Illinois Equal Justice Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
371188469
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Chicago, IL, USA
Phone
3124816804
Rating
94
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate

Reported finances

Revenue
$15,525,459
Expenses
$14,966,757
Assets
$11,284,574
Liabilities
$3,220,773

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

Leadership & pay

21 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • KEITH E EMMONS (PRESIDENT)
  • TOBIN TAYLOR (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • LESLIE CORBETT CHENOWETH (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • LESLIE CORBETT CHENOWETH (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $145,000 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

The Illinois equal justice foundation funds civil legal aid in Illinois to champion the rights of those burdened by barriers to justice. We envision equitable access to and navigation of the Illinois civil legal system.

What it reported doing in 2024

The Illinois equal justice foundation supports innovative, cost-effective civil legal aid programs that help people in crisis address life-changing problems and improve their lives. These programs offer: - legal representation to people who can't afford a lawyer - easy to understand legal forms and information - access to legal aid hotlines - legal self-help center that help people understand their rights - mediation services that help people resolve conflicts and avoid courtto maximize our impact, we fund both large organizations that provide a breadth of legal aid services, as well as community based groups who bring the law to where people live.the iejf currently manages four appropriations and one state contract.

Operating model

Revenue model
Grant-funded. 94% of the money available for current operations came from government grants.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 95% 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. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 95
  • Transparency & Controls: 94
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 47
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 94.6%; rating input score 95
  • Program expense ratio: 98.1%; rating input score 98
  • Fundraising efficiency: $89.4 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 43rd 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; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • 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: 3.6%; rating input score 49; 49th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.75; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.29; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1%; rating input score 86; 86th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 19.9% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 16.8% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 18.8% per year; rating input score 100; 87th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 94.6% of revenue deployed · 98.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 20 of 20 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $14.7M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $145K · 21 people listed
  • Consistency: 31 of 32 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 55 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 54 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.

  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 49/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 27/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 48/100.