Bernadette Stark, and Michelle A. Yee
Boston—Today, Manisha Bhatt, Bernadette Stark, and Michelle A. Yee were nominated by Governor Maura T. Healey to serve as justices of the probate and family courts. The Governor’s Council will now review the nominees in order to confirm them.
Governor Healy stated, “These three attorneys have all demonstrated a profound commitment to helping families and children over the course of their careers.” Colleagues from all around the state have praised their work to the greatest degree, and they all possess a natural aptitude to handle challenging matters with deference and thoughtfulness. As the Governor’s Council reviews these nominees, we eagerly await their response.
Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll stated, “Governor Healey and I are delighted to submit these three attorneys for consideration to the Governor’s Council.”
They would all be excellent additions to our Probate and Family Court, and we appreciate the Governor’s Council’s diligence in reviewing these candidates.
Cases like divorce, child support, and wills involving families and children are handled by the Probate and Family Court Department. The goal of the Probate and Family Court Department is to serve the public with prompt justice by giving everyone equal access to a fair, equitable, and effective forum for the resolution of family and probate legal issues. It also strives to serve and protect all individuals, families, and children in an unbiased and courteous manner.
Governor Healey endorsed Stephanie L. Everett, Esq. to serve as the Suffolk Register of Probate and Family Court earlier this year.
Go to the Probate and Family Court’s site for additional details.
Manisha-Bhatt
Concerning the Nominees:
For the past 22 years, Manisha Hemendra Bhatt has worked as an attorney for Greater Boston Legal Services, representing low-income clients in probate and family court cases. She handled guardianship, divorce, paternity, and abuse prevention cases in this capacity, frequently for restricted English-speaking immigrants in towns around Massachusetts. For Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, Inc., attorney Bhatt has given lectures and taught classes. (MCLE) and participated in Trial Court committees handling Probate and Family Court matters. She has been a leader in the South Asian legal community and is the daughter of South Asian immigrants. In addition to serving on the South Asian Bar Association of Greater Boston’s Advisory Board, attorney Bhatt was its president. She had a key role in developing their “Know Your Rights” program, an award-winning grassroots access to justice initiative. The curriculum is a two-semester, twelve-session legal education seminar designed to equip South Asian community leaders with the basic legal rights information they need to support their fellow citizens. Attorney Bhatt graduated from Suffolk University Law School with a J.D. and a B.A. from Boston College.
has a vast background in civil litigation and significant experience in both family court and probate proceedings. After working as a corporate associate at Goulston & Storrs, Attorney Stark founded Dinsmore Stark, Attorneys At Law, a private practice where she specialized in immigration and domestic relations law. She has represented private clients in complex financial matters on behalf of these clients. For many years, Attorney Stark served as an attorney for low-income clients through Western Massachusetts Legal Services, which is currently referred to as “Community Legal Aid”. She currently works as the director of UMass Amherst’s Student Legal Services Office, representing both students and student organizations. In this role, she also serves as “Of Counsel” to the university’s student governance bodies. Senior Partners for Justice has awarded her the 2010
Gideon’s Trumpet Award in recognition of her outstanding dedication to ensuring that everyone has access to the legal system. She has also received accolades for her work and experience from Boston Magazine, Super Lawyers “40 Under 40,” Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, and Super Lawyers.
Due to her extensive personal experience, Attorney Stark is particularly qualified to handle many of the challenging cases that come before the family and probate courts. Attorney Stark was raised in a drug- and gang-ridden neighborhood in New York City where he was born. Her mother came from Puerto Rico, and there were several generations living in her house. She consequently frequently had to interpret for her non-English speaking grandmother while interacting with government offices and service providers. Driven by her early encounters, lawyer Stark has spent a significant portion of her professional life—as well as countless pro bono hours—assisting families who, during a time of personal or family crisis, find themselves bewildered by the legal system.
Attorney Stark graduated from Cornell Law School with a J.D. and a B.A. from Binghamton University.
For over eighteen years, Michelle A. Yee has been an invaluable member of the Probate and Family Court system. She has played a key role in the adoption of the Pathways Case Management Initiative throughout the court’s 14 divisions in her role as Senior Program Manager in the Administrative Office of the Probate and Family Court. Previously, Attorney Yee oversaw the supervision of the day-to-day court operations as the Judicial Case Manager for the Essex divisions. She has previously worked in the Essex and Norfolk divisions as an Assistant Judicial Case Manager, Sessions Clerk, Massachusetts Uniform Probate Code (“MUPC”) Magistrate, and Judicial Law Clerk.