Posted on 05/29/2025 11:28:29 AM PDT by Salman
Private lawyers with the Massachusetts Bar Advocate Program say they will not take new court-appointed cases until they get a pay raise.
The base hourly rate for court-appointed lawyers in Massachusetts is $65. In Rhode Island, it's $112, in New Hampshire, $125, and in Maine, it's $150 per hour.
"It's woefully inadequate. No one's asking to be paid what private attorneys get paid. I have a private practice," said attorney and Bar Advocate Sean Delaney. "We're just looking for something that's fair and reasonable."
The effects of the strike are already being felt in Massachusetts courtrooms. A Boston man accused of grabbing a police officer's gun and shooting himself in the foot was told by a judge that he wouldn't be receiving a court-appointed lawyer.
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(Excerpt) Read more at wcvb.com ...
(typed in my best Sammy Hagar voice in I Can't Drive 55)
I bet there are other attorneys out there who would take that pay and their jobs if offered.
“””I have a private practice,” said attorney and Bar Advocate Sean Delaney. “We’re just looking for something that’s fair and reasonable.””””
If the Public Defender pay is that bad, then Private Attorney Sean Delaney should simply decline to be a Public Defender.
But I suspect Delaney is such a lousy attorney that he really needs to get the $65/hour cases to survive.
I’ll defend them for $75 an hour. I don’t have a license, but can probably do a better job than some complainer not surviving on $135,200 (65 hr).
The state liberals will use this as an excuse to free defendants.
Hold out for what the Prosecutors get paid, which should include hourly rate, med benefits, bribes, kickbacks, free sex with perps, etc.
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