The BBA Welcomes Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office as a New Sponsor Member
Press ReleaseJANUARY 10 – BOSTON, MA – The Boston Bar Association (BBA) is pleased to welcome the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office as its newest sponsor organization, adding an important legal perspective and voice to the BBA’s community of more than 13,000 members, including 135 organizations drawn from law firms, in-house legal departments, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and law schools.
Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins, who served on the BBA’s Council from 2013-2016, said, “My office shares the BBA’s commitment to providing access to justice and diversity and inclusion in the legal field and we welcome the opportunity to serve as a resource for the BBA and for the Greater Boston legal community.
The Suffolk County DA’s Office, which includes more than 150 attorneys, serves the cities and towns of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop. It is one of the busiest DA’s offices in New England, handling nearly 35,000 new cases each year in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court, and the Boston Juvenile Court. The office oversees several specialized units, including High-Risk Victims Unit, Family Protection and Sexual Assault Bureau, Juvenile Unit, Major Felony Bureau, Crime Strategies Bureau, Senior Trial Unit, and Special Prosecutions Unit. They also offer a wide range of crucial services and programs that educate the public about important crime prevention and safety issues.
“We’re so fortunate to have such a vibrant bar association like the BBA right in the heart of the Greater Boston legal community,” said Donna Patalano, General Counsel, Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. “Their commitment to outreach and to providing access to justice for those most in need closely aligns with the goals of the DA’s office.”
BBA President Christine M. Netski, Managing Partner at Sugarman Rogers, said, “DA Rollins brings a perspective that views the prosecutor’s role as not only about criminal justice, but community involvement as well. Having the Suffolk County DA’s Office as a sponsor member will provide valuable insight and expertise to the BBA in its efforts to improve access to justice and to serve our community.”
The Suffolk County DA’s Office joins several other government agencies – including the Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General, the Committee for Public Counsel Services, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, and the Office of Labor Relations of the City of Boston – as BBA sponsor members. The BBA is also home to an active Government Lawyers Forum, which organizes educational programs, meetings, networking sessions, and other events that support government sector attorneys.
Currently, Assistant District Attorneys Julianne Campbell, Michele Granda, and Julien Mundele are members of the BBA’s Criminal Law Section Steering Committee. During the past several years, attorneys from the Suffolk County DA’s Office have also held a variety of other roles within the BBA, including serving on the Diversity & Inclusion Section, New Lawyers Forum and Government Lawyers Forum steering committees, and as members of the BBA’s Public Interest Leadership Program.
