Massachusetts Bar Association

Name

Massachusetts Bar Association

Legal name

Massachusetts Bar Association

Website

https://massbar.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1911

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Legal Professional Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Professional Organizations (81392)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Law School Continuing Legal Education (CLE) & Executive Programs (EDAHAIAH)

Keywords

• Bar association membership
• Continuing legal education
• Legal professional services
• Legal advocacy
• Lawyer referral services

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Primary revenue source from annual membership dues structured by bar admission date and category. Membership runs from September 1 through August 31. Dues range from free for new admits/students/judges to $465 for attorneys admitted 2016 and prior. Special categories include government attorneys ($225), legal services attorneys ($200), paralegals ($185), and out-of-state attorneys ($245).
2. CLE Program Fees: Revenue from continuing legal education programs. While many CLE programs are free for members, conferences (like the Ninth Annual Juvenile and Child Welfare Conference at $75 for members, $150 for non-members) and the Practicing with Professionalism course generate fees. Certificate fees for attendance documentation also contribute.
3. Event Revenue: Revenue from signature events including the Annual Dinner (with table sales and individual tickets), Access to Justice Awards Celebration, and networking events like MBA Night at the WooSox.
4. Lawyer Referral Service: The Lawyer Referral Service connects individuals to MBA member attorneys. While the service provides client referrals to members, the organization benefits from expanded member engagement and visibility.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Massachusetts Bar Association (MBA) is a voluntary, nonprofit professional membership association that serves attorneys, judges, and legal professionals in Massachusetts. It sells annual membership subscriptions and delivers continuing legal education (CLE) programs, networking tools (My Bar Access), legal research database access (Decisis), free trust and billing software (Smokeball Bill), insurance programs, and lawyer referral services to its members.

Product overview

The Massachusetts Bar Association operates as a platform-plus-member-benefits organization rather than a single unified product. The core membership serves attorneys, judges, and legal professionals across Massachusetts with access to CLE programs, publications, advocacy, and networking. Key products include: MBA Membership (core program), CLE Programs/MBA On Demand (educational content), Decisis (legal research), Smokeball Bill (trust and billing software), My Bar Access (proprietary social networking), Lawyer Referral Service, Dial-A-Lawyer, and various volunteer/public service programs including Mock Trial, Judicial Youth Corps, and Tiered Community Mentoring. The organization also provides member discounts on third-party legal technology products including Clio, Lexis+ AI, LawPay, Rocket Matter, and Ruby Receptionists.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MBA Membership

Quantifiable outcome

• 20,000 people annually contact the Lawyer Referral Service
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

AI capability3 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SmokeballcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 21 October 2025The Massachusetts Bar Association partnered with Smokeball in October 2025 to provide all MBA members with free access to Smokeball Bill trust and billing software. This software, valued at $588 per user per year, helps law firms manage trust accounting compliantly, bill easily, and get paid faster. The partnership represents a significant member benefit enhancement.
• DecisiscoreTechnology or IntegrationDecisis is a comprehensive and reliable legal research database provided free to MBA members. The partnership offers members unlimited use of one of the largest online legal research libraries as a membership benefit.
• CliominorGTM or Marketing PartnerClio, the global leader in legal AI and practice management, is offered as a membership benefit. Clio empowers legal professionals and law firms to work smarter with its Intelligent Legal Work Platform.
• Lexis+ AIminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMBA members receive 15% off Lexis+ AI, which serves as a curated, practical guide to vetted AI tools and resources for legal work.
• Rocket MatterminorGTM or Marketing PartnerRocket Matter offers an all-in-one legal practice management platform. MBA members enjoy 15% discount on monthly subscriptions.
• Ruby ReceptionistsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerRuby provides virtual receptionist services for law firms. MBA members save 7 percent on the service which answers calls with custom greetings and can transfer live calls or take messages.
• LawPayminorGTM or Marketing Partner8am LawPay provides attorneys with a secure way to accept online credit card payments in their practice, designed specifically for the legal industry.
• Western New England University School of LawcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWestern New England University School of Law partners with the MBA to bring the Judicial Youth Corps program to Springfield, providing law students and high school students with educational and internship opportunities in the legal system.
• Massachusetts Bar FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe MBF is the philanthropic partner of the MBA, founded in 1964. Through grantmaking and charitable activities, the MBF works to increase access to justice. The MBF collaborates on initiatives including the Chief Justice Ralph Gants Fund for Racial Equity and Access to Justice.
• Massachusetts Bar InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMBI was founded in 1995 to provide Continuing Legal Education, developing 75-100 conferences and seminars annually. MBI produces the Massachusetts Law Review and provides public service projects including Mock Trial, Dial-A-Lawyer, and Elder Law Education.
• MBA Insurance AgencycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe MBA Insurance Agency provides MBA members exclusive access to high quality, competitively-priced insurance programs designed by lawyers for lawyers, including professional liability, health, life, auto and more.

Scale indicators5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• American Bar Association: The national voluntary professional membership association for lawyers in the United States, providing CLE, publications, advocacy, and member benefits at scale — comparable in mission, member-benefit model, and operational structure to the MBA.
• Boston Bar Association: The voluntary metropolitan bar association serving Greater Boston attorneys. It directly competes with the MBA for the same Massachusetts lawyer member pool and overlaps in CLE, networking, and public-service programming.
• New York State Bar Association: The largest voluntary state bar association in the U.S., serving New York attorneys with CLE, publications, sections, and advocacy — a close functional twin to the MBA at a larger scale and the natural cross-state peer benchmark.
• New Jersey State Bar Association: A voluntary statewide bar association serving New Jersey attorneys with membership dues, CLE programming, sections, and public-service initiatives — directly comparable in size and member-benefit structure to the MBA.
• Illinois State Bar Association: A voluntary state bar providing CLE, sections, publications, and member services to Illinois attorneys. Comparable to the MBA in scale, dues structure, and member-benefit portfolio for a similarly sized legal market.
• Pennsylvania Bar Association: Voluntary statewide bar for Pennsylvania attorneys, offering CLE, advocacy, publications, and member benefits — a peer organization of similar scope and operational model to the MBA.
• Florida Bar: Florida's integrated state bar (mandatory membership) administering licensure, CLE, and discipline. Although membership is mandatory rather than voluntary, it is the closest analogous operating model for a state-level legal professional association.
• California Lawyers Association: A voluntary statewide bar in California focused on education, practice support, and advocacy for lawyers — closely analogous to the MBA's voluntary, education- and benefits-driven operating model.

Others

• Attorneys' Liability Assurance Society: A professional liability insurance carrier for law firms. Comparable to MBA Insurance Agency as a competitive supplier of lawyer-specific malpractice coverage, though it does not offer the broader membership benefits of the MBA.
• LexisNexis: A major provider of legal research databases and AI-assisted legal tools. Comparable to Decisis and Lexis+ AI as a content and research supplier whose products sit within the MBA member-benefits ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/massbar

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Massachusetts Bar Association