Common Justice Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
820993366
IRS 990 coverage
2017–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Brooklyn, NY, USA
Phone
9175886051
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Law, Jurisprudence

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$7,405,997
Expenses
$7,972,026
Assets
$19,370,665
Liabilities
$4,013,364

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

16 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DANIELLE SERED (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & PRESI)

Highest reported compensation

  • DANIELLE SERED (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & PRESI): $226,274 total reported compensation
  • RAYMOND MACCANI JR (DIRECTOR OF TRAINING): $226,057 total reported compensation
  • SHONDA FRANCIS (DIRECTOR OF HR): $196,279 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Common justice develops and advances solutions to violent crime that transform the lives of those harmed and foster racial equity without relying on incarceration. Locally, we operate the first alternative-to-incarceration and victim service program in the united states that focuses on violent felonies in the adult courts. Nationally, we leverage the lessons from our direct service to transform the justice system through partnerships, advocacy, and elevating the experience and power of those most impacted. Rigorous and hopeful, we build practical strategies to hold people accountable for harm, break cycles of violence, and secure safety, healing and justice for survivors and their communities.

What it reported doing in 2024

Direct services - we operated a restorative justice-based alternative to incarceration and victim service program for young people who have committed violent crime and those they harm in brooklyn, the bronx, and manhattan. Our work demonstrated that participatory, non-prison-based responses to violent crime can: break cycles of violence by providing dignified pathways to accountability for those responsible for harm and meaningful pathways to healing for those harmed; improve the mental health and wellbeing of crime survivors and provide and for more equitable services for young men of color and other under-served survivors; avert the damaging effects of incarceration for individuals and communities; and increase people's experience of fairness and safety in the aftermath of harm.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 67% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 98% 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

SUPPORTED - 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 expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 73
  • Transparency & Controls: 75
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 34
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 80.5%; rating input score 81
  • Program expense ratio: 73.6%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $8.19 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 1 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 17
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 72nd 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: 8 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 89
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -7.6%; rating input score 16; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.43; rating input score 68; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.21; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 19.7%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 15.3% per year; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 54th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 16% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 80.5% of revenue deployed · 73.6% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 7 of 7 board members independent · 8 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $5.9M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $226K · 16 people listed · 1 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $762K reported
  • Consistency: 34 of 34 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2017 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 9 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
  • 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.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 16/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 13/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 43/100.