Non-profit

Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

Website:

lawyerscommittee.org

Location:

WASHINGTON, DC

Tax ID:

52-0799246

Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)

Budget (2021):

Revenue: $38,134,884
Expenses: $15,302,543
Assets: $72,608,635

Type:

Civil Rights Advocacy Group

Formation:

1963

President and CEO:

Damon Hewitt

Budget (2022):

Revenue: $21,459,807

Expenses: $16,133,236

Total Assets: $80,600,664. 1

References

  1. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. 2022. Part I.  https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/520799246/202343189349317239/full

Contact InfluenceWatch with suggested edits or tips for additional profiles.

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (LCCRUL) is a left-of-center organization of attorneys formed after a request from President John F. Kennedy to support federal civil rights initiatives following a federal integration order for the University of Alabama in 1963 and subsequent protest marches in Mississippi. 1

In recent years the Lawyers’ Committee has advocated and litigated on a broad range of left-progressive policy issues including the push to place public housing in suburban areas, rent control, the removal of the citizenship question and the inclusion of illegal immigrants in the count for the 2020 Census, mail-in-voting and removal of requirements for proof of citizenship in voting, reinstating the Obama administration’s expansive birth control mandate, ending cash bail, race-based college admissions, the elimination of ACT/SAT test scores as a factor in college admissions, and advocated for a Department of Justice investigation into alleged right-wing extremist involvement in 2020 riots in Kenosha, Wisconsin. 2 3 4 5

LCCRUL leads the Election Protection Coalition consisting of left-of-center organizations including the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR); the Alliance for Youth Action; and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). 6

The Ford Foundation was an early major donor; current donors include the left-of-center groups Open Society Foundations (OSF) and NEO Philanthropy. 7

History

Founded at a meeting of over 200 attorneys with President John F. Kennedy, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy in 1963, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights advanced the government’s civil-rights agenda through non-governmental litigation, public policy advocacy, and defense of those attempting to exercise their civil rights by the private bar. 8

Initially shaped as a loose-knit group of attorneys working pro bono, LCCRUL saw its mission as short-term and thus operated from the law offices of its first two leaders. As its activities extended over time and an expanded scope the organization became freestanding and eventually national in scope. 9

In May of 1965, after receiving support from President Johnson, the committee identified four objectives: marshal the resources of the private bar; provide leadership in public policy and advocacy; educate the public and the bar on civil rights; help resolve civil rights disputes, and provide pro bono legal assistance to those whose rights had been violated. 10

It participated in the development and passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 11

LCCRUL opened its first office in Jackson, Mississippi during protests and was successful in challenging parade ordinances that prevented the acquisition of permits and defended those arrested during the events. 12

Following the issuance of the 1968 report of the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorder and Unrest following the assassinations of Senator Robert Kennedy (D-NY) and Martin Luther King Jr., the committee formed its Urban Areas Project with financing from the Ford Foundation and began opening local offices throughout the United States. 13

LCCRUL advocacy included support for race-based affirmative action, support for the extension of the Voting Rights Act, the Attorneys Fees Awards Act of 1976, the defeat of a constitutional amendment that would prevent busing as a means of promoting desegregation of public schools, and the defense of IRS rules denying tax-exemption to segregated private schools. 14

LCCRUL was a contributor to and supporter of the Voter Registration Act of 1993, which reduced certain barriers that protect against voter fraud in the name of expanding voting rights. 15

While initially formed to address domestic-policy issues, LCCRUL was active in promoting disinvestment and other economic tools to bring about the end of apartheid in South Africa; participated in the U.N. Conference on Women in Beijing, China; and contributed to the sponsorship of the National Conference on African-American Women and the Law and the U.N. World Conference Against Racism. 1617

The LCCRUL extended its activities into Supreme Court appointments, opposing President Ronald Reagan’s nomination of Robert Bork and George H.W. Bush’s nomination of Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court. 18

Overview

In the 2020s, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights has expanded its range of left-of-center activity well beyond its initial charge to include easing election safeguards against fraud; pushing equal outcomes in criminal justice and in economic areas; the Educational Opportunities Project, to advance all students receiving the same education even if it is a bad education; supporting left-progressive housing and community development policy; special litigation and advocacy; and a Stop Hate initiative to address a supposed increase in hate crimes. 19

Initiatives

Stop Hate

The James Byrd Jr. Center to Stop Hate at the LCCRUL website was created to call attention to hate crimes and provides a hot line for the reporting of hate crimes and education of hate laws and provide community resources to address claims. 20

Based on speculation that hate crimes against Asian-American citizens would rise based on the “Chinese Flu” moniker that some have given COVID-19 because of its first identification in Wuhan, People’s Republic of China, an alliance was formed with left-of center Asian Americans Advancing Justice in an outreach to improve reporting within the community. 21

Fair Housing and Community Development

Litigation in 2018 forced Nassau County, New York, a suburb of New York City, to lease county land for affordable housing and to make further changes to the county’s housing and community development programs that advanced their left-of-center concept of pushing low income housing into suburban areas. 22

The LCCRUL also conducts training sessions on fair housing best practices and assists local jurisdiction on policy development surrounding housing. 23

Public Policy

Lawyers’ Committee supports the return of voting rights to felons, automatic voter registration, online voter registration, removing identification requirements for voters, the elimination of proof of citizenship requirements, and restrictions on the purging of voter rolls of dead, moved, or otherwise inactive voters’ names. 24

The Economic Justice Project

In conjunction with Center for Reproductive Rights, a left-of center abortion advocacy group, LCCRUL filed an amicus brief in two cases to oppose Department of Health and Human Services efforts to limit the scope of Obamacare’s birth control mandate. Further the Lawyers’ Committee filed briefs in various cases opposing Trump administration efforts to overturn Obama administration policies extending legal status to certain illegal immigrants. 25

Criminal Justice Project

LCCRUL supports the left-of-center positions of ending cash bail and the prohibition of incarceration of persons unable to pay fines, fees and court costs. 26

Education

In June of 2020 along with a coalition of left-of-center education and civil rights advocates called on 30 major universities to end the use of SAT/ACT testing. 27

Through its Educational Opportunities Project, LCCRUL defends the left-of-center view that Colleges and Universities should use of racial considerations in admissions in the name of diversity. It supported the Proposition 16 ballot measure in 2020, which would overturn Proposition 209, a measure that barred race-based admissions in California. 28

The Parental Readiness and Empowerment Program (PREP) was formed to engage parents to be advocates for their children in the education process. PREP has worked with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) labor union and the Center for Education Equity at Columbia University’s Teachers College, a left-of-center organization, in promoting a student’s “right” to graduate. 29

Special Litigation and Advocacy

LCCRUL supports counting illegal immigrants and non-citizens in the 2020 Census, and successfully challenged the decision to place a citizenship question as part of the census. 30

Supreme Court

LCCRUL opposed the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court and issued a statement signed by members of its board that was broadly distributed. 31

2020 Activities

On August 26, 2020 Lawyers’ Committee filed suit on behalf of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, Ohio State Conference of the NAACP, and various individuals alleging voter suppression caused by Ohio’s ban on more than one ballot drop box per county for mail ballots and submitted a request that the Department of Justice (DOJ) commence a hate crime investigation into the events surrounding the riots in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The DOJ initiated the investigation the next day. 32 33 34

On Facebook, the LCCRUL claimed on-going “voter suppression” in the 2020 general elections and promotes their “Election Protection” hotline for those who believe their vote is in jeopardy. 35

In August of 2020 LCCRUL filed suit on behalf of the National Urban League, and the League of Women Voters U.S. against Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and the United States Postal Service (USPS) seeking to stop actions to improve the service’s efficiency and address poor financial performance on the basis that it violates the right to vote and the First Amendment right of free speech. to the Postal Service had encouraged states to set their postmark and delivery deadlines for mail-in ballots to meet USPS guidelines. 36

In July and August of 2020 LCCRUL filed lawsuits against Indiana charging an unjustifiable ballot deadline for mail-in-ballots, intervened in Pennsylvania Democrat’s election lawsuit, and opposed Department of Justice findings that Yale University uses discriminatory practices for admissions. 37

In efforts to relax requirements for ballots to be counted properly the committee obtained a restraining order preventing Georgia from using an “exact match” process that required those whose identification did not match driver license and social security database information to be put on a pending status until the discrepancy was corrected. 38

LCCRUL is the leader of the left-of-center Election Protection Coalition that works to provide hotline call centers, field programs and volunteers to handle complaints about the voting process. Members of the coalition include left-of-center organizations such as the Alliance For Youth Action, which seeks to lower the voting age to 16; American Civil Liberties Union; Council on American Islamic Relations; Demos, a left-wing think tank with close ties to Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA); NAACP; National Education Association, the nation’s largest teachers union; Service Employees International Union, the large mixed-sector labor union; Sierra Club, the nation’s oldest environmentalist group; and Color of Change. 39

Other Activities

In 2016 LCCRUL funded the left-of-center now-disbanded Black and Engaged (BAE) organization. An outgrowth of Black Lives Matter demonstrations in Ferguson, Missouri, =BAE was an organization designed to conduct workshops across the nation on policing, relaxing immigration controls, LGBT-interests, and strategies to secure support from local elected officials. 40

Seeking to prevent the removal of voters who might have died or moved from registration rolls in 2018, LCCRUL secured a New York federal court-approved consent decree to allow monitoring the removal of voters from state’s rolls, while in Utah, a federal court approved a settlement to open more polling places and provide language assistance at the polls in San Juan County. 41 42

Leadership

President and CEO

Damon Hewitt is the president and CEO of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (LCCRUL), previously serving as its executive vice president. 43 He was previously the first executive director for the Executives’ Alliance for Boys and Men of Color and was senior advisor at the Open Society Foundations where he coordinated special projects, including organizing funding for participants in the Ferguson Black Lives Matter demonstrations. Prior to that he worked at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and as executive director of the New York Task Force on Police-on-police shootings. He is the co-author of The School-to-Prison Pipeline: Structuring Legal Reform. 44

Kristen Clarke was the previous president and executive director of the LCCRUL before the position was filled by Damon Hewitt. 45 She was previously head of the Civil Rights Bureau for the New York State Attorney General’s Office and campaigned against employers considering felony records in hiring and racial profiling of consumers. Previously she was co-director of political participation for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund where she worked on election-law issues. Before that she was a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. An author, she has written multiple articles and books including Barack Obama and African American Empowerment: The Rise of Black America’s New Leadership. 46 47 48

Financials

Contributions and Donors

The Open Society Foundations, created and funded by liberal billionaire George Soros, made grants totaling $4,029,441in the three years of 2016-2018. The Ford Foundation, one of Lawyers’ Committee’s early contributors, gave $300,000 in 2018. The left-of-center JPB Foundation gave $625,000. Others credited by LCCRUL include left-of-center The Rockefeller Brothers Fund $300,000, and left-of-center NEO Philanthropy $250,000. 49 50 51 52 53

In 2016 Qualcomm Inc, Toyota Motor Sales USA, Colgate, PepsiCo Foundation, Citigroup Foundation, Aetna Foundation, Wells Fargo Advisors, and Microsoft make up major corporate donors. 54

Finances

2018 revenue totaled $12,045,595 of which contributions and grants were $10,361,616 and service revenue $1,449,390. Expenses were reported as $9,861,646 with salaries of $6,288,584. Other expenses were $3,422,210 and office expenses were $1,145,341. 55 56

Assets at the close of 2018 were $13,395,553 with liabilities of $2,770,210 resulting in net assets of $10,625,343. 57

According to their 2022 990 form, the organization reported a revenue of $21,459,807, expenses at $ 16,133,236, and total assets at $80,600,664. 58

Between 2017 and 2023, Lawyers’ Committee has received $1,219,494 in total grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, listed under the Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity  as “project grant” and “cooperative agreement.” 59

Activity

Comcast Corporation v. National Association of African American-Owned Media Case

In 2020, Byron Allen and the National Association of African American-Owned Media sued Comcast for $20 billion because the cable network would not carry his network Entertainment Studios Network. In its defense, Comcast stated that it chose not to endorse Entertainment Studios Network’s programming because it prefers to broadcast sports and news entertainment programming and “Entertainment Studios Network” did not carry such programming. Byron Allen sued Comcast because he contended that Comcast had refused to pursue a contract with him out of a racial bias. Allen claimed that this bias violated the Civil Rights Act of 1866 (Section 1981) that guarantees all United States citizens with the same right to enforce and create contracts.

The 9th Circuit court responded that the 1866 (Section 1981) Civil Rights Act would require Entertainment Studios Network to show that race played a partial role in Comcast’s refusal to pursue a contract with them.

The Supreme Court ultimately dismissed the lawsuit because Byron Allen was unable to prove that racial bias played a decisive role or “motivating factor” in Comcast’s refusal to pursue a contract with Entertainment Studios Network. The court provided Allen with two opportunities to produce evidence that Comcast refused to pursue a contract with Entertainment Studios Network based off a claim of racial discrimination. He was unable to provide the requested evidence.

In a unanimous opinion written by Justice Gorsuch for the Comcast Corporation v. National Association of African American-Owned Media, the justices stated that the 1866 (Section 1981) Civil Rights Act did not create an exception in this case. The Supreme Court did not entirely dismiss the case of Entertainment Studios Network. The justices sent the case back down to the 9th Circuit. The Supreme Court stated that the 9th Circuit initially applied the wrong standard for evaluating the discriminatory claim of the Comcast Corporation v. National Association of African American-Owned Media case under the Civil Rights Act.

Entertainment Studios Network later asked the Supreme court to import the “motivating factor” causation test of the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to the 1866 (Section 1981) Civil Rights Act. The court refused to import this provision into the 1866 Civil Rights Act because both statutes were written under different historical contexts. The Supreme Court justices claimed there was no evidence that the Congresses that passed these separate acts desired them to incorporate the same causation standard at the time they were each written and approved in their respective Congresses. 60

The Lawyers Committee’s Brief on the Comcast Corporation v. National Association of African American-Owned Media Case

The Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law produced a brief criticizing the Supreme Court’s decision. The Committee argued that the decision was inconsistent with the intentions of the 1866 (Section 1981) Civil Rights Act, and claimed that the decision “weakens our nation’s oldest civil rights statute.” Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had disagreed with the decision, arguing that the case would need to be considered in greater detail because Section 1981 requires a court to investigate for discrimination not only in the final decision of a contract but at every stage of a contract’s formation. While Comcast won the initial case, the case could easily be reopened down the road if the Entertainment Studios Network does not drop the suit. This is because the Supreme Court did not completely dismiss the case but only ruled that the 9th circuit incorrectly evaluated the discrimination claim under the standards of Section 1981 and sent it back down to them to correctly apply the standard. 61 62

References

  1. “History, The Beginning.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  2. “Fair Housing and Community Development Project.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/project/fair-housing-and-community-development-project/.
  3. “Census 2020.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 10, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/census2020/.
  4. “Educational Opportunities Project.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/project/educational-opportunities-project/.
  5. Owens, Don. “Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law Calls for U.S. Department of Justice Hate Crime Investigation.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, August 26, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/lawyers-committee-for-civil-rights-under-law-calls-for-u-s-department-of-justice-hate-crime-investigation/  
  6. “Partners.” Election Protection. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://866ourvote.org/partners/.
  7. “History, 1963-1973.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 10, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/ 
  8. “History, 1963-1973.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  9. “History, 1963-1973.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  10. “History, 1963-1973.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  11. “History, 1963-1973.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  12. “History, 1963-1973.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  13. “History, 1963-1973.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  14. “History, The Second Decade.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  15. “History, The Second Decade.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  16. “History, The Second Decade.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  17. “History, 1993-2003.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 10, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  18. “History, 1983-1993.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  19. “Issues & Campaigns.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/mission/.
  20. “Home.” The James Byrd Jr. Center to Stop Hate. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://8449nohate.org/.
  21. “Asian Americans Advancing Justice.” LA, March 19, 2020. https://www.advancingjustice-la.org/.
  22. “2018 Annual Report.” Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/2018annualreport.pdf.  page 10.
  23. “Fair Housing and Community Development Project.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/project/fair-housing-and-community-development-project/.
  24. “Voting Rights Project.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/project/voting-rights-project/.
  25. “Amicus Brief.” Lawyers’ Committee For Civli Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Civil-Rights-Orgs-Amicus-Third-Circuit-March-2019.pdf.
  26. “Criminal Justice.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/project/criminal-justice-project/.
  27. “Letter to Universities.” Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Letter-to-Universities_Calling-to-End-SAT.ACT-Consideration-and-Commit-to-Equity-Based-Admissions_FINAL.pdf.
  28. “Letter to California Lawmakers.” Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ACA-5-Letter.pdf.
  29. “About Us.” Teachers College – Columbia University. Accessed August 31, 2020. http://www.centerforeducationalequity.org/about-us/.
  30. “2020 Census Citizenship Question.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/2020-census-citizenship-question/.
  31. “History.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed August 31, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/history/.
  32. Clarke, Kristen. “BREAKING: We Just Sued Ohio for BANNING Officials from Having More than One Ballot Drop Box per County across the State. This Is #VoterSuppression amid the Pandemic. This Grossly Disadvantages Voters in Counties with Large Populations and Ignores the Current #USPS Mail Delays. Pic.twitter.com/A16PtM3Z9j.” Twitter. Twitter, August 27, 2020. https://twitter.com/KristenClarkeJD/status/1299038730368495620.
  33. 866-OUR-VOTE Lawyers’ Committee. “???? Last Week, We Partnered with @ACLU, @Acluohio, & @CovingtonLLP to Challenge the Constitutionality of Ohio’s Flawed Signature Match Requirements on Absentee Ballots and Applications.When a Ballot Is Rejected for ‘Signature Mismatch,’ There Is a 97% Chance It Is Legitimate. Pic.twitter.com/3uHeBERsQN.” Twitter. Twitter, August 31, 2020. https://twitter.com/LawyersComm/status/1300448475335864320.
  34. 866-OUR-VOTE Lawyers’ Committee. “???? Yesterday, We Called for the @TheJusticeDept to Immediately Open a Hate Crimes Investigation Pursuant to the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Hate Crimes Prevention Act Regarding the Shooting of Jacob Blake. #KenoshaShooting #BlackLivesMatter Pic.twitter.com/UWB2MVt8By.” Twitter. Twitter, August 27, 2020. https://twitter.com/LawyersComm/status/1299029158098599937.
  35. Gant, Michelle. “Confused about Voting Changes in Light of COVID-19? This Hotline Can Help.” Upworthy. Upworthy, April 30, 2020. https://www.upworthy.com/confused-about-how-to-vote-call-this-hotline-to-get-all-your-questions-answered?fbclid=IwAR3TnIS2kZODJKcaLXoh2Pa5U_8FdOYbWNzxXz8DoiE0uT9jKVcaY8XJuWw.
  36. Arnold & Porter. “Lawyers.” Arnold & Porter. Accessed August 31, 2020. https://www.arnoldporter.com/en/perspectives/news/2020/08/lawyers-committee-sues-postmaster-general-dejoy?utm_source=Mondaq.
  37. “Newsroom.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed August 31, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/newsroom/.
  38. “Georgia Complaint.” Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed September 8, 2020. https://live-lawyers-committee-2020.pantheonsite.io/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Georgia-exact-match-complaint-.pdf.
  39. “About.” Election Protection. Accessed September 2, 2020. https://866ourvote.org/about/.
  40. Williams, Vanessa. “For ‘Black and Engaged’ Millennial Activists, Politics Is Local.” The Washington Post. WP Company, September 26, 2016. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/09/26/for-black-and-engaged-millennial-activists-politics-are-local/.
  41. Augustin, Stanley. “Lawyers’ Committee and Latino Justice PRLDEF Announce Settlement of Major Voting Rights Lawsuit in New York.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, January 25, 2019. https://lawyerscommittee.org/lawyers-committee-latino-justice-prldef-announce-settlement-major-voting-rights-lawsuit-new-york/.
  42. Augustin, Stanley. “Settlement Announced in Navajo Nation Human Rights Commission v. San Juan County.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, January 25, 2019. https://lawyerscommittee.org/settlement-announced-navajo-nation-human-rights-commission-v-san-juan-county/.
  43. “Damon Hewitt.” Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Accessed March 5, 2024. https://www.lawyerscommittee.org/staff/damon-hewitt/
  44. “Damon Hewitt Joins Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law as Ne.” PRWeb, October 15, 2019. https://www.prweb.com/releases/damon_hewitt_joins_lawyers_committee_for_civil_rights_under_law_as_new_executive_vice_president/prweb16644738.htm.
  45. “Damon Hewitt.” Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Accessed March 5, 2024. https://www.lawyerscommittee.org/staff/damon-hewitt/
  46. “Kristen Clarke”. Linked In. Accessed August 31, 2020. https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristenclarke9/
  47. “Kristen Clarke.” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Accessed August 31, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/staff/kristen-clarke/.
  48. “Biography: Kristen Clarke.” Biography: Kristen Clarke | Howard University School of Law. Accessed August 31, 2020. http://law.howard.edu/content/biography-kristen-clarke.
  49. “Open Society Foundations – Awarded Grants, Scholarships, and Fellowships.” Open Society Foundations – Awarded Grants, Scholarships, and Fellowships – Open Society Foundations. Accessed September 2, 2020. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/grants/past?filter_keyword=lawyers’ committee for civil rights under law.
  50. Ford Foundation”. Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF) 2018. Part XV Line 3
  51. “JPB Foundation”. Return of Private Foundation. (Form 990-PF). 2018. Part XV, Line 3a.
  52. “Rockefeller Brothers Fund Inc.”. Return of a Private Foundation. (Form 990-PF). 2018. Statement 18B.
  53. “NEO Philanthropy Inc.”. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax. Form (990). 2017. Schedule I, Part II.
  54. “Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law”. Annual Report. 2016. Page 30. Accessed September 2, 2020. https://lawyerscommittee.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Anuual-report-2016.pdf
  55. “Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law (DBA as LCCRUL)” Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2018. Part I, Lines 12, 8, 9, 18, 15, 17.
  56. “Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law (DBA as LCCRUL)”Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2018. Part IX, Line 16.
  57. “Lawyers’ Committee For Civil Rights Under Law (DBA as LCCRUL)”Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 2018. Part I, Lines 20, 21, 22.
  58. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. 2022. Part I.  https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/520799246/202343189349317239/full
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  60. Spakovsky, Hans von. “Supreme Court Refuses to Rewrite Civil Rights Law in Comcast Case.” The Daily Signal. The Heritage Foundation. March 26, 2020. https://www.dailysignal.com/2020/03/24/supreme-court-refuses-to-rewrite-civil-rights-law-in-comcast-case/.
  61. Augustin , Stanley. “U.S. Supreme Court Rolls Back Historic Civil Rights Protections in Comcast Ruling .” Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law , March 23, 2020. https://www.lawyerscommittee.org/u-s-supreme-court-rolls-back-historic-civil-rights-protections-in-comcast-ruling/.
  62. Spakovsky, Hans von. “Supreme Court Refuses to Rewrite Civil Rights Law in Comcast Case.” The Daily Signal. The Heritage Foundation. March 26, 2020. https://www.dailysignal.com/2020/03/24/supreme-court-refuses-to-rewrite-civil-rights-law-in-comcast-case/.

Directors, Employees & Supporters

  1. Barbara Arnwine
    Former Executive Director
  2. Kristen Clarke
    Former President and Executive Director
  3. Chris Melody Fields Figueredo
    Former Campaign Manager
  See an error? Let us know!

Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: November 1, 1963

  • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2021 Dec Form 990 $38,134,884 $15,302,543 $72,608,635 $4,512,801 N $33,413,526 $1,689,766 $761,232 $1,325,288
    2020 Dec Form 990 $42,304,961 $14,274,119 $50,482,770 $6,353,807 N $39,067,354 $1,135,231 $206,997 $1,285,211
    2019 Dec Form 990 $13,212,011 $10,179,195 $20,401,755 $4,498,952 N $12,054,925 $532,895 $170,965 $798,207 PDF
    2018 Dec Form 990 $12,045,595 $9,861,646 $16,288,702 $3,799,936 Y $10,361,616 $1,449,390 $121,076 $792,201 PDF
    2017 Dec Form 990 $9,533,880 $7,241,908 $13,395,553 $2,770,210 N $8,765,949 $655,996 $104,929 $940,367 PDF
    2016 Dec Form 990 $10,786,953 $7,190,733 $12,190,176 $4,025,553 N $10,495,229 $283,203 $78,689 $729,805 PDF
    2015 Dec Form 990 $4,649,013 $8,399,120 $8,085,315 $3,557,905 N $4,494,325 $288,611 $118,920 $1,439,026 PDF
    2014 Dec Form 990 $6,867,095 $9,191,272 $10,131,534 $1,709,629 N $6,459,626 $690,932 $117,584 $1,006,657 PDF
    2013 Dec Form 990 $14,636,560 $8,077,307 $12,272,242 $1,659,731 N $14,482,461 $301,585 $43,121 $1,073,389 PDF
    2012 Dec Form 990 $7,297,694 $7,947,354 $5,387,641 $1,433,549 N $7,293,432 $153,041 $34,410 $1,148,232 PDF
    2011 Dec Form 990 $6,552,998 $6,498,674 $5,787,923 $1,245,693 N $6,130,069 $517,346 $61,103 $1,140,322 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

    1500 K STREET NW 900
    WASHINGTON, DC 20005