Jewish Lawyers Guild

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
133212092
IRS 990 coverage
2013–2025
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
New York, NY, United States
Phone
2125757900
Rating
54
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Affiliation
Judaism

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$23,890
Expenses
$34,503
Assets
$78,644
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

27 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • BENJAMIN KAUFMAN (PRESIDENT)
  • HOWARD SHAFER (PRESIDENT ELECT)

People named in this filing

  • AVRAM SOLOMON TURKEL (CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD)
  • BENJAMIN KAUFMAN (PRESIDENT)
  • HOWARD SHAFER (PRESIDENT ELECT)

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 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To foster among members of the legal profession an interest in the traditions of the Jewish heritage and religion for the intellectual exchange of ideas; to advance the theory and practice of law (and its allied fields); and to foster the study of law and encourage the personal and professional development of young lawyers and law students.

What it reported doing in 2025

To foster amongst members of the legal profession an interest in the traditions of our heritage, both our nation and our faith, for the intellectual exchange of ideas so as to increase the esteem of its members for each other, their profession and their faith

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 100% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

MIXED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of total spending goes to programs.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 23
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 64
  • Sustainability: 39
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 28.6%; rating input score 29
  • Program expense ratio: 19.8%; rating input score 20
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

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: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 1 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 14
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Fail
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Fail
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -44.4%; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.28; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 58; 58th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 10.2% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -7.6% per year; rating input score 0; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.2% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 28.6% of revenue deployed · 19.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 26 of 26 board members independent · 1 of 7 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $7K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 27 people listed
  • Consistency: 17 of 17 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 3 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2013 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • 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: Mission deployment rate scored 29/100.
  • High — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 20/100.
  • High — Accountability: Governance controls: 5 of 6 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 27/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 39/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 58/100.