Maine may be a case study on solving an attorney shortage — like the one that’s thrown Mass. courts into turmoil

Court cases in Maine were mounting, and there were not nearly enough lawyers to take them.

So in 2023, the state’s Legislature approved a pay raise for the private attorneys who make up the state’s indigent defense system, nearly doubling their rates to $150 an hour.

“We were thrilled,” said Jim Howaniec, a longtime defense attorney from Lewiston who takes court-appointed cases for the system.

But two years later, he said, there is still a shortage. “It hasn’t solved all our problems,” he said.

Maine offers a case study, lawyers say, as Massachusetts confronts a work stoppage by private attorneys that has thrown its courts into turmoil . Earlier this month Beacon Hill boosted their pay — a far more modest raise of $10, with an additional $10 next year to bring the total base level