IOLTA BLOG

On October 1, 2020, the Supreme Judicial Court issued its opinion In the Matter of Olchowski, 485 Mass. 807 (2020). The Court held that client funds on deposit in IOLTA accounts whose owners cannot be identified do not fall within the statutory definition of “abandoned property” under G.L. c. 200A, and therefore such funds should be remitted to the IOLTA Committee rather than escheated to the treasury.

Unidentified client funds on deposit in an IOLTA account do not fall within the statutory definition of "abandoned property".

Read the full article. . .

For additional information, please contact please contact Jayne Tyrrell at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 617-723-9093.

Massachusetts lawyers and law firms can significantly boost their level of support for access to justice simply by utilizing a Leadership Institution for their IOLTA accounts. While many lawyers and law firms currently do bank with these leading institutions, many more could—which would result in a tremendous difference in IOLTA funding for civil legal aid in the Commonwealth. “We encourage attorneys to maximize the benefit of IOLTA accounts by maintaining their accounts at one of the Leadership Banks,” said Hannah Kilson, Chair of the Massachusetts IOLTA Committee. Massachusetts lawyers and law firms have always been extremely generous in their contributions of money and volunteer time to help the disadvantaged people of Massachusetts who need help in civil legal matters. By taking a few steps to ensure that their IOLTA accounts are held at Leadership Institutions, those same lawyers and law firms can dramatically increase their support of IOLTA at a time of critical need.

Lawyers can help by doing one the following:

  1. Bank at a Leadership Institution (see list below).
  2. If doing business with a non-Leadership institution, persuade them to join the Leadership Bank program.

The following are the Massachusetts Leadership Institutions:

Abington Bank Adams Community Bank Admirals Bank Athol Savings Bank Avidia Bank Bank of New England BayCoast Bank Bristol County Savings Bank Brookline Bank Cambridge Savings Bank Central One Federal Credit Union Century Bank & Trust Company Community Bank Cooperative Bank of Cape Cod Crescent Credit Union Envision Bank Everett Cooperative Bank First Ipswich Bank Freedom Credit Union Greylock Federal Credit Union Holyoke Credit Union Institution for Savings Lee Bank Leominster Credit Union Main Street Bank Martha’s Vineyard Savings Bank MutualOne Bank Naveo Credit Union Needham Bank North Brookfield Savings Bank North Cambridge Cooperative PeoplesBank River Works Credit Union Rollstone Bank & Trust Sharon Credit Union South Coast Federal Credit Union St. Jean’s Credit Union St. Mary’s Credit Union UniBank for Savings ashington Savings Bank Westfield Bank

For additional information, please contact please contact Jayne Tyrrell at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 617-723-9093.

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