as they tried to represent themselves in divorce, paternity, child support, custody and other family law matters. For many, access to justice was a meaningless concept without access to legal counsel. Senior Partners for Justice asks lawyers of all ages and backgrounds to use their talents to serve those who would otherwise go unrepresentated in court.

Seeking to build on existing resources, Senior Partners teamed up with the Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Boston Bar Association (VLP), an organization with over three decades of experience providing pro bono civil legal services to low-income people in greater Boston. VLP provides the case referrals, infrastructure and administrative support that have allowed Senior Partners to thrive.

Now in its sixth year, Senior Partners for Justice has attracted over 450 lawyers who range in age from 26 to 92. Their diversity is remarkable, including both retired and practicing lawyers, seasoned family law practitioners, specialists from outside family law, new bar admittees, and retired judges. Also remarkable are the collegiality and sense of community that have developed among Senior Partners through montly luncheons, special projects, and the leadership of Judge Ginsburg.

For attorneys, new and seasoned alike, Senior Partners for Justice is a unique opportunity to help low-income families and "give back" to the community, and in the process, find comeraderie and great personal reward.