New York Bar Foundation is a left-leaning grant making organization that provides support to legal-aid organizations. It is affiliated with the New York Bar Association.
Activities
New York Bar Foundation runs educational programs that aim to support financially disadvantaged students. These include the Hon. Charles L. Brieant Jr. Fellowship, the Antitrust Section Law Student Fellowship, the Jana Springer Behe Corporate Counsel Section Fellowship, Health Law Section Fellowship, the Trusts and Estates Law Section Fellowship, and the Kay Crawford Murray Commercial Division Diversity Fellowship. 1
Finances
In 2021, New York Bar Foundation had a total revenue of $633,550, total expenses of $1,452,020, and ended the year with net assets of $11,877,741. 2
Grantmaking
In 2023, New York Bar Foundation’s grantmaking priority was “civil legal services program assisting with the essentials of life,” which included child support, consumer debt, housing, family matters (domestic violence, children, family stability), access to health care, access to education, racial justice, and subsistence income (wages, disability, and other benefits). 3
In 2023, New York Bar Foundation disbursed roughly $600,000 to left-of-center legal organizations working on issues related to education, elder law, domestic violence, racial equity, veterans, housing, and family stability. It said that grants ranged from $5,000 to $15,000. Some of its grantees included Her Justice, International Refugee Assistance Project, Mobilization for Justice, National Center for Law and Economic Justice, the Legal Aid Society, Urban Justice Center, Youth Justice Network, Immigration Equality, Housing Works, United Tenants of Albany, Worker Justice Center of New York, JustCause, Fair Housing Justice Center, and the Bronx Defenders. 4
Leadership
As of 2021, New York Bar Foundation counted among its board members Carla M. Palumbo who was its board president, and Cheryl E. Chambers as vice president. 5
President Carla M. Palumbo is a long-standing member of the New York State Bar Association. She is a former chair of the Committee on Women in Law and has served as member of the Monroe County Legislature and on the Rochester City Council. Palumbo is the president and CEO of the Legal Aid Society of Rochester since 2014. 6
References
- [1] “Grant Program.” New York Bar Foundation. Accessed September 30, 2023. https://www.tnybf.org/grants-scholarships/.
- New York Bar Foundation. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). 2021. Part I, lines 12, 18, 22.
- “Grant Program.” New York Bar Foundation. Accessed September 30, 2023. https://www.tnybf.org/grants-scholarships/.
- “New York Bar Foundation Awards $600,000 in Grants to Legal Services Organization Across NYS.” New York Bar Foundation. Accessed September 30, 2023. https://www.tnybf.org/the-new-york-bar-foundation-awards-600000-in-grants-to-legal-services-organization-across-nys/
- New York Bar Foundation. Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990). 2021. Part VII. Section A.
- “Meet the President.” New York Bar Foundation. Accessed September 30, 2023. https://www.tnybf.org/about-us/meet-the-president/