Christian Law Association
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 341245065
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Mason, OH, United States
- Phone
- (888) 252-1969
- Rating
- 83
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Affiliation
- Christianity
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $3,367,445
- Expenses
- $3,273,287
- Assets
- $127,433
- Liabilities
- $661,925
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
9 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- David Gibbs Jr (President)
People named in this filing
- Richard Wallace (Trustee)
- Paul Chappell (Trustee)
- John Reynolds (Trustee)
Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Christian Law Association provides free legal assistance to Bible-believing churches and Christians who are experiencing difficulty in practicing their religious faith, including issues related to constitutional liberty and religious freedom. CLA receives in excess of 100,000 phone calls annually, not counting the thousands of pieces of correspondence from those who are in some way facing legal difficulties for doing what the Bible commands. These cases involve Christians arrested for witnessing to others in public, public school students being told they do not have the right to read their Bibles at school, churches being excluded from communities, Christians being fired for sharing their faith at work, and thousands of other shocking assaults on our precious religious freedoms. CLA provides free legal services based in part on the generosity of God’s people. Your contribution to CLA...
What it reported doing in 2024
The providing of assistance, information and encouragement to existing Christian schools and churches as well as encouragement and assistance in the formation of new Christian schools and churches. The providing of information and assistance that is biblical in philosophy concerning issues of constitutional liberty and religious freedom.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Program spending has declined or grown slowly and revenue has declined or grown slowly.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 96
- Transparency & Controls: 92
- Accountability: 75
- Sustainability: 32
- Growth: 0
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 96.2%; rating input score 96
- Program expense ratio: 99%; rating input score 99
- Fundraising efficiency: $131.57 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 89; 89th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 77.8%; rating input score 78; 14th percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 5 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 71
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Missing
- Independent financial-statement audit: Fail
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 2.8%; rating input score 44; 44th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.04; rating input score 1; 1st percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 5.19; rating input score 0; 0th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -2.4% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -1.2% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: -7% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
- Where the money goes: 96.2% of revenue deployed · 99% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 7 of 9 board members independent · 5 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $3.2M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 9 people listed
- Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $3M reported
- Consistency: 18 of 18 current checks pass
- Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
- Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
- Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
- People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 1/100.
- Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 44/100.
- High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 0/100.