The Board of Bar Overseers and the Office of the Bar Counsel were established by the Supreme Judicial Court in 1974 as indepe ... ndent administrative bodies to investigate and evaluate complaints against lawyers. Although both the Board and Bar Counsel are official bodies subject to the supervision of the Supreme Judicial Court, no public funds are spent to support them. The Bar Counsel's and the Board's expenses come solely from the annual registration fees paid by lawyers. read more