The New England Bar Association was organized in Maine in 1971 as the Northern New England Bar Association, bringing together the state bar associations of Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Today, NEBA includes the bar associations of all six New England states: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
NEBA provides a forum for its member bar associations to exchange information, explore issues of common interest, support continuing legal education and professional competence, and strengthen relationships across state lines. It also creates opportunities for the associations to work together on matters that can be addressed more effectively as a region.
Membership in NEBA is extended through its six member bar associations. Anyone who is a member of one of those associations is also a member of the New England Bar Association.