Margaret Brill

Margaret Brill practiced law in several different settings for over forty years, before retiring from her position as counsel in the MIT Office of the General Counsel.

She began her legal career as a staff attorney at Greater Boston Legal Services, moving to a managing position and then associate director. Before joining MIT, she was at Testa, Hurwitz & Thibeault, where she was a partner and first chair of the real estate practice group. She also practiced at two other law firms, one in Boston and one in Cambridge, specializing in real estate matters.

She left Testa, Hurwitz & Thibeault in 1998 to pursue other opportunities to practice law in the nonprofit and public interest sector, joining MIT in 2001. In the MIT Office of the General Counsel, Margaret enjoyed a very broad practice which focused on real estate, land use, utilities, financings and business transactions, as well as a wide range of other transactions and matters affecting MIT and higher education.

As an Access to Justice Fellow, Margaret looks forward to continuing to help in the nonprofit/public interest arena by providing support to Citizen Schools, a nonprofit organization with an educational mission.

Citizen Schools equips young people with the skills, access and beliefs they need to thrive as students and succeed as adults in the modern economy, and envisions a world in which schools, companies and families partner to provide students with a set of real-world learning experiences that put them on a path to college and career success. At Citizen Schools, adolescents work side by side with experts to explore new fields, learn new skills, and build a foundation for their future. Citizen Schools partners with low-income communities that need additional support and resources. The program supports academic achievement in core subjects like English Language Arts and Mathematics, while building important 21st Century and Social Emotional skills. Additionally, it creates real-world learning experiences for students through partnership with Volunteer Citizen Teachers who come from the community to teach courses on topics they are passionate about, providing hundreds of additional hours of hands-on learning to students each year – exposing them to bright, new futures.

Margaret will work with Citizen Schools leadership on legal and business issues, including review and discussions of ongoing or proposed future arrangements affecting day-to-day operations, as well as longer term business, legal and strategic issues. As examples, this might involve relationships and contracts affecting space, vendors, consultants, business partners and other organizations, or requirements affecting ongoing and future Citizen Schools activities. As part of this project, Margaret will mentor Citizen School staff to help develop more in-house expertise.