About Jill
Jill Havens has built a legal career rooted in Massachusetts law and public service. She earned her J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law, where she later returned to teach and mentor students. Her early legal training and academic background inform the work she does now.
She served as a staff lawyer at the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance Board of Review. In that role she handled matters that arose from unemployment benefit decisions and administrative appeals. That position placed her at the intersection of state administrative practice and the everyday concerns of workers who had lost jobs.
Havens also spent time in the classroom. As an adjunct professor at Northeastern University School of Law’s poverty law clinic, she taught and supervised students working on cases that affected low-income clients. The clinic setting required balancing legal instruction with direct client service. Students learned courtroom procedure, client interviewing and the practical skills of public-interest practice under her supervision.
Beyond teaching, she has trained other lawyers. She prepared and delivered continuing education on unemployment insurance for Massachusetts attorneys, helping colleagues understand the rules that govern benefits and appeals. She has worked as a consultant for the Massachusetts Volunteer Lawyers Project, offering guidance to pro bono programs and volunteer attorneys handling unemployment and related matters.
Those roles — agency lawyer, teacher, trainer and consultant — shaped a practical approach to the law. Havens understands administrative process, evidentiary issues and the procedural steps that make a difference in appeals. She draws on that experience when advising clients and preparing cases for hearings.
She is now part of Workplace Justice Law Group, where she applies her background in unemployment insurance and administrative law. Clients who face claims, appeals or questions about benefits find a practitioner familiar with the agency systems and the legal tools available. Her current practice focuses on unemployment insurance and workplace justice matters.
