Section 478.10 - Legal Services(1)General. The constitutional right of access to the courts requires that, when requested, inmates receive assistance in preparing and filing legal papers. This assistance may include access to law library facilities, instruction in the use of legal materials and reference assistance. However, such assistance shall not include legal advice or direction of legal research on the part of library personnel.(2)Law Collection. Every Inmate shall have access to legal materials. As suggested by federal and state court rulings and national standards, legal materials should include at a minimum: state and federal constitutions, state statutes, state decisions, procedural rules and decisions and related commentaries, federal case law, court rules, practice treatises, citators, and legal periodicals. (a) The Institution Librarian shall ensure that the law collection is maintained and updated.(b) Legal materials shall not be circulated.(c) The Institution Librarian shall make reasonable efforts to secure materials not in an institution's collection but available through established inter-library loan procedures.(3)Access. Library access shall be scheduled and coordinated by the Librarian and shall be provided to all inmates within the institution. The law collection may be made available to inmates online. An inmate of any state correctional institution without an adequate law collection may request transportation to an institution with a law collection for the purpose of conducting legal research. This request shall be made in writing to the Superintendent or a designee. The Superintendent may provide access to legal assistance in lieu of the law collection as deemed appropriate.(4)Photocopies.(a) Photocopying services shall be for the purpose of duplicating original legal documents. The Superintendent shall designate the staff members responsible for photocopying legal documents.(b) All approved photocopy requests shall be compiled within reasonable amounts at no charge. In order to provide photocopying services to all inmates, the Superintendent may establish guidelines and limits, subject to the review of the Commissioner or a designee.(c) No photocopy request shall be processed unless a Legal Photocopying Request Form, available at all institution libraries, is completed and attached to the original legal document to be copied.(5)Supplies. (a) The institution shall make reasonable efforts to assist inmates in the preparation and processing of their original legal documents. Reasonable amounts of items such as paper, pencils, envelopes and typewriters shall be provided to all inmates who request them and should be available free of charge. The Superintendent may establish guidelines and limits for such services.(b) Records shall be kept of access, photocopy use and supplies dispersed, including to whom supplies were dispersed.Amended by Mass Register Issue 1338, eff. 5/5/2017.