Virginia Trial Lawyers Association

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
540715995
IRS 990 coverage
2011–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Richmond, VA, USA
Phone
8043431143
Rating confidence
Limited

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$2,139,181
Expenses
$1,925,422
Assets
$5,571,118
Liabilities
$1,012,379

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

Leadership & pay

72 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • VALERIE O'BRIEN (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/SECRETA)
  • PAUL HERNANDEZ (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • DERRICK WALKER (PRESIDENT)
  • MELISSA RAY (PRESIDENT - ELECT)
  • BRODY REID (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • ERIN JEWELL (VICE PRESIDENT)

Highest reported compensation

  • VALERIE O'BRIEN (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/SECRETA): $242,500 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Virginia trial lawyers association's primary purposes are to foster continuing legal education and to promote and increase the trial and appellate skills and knowledge of the members of the bar of the commonwealth of Virginia through the means of seminars, meetings and cooperation with educational institutions and associations.

What it reported doing in 2025

Sponsorship of law seminars and annual convention. The association sponsors educational events each year to keep members informed of current practices

Operating model

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

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: 82
  • Accountability: 84
  • Sustainability: 54
  • 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • 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; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 5 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 62
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 10%; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.89; rating input score 69; 69th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.18; rating input score 37; 37th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 12.6%; rating input score 27; 27th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: Limited
  • Revenue growth: 2.6% per year; rating input score 100; 20th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.9% per year; rating input score 100; 49th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: Financial trends and filed revenue, expense, asset, and liability detail
  • Governance: 72 of 72 board members independent · 5 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments
  • Leadership: top reported pay $242K · 72 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $157K reported
  • Consistency: 14 of 14 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes executive pay
  • Filing history: 15 filing years from 2011 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • 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 — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 8 not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 56/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 27/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 37/100.