Essex County Bar Association Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
042636299
IRS 990 coverage
2021–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2019
Location
Swampscott, MA, USA
Phone
9787417888
Rating
76
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$363,140
Expenses
$329,477
Assets
$138,001
Liabilities
$0

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

Leadership & pay

29 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • JANET E DUTCHER (PRESIDENT)
  • PAUL J SAHOVEY ESQ (VICE PRESIDENT)

People named in this filing

  • JANET E DUTCHER (PRESIDENT)
  • ROBERT HARTIGAN ESQ (TREASURER)
  • ERIN THURSTON (CLERK)

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

Programs include lawyer referral service, probate and family law lawyer-for-the-day program, housing court lawyer-for-the-day program, mentor program, superior court statewide conciliation program, probate and family court conciliation program, lynn district court conciliation program, new lawyers group

What it reported doing in 2024

Network with fellow practitioners at events held throughout the yearreceive referrals from people in need of legal representationmentor those who are just starting out in their legal career (or obtain mentor help if you are a new attorney)volunteer your time as a conciliator or lawyer-for-a-day at courthouses throughout essex countygain valuable tips on legal practice and employment

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
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

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Some filing-based governance responses are negative or unanswered and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 64
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 51
  • Growth: 80

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 69.2%; rating input score 69
  • Program expense ratio: 76%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th 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: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 4 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 57
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • 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: 9.3%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.42; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 80; 80th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 9.9% per year; rating input score 100; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 6.8% per year; rating input score 100; 61st percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -0.3% per year; rating input score 0; 23rd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 69.2% of revenue deployed · 76% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 29 of 29 board members independent · 4 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $250K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 29 people listed
  • Consistency: 20 of 20 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2021 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • 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.

  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 21/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.