Cincinnati Bar Foundation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 316059929
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2011–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Cincinnati, OH, USA
- Phone
- 5136994014
- Rating
- 86
- Verdict
- STRONG
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Management & Technical Assistance
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $496,716
- Expenses
- $299,108
- Assets
- $4,298,755
- Liabilities
- $10,944
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
20 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Anthony L Osterlund (Immediate Past President)
- Bernice L Walker (President)
- Danielle L Lorenz (Vice President)
People named in this filing
- Anthony L Osterlund (Immediate Past President)
- Bernice L Walker (President)
- Danielle L Lorenz (Vice President)
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
Promoting justice and changing lives through the law with the desire to serve the legal profession, the justice system and the Greater Cincinnati community. The Cincinnati Bar Foundation concentrates grant-making efforts in the following four areas: 1. Knowledge and understanding of and respect for the law in the community, particularly with young people, 2. Improving the quality and administration of justice in all its facets, 3. Supporting the delivery of legal services at an affordable cost for the poor, elderly and otherwise disadvantaged, 4. Fostering professionalism and civility in the practice of law.
What it reported doing in 2024
The Cincinnati Bar Foundation makes grants to law related programs that improve the administration of justice, support delivery of legal services to the disadvantaged, provide education about the law and improve the practice of law. Established in 1961, the Cincinnati Bar Foundation has provided more than 60 years of service to the community. Seed money and grants are awarded on a semi-annual basis for these areas: 1. Education and Training on the law for the community and young people, 2. Improving the administration of justice, 3. Supporting the delivery of legal services to the disadvantaged and children, 4. Providing education and training for attorneys to improve the practice of law.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
- Distribution model
- Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 78% of its reported program spending out as grants.
The verdict
STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and some filed totals do not add up.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 80
- Transparency & Controls: 82
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 83
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 97.2%; rating input score 97
- Program expense ratio: 72.5%; rating input score 73
- Fundraising efficiency: $3.25 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 14; 14th percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: Limited
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 69.5%; rating input score 70; 46th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 7 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 100
- 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: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 39.8%; rating input score 88; 88th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 14.37; rating input score 93; 93rd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 3% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 2% per year; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 6.2% per year; rating input score 100; 52nd percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 97.2% of revenue deployed · 72.5% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 20 of 20 board members independent · 7 of 7 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $217K in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 20 people listed
- Consistency: 20 of 21 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2011 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 8 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 9 filed related-organization links
- 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 14/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 53/100.