State Bar of Arizona

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
866000294
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
Phoenix, AZ, USA
Phone
6022524804
Rating confidence
Limited

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$19,811,588
Expenses
$17,998,664
Assets
$31,698,842
Liabilities
$5,473,010

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

Leadership & pay

39 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • ELIZABETH SCHMITT (YLD DIVISION PRESIDENT (THRU 6/24))
  • CHRISTINA POLETTI (YLD DIVISION PRESIDENT (AS OF 6/24))
  • JOEL ENGLAND (CEO/EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • JOEL ENGLAND (CEO/EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $261,859 total reported compensation
  • MARET VESSELLA (CHIEF BAR COUNSEL): $213,103 total reported compensation
  • LORI MAXWELL (CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER): $192,218 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 state bar of Arizona is a private, non-profit organization that exists to serve and protect the public with respect to the provision of legal services and access to justice. Consistent with these goals, the state bar of Arizona seeks to improve the (cont'd on sch o) administration of justice and the competency, ethics, and professionalism of lawyers practicing in Arizona.

What it reported doing in 2024

Access to justice: pursuant to rule 32 of the supreme court of Arizona, the state bar mission includes access to justice, which involves efforts to improve access to our legal system for all arizonians. The bar carries out this task through its public service center by supporting various legal aid organizations, assisting with access to attorneys, working to educate the public about the legal process, and by supporting the supreme court's access to justice commission.publications: (1) Arizona attorney - monthly magazine with substantivearticles about legal issues and topics that affect the legalprofession; (2) elegal - series of electronic newsletters updatingmembers on legal news, issues, ethics opinions and court casesthe client protection fund of the state bar of Arizona is a trust and, as such, is technically a separate legal entity from the state bar of Arizona. However, because the state bar has an administrative role, it is included in the state bar's federal income tax reporting. The client protection fund exists to promote the public confidence in the administration of justice and the integrity of the legal profession by reimbursing losses caused by the dishonest conduct of lawyers admitted and licensed to practice in Arizona. In 2024 the organization provided assistance to 22 claims filed with the fund.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 94% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent spending detail to tell whether the nonprofit works directly or through others.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

- The available evidence is not sufficient to produce an overall rating for this filing. This is not a warning sign.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: NotEnoughData
  • Transparency & Controls: 86
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 58
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: Limited
  • Program expense ratio: Limited
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 99.7%; rating input score 100; 35th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 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: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 9.2%; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.76; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.17; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 8.4%; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: Limited
  • Revenue growth: 2.6% per year; rating input score 100; 22nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5.8% per year; rating input score 100; 41st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: Financial trends and filed revenue, expense, asset, and liability detail
  • Governance: 26 of 26 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments
  • Leadership: top reported pay $262K · 39 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $135K reported
  • Consistency: 12 of 12 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes grants and executive pay
  • Filing history: 12 filing years from 2012 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 10 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 2 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.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 57/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 27/100.