To expand access to civil legal services by funding law student and postgraduate fellowships that place attorneys and law students at legal aid and civil rights organizations serving low-income and vulnerable people.
Equal Justice America Inc centers its giving on fellowships that place law students and recent law graduates inside legal aid and civil rights organizations. That staffing model is the defining feature of the funder’s work: it supports direct legal services rather than general grantmaking, with programs built around placements in civil legal aid, veterans’ rights, immigrant rights, housing, domestic violence, voting rights, disability rights, elder law, youth justice, human trafficking, and LGBTQ+ health care rights. The recent grant record shows a mix of large fellowship awards and smaller project grants to legal service organizations. Among the largest recent grants are repeated awards to Legal Aid Chicago and East Bay Community Law Center, alongside support for Legal Aid Justice Center in Charlottesville and Neighborhood Legal Services Program in Washington, DC. The foundation also backs specialized efforts such as the EJA Disability Law Clinic in New York and the EJA Veterans’ Project. Its active programs include state initiative support and named fellowship tracks for law students and postgraduate fellows, all tied to public-interest legal placements serving low-income and vulnerable people.
Civil legal aid is the clearest throughline in the grant record. Equal Justice America Inc gave $96,411 to Legal Aid Chicago in 2024 and $95,255 in 2025, both as legal grants supporting public-interest legal work. In California, it awarded $74,925 to East Bay Community Law Center in Berkeley in 2024 and $65,004 in 2025. The foundation also funds rights-based litigation and advocacy organizations. It gave $66,004 to the Brennan Center for Justice in New York in 2024 and $59,587 in 2023, and $29,067 to New York Legal Assistance Group in 2023. Housing and eviction-related legal aid appears as well, including $21,005 to Texas Riogrande Legal Aid in Weslaco in 2024 and $14,776 to Tenants Legal Hotline in Ithaca in 2023.
Typical grants cluster around a modest fellowship-and-project scale: the 25th percentile is $6,207, the median is $11,594, and the 75th percentile is $51,225. The recent record also includes larger program awards, such as $130,000 fellowship grants in the active program descriptions and repeated six-figure grants in the recent list. This is a recurring funder, not a one-off giver: the same recipients appear across multiple years, including Legal Aid Chicago, Greater Boston Legal Services, East Bay Community Law Center, Brennan Center for Justice, and the EJA Disability Law Clinic. Equal Justice America Inc is a regular funder and accepts unsolicited applications across its fellowship and state initiative programs.
$705K
$265K
$1.7M
$1.6M
Most grants fall between $6K and $51K, with a median of $12K.
25th Percentile
$6K
Median
$12K
75th Percentile
$51K
About 5% of grants go to recipients in NY.
DAN RUBEN
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Grantmaking is national, with all recent grants in the United States. Washington, DC is the top state-level giving location by count, and DC-based recipients include Neighborhood Legal Services Program and Ayuda. Other frequent hubs in the recent list include Chicago, Boston, Berkeley, and New York City, with additional awards in Charlottesville, Raleigh, Weslaco, Los Angeles, and New Haven. Virginia receives 5% of grants by recipient location.
It funds law student and postgraduate fellowships that place attorneys and law students at legal aid and civil rights organizations. The stated focus includes civil legal services, veterans’ rights, immigrant rights, housing and homelessness, domestic violence, voting rights, disability rights, elder law, youth justice, human trafficking, and LGBTQ+ health care rights.
The typical grant size is $6,207 at the 25th percentile, $11,594 at the median, and $51,225 at the 75th percentile. The recent record also includes larger awards tied to fellowship programs, including $130,000 program-level grants described in the active program information.
Yes. Several recipients appear in multiple years, including Legal Aid Chicago, Greater Boston Legal Services, East Bay Community Law Center, Brennan Center for Justice, and the EJA Disability Law Clinic. That pattern suggests ongoing relationships rather than isolated one-time grants.
Yes. The active program descriptions for state initiative support, veterans' rights fellowships, law student fellowships, postgraduate fellowships, and law school-specific sponsored projects all list unsolicited applications as accepted.
Its giving is national, but Washington, DC is the top state by grant count. The recent list includes DC recipients such as Neighborhood Legal Services Program and Ayuda, while other frequent recipient cities include Chicago, Boston, Berkeley, and New York.
2026
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2026.
Current and upcoming funding from Equal Justice America that your nonprofit may be able to apply for.
Who can apply: Fellow placements are coordinated with participating legal aid organizations; applicants for veterans' fellowships apply through the EJA fellowship application process.
Deadline: Not specified; fellowships announced via EJA and placed as fellowship cycles are run.
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Create a free accountDeadlines and eligibility are summarized from public sources and may change — always confirm the details on the funder's official application page before applying.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OTHERS UNDER 5000 | — | $232,110 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANTS |
| LEGAL AID CHICAGO | CHICAGO, IL | $116,814 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| LEGAL AID OF NORTH CAROLINA | RALEIGH, NC | $65,004 | 2026 | — |
| EAST BAY COMMUNITY LAW CENTER | BERKELEY, CA | $64,996 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| GREATER BOSTON LEGAL SERVICES | BOSTON, MA | $33,268 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| EJA DISABILITY LAW CLINIC | NEW YORK, NY | $26,004 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| THE LEGAL AID SOCIETY | NEW YORK, NY | $16,774 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| NEW HAVEN LEGAL ASSISTANCE | NEW HAVEN, CT | $15,000 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN LAW SCHOOL | ANN ARBOR, MI | $11,527 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| TEXAS RIOGRANDE LEGAL AID | WESLACO, TX | $11,182 | 2026 | — |
| NEIGHBORHOOD LEGAL SERVICES PROGRAM | WASHINGTON, DC | $10,826 | 2026 | — |
| NEW YORK LEGAL ASSISTANCE GROUP | NEW YORK, NY | $10,738 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| LEGAL AID OF WEST VIRGINIA | CHARLESTON, WV | $10,106 | 2026 | — |
| OPEN DOOR LEGAL | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $9,888 | 2026 | — |
| LEGAL AID FOUNDATION OF LOS ANGELES | LOS ANGELES, CA | $7,802 | 2026 | — |
| MANHATTAN LEGAL SERVICES | NEW YORK, NY | $7,150 | 2026 | — |
| LEGAL AID SOCIETY OF DC | WASHINGTON, DC | $7,000 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| PUBLIC COUNSEL | LOS ANGELES, CA | $6,906 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| PENNSYLVANIA INSTITUTIONAL LAW PROJ | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $6,667 | 2026 | — |
| LEGAL AID SOCIETY OF SAN DIEGO | SAN DIEGO, CA | $6,553 | 2026 | — |
| COMMUNITY LEGAL SERVICES | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $6,400 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| PHILADELPHIA LEGAL ASSISTANCE | PHILADELPHIA, PA | $6,000 | 2026 | — |
| LEGAL AID JUSTICE CENTER | CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA | $5,409 | 2026 | — |
| MEXICAN AMERICAN LEGAL DEFENSE | LOS ANGELES, CA | $5,267 | 2026 | LEGAL GRANT |
| EQUIP FOR EQUALITY | CHICAGO, IL | $5,200 | 2026 | — |
| OTHERS UNDER 5000 | — | $367,451 | 2025 | LEGAL GRANTS |
| LEGAL AID CHICAGO | CHICAGO, IL | $95,255 | 2025 | LEGAL GRANT |
| LEGAL AID JUSTICE CENTER | CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA | $65,004 | 2025 | — |
| NEIGHBORHOOD LEGAL SERVICES PROGRAM | WASHINGTON, DC | $65,004 | 2025 | — |
| EAST BAY COMMUNITY LAW CENTER | BERKELEY, CA | $65,004 | 2025 | LEGAL GRANT |
| LEGAL AID NORTH CAROLINA | RALEIGH, NC | $54,170 | 2025 | — |
| GREATER BOSTON LEGAL SERVICES | BOSTON, MA | $41,169 | 2025 | LEGAL GRANT |
| EJA DISABILITY LAW CLINIC | NEW YORK, NY | $26,004 | 2025 | LEGAL GRANT |
| NEW HAVEN LEGAL ASSISTANCE | NEW HAVEN, CT | $15,000 | 2025 | LEGAL GRANT |
| TEXAS RIOGRANDE LEGAL AID | WESLACO, TX | $10,000 | 2025 | — |
| ACLU OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA | LOS ANGELES, CA | $10,000 | 2025 | — |
| ACLU OF NEW HAMPSHIRE | CONCORD, NH | $5,264 | 2025 | — |
| MARYLAND LEGAL AID | BALTIMORE, MD | $5,018 | 2025 | — |
| ACLU OF DC | WASHINGTON, DC | $5,013 | 2025 | — |
| OTHERS UNDER 5000 | — | $121,049 | 2024 | LEGAL GRANTS |
| LEGAL AID CHICAGO | CHICAGO, IL | $96,411 | 2024 | LEGAL GRANT |
| EAST BAY COMMUNITY LAW CENTER | BERKELEY, CA | $74,925 | 2024 | LEGAL GRANT |
| BRENNAN CENTER FOR JUSTICE | NEW YORK, NY | $66,004 | 2024 | LEGAL GRANT |
| NEIGHBORHOOD LEGAL SERVICES PROGRAM | WASHINGTON, DC | $65,837 | 2024 | — |
| LEGAL AID JUSTICE CENTER | CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA | $61,087 | 2024 | — |
| GREATER BOSTON LEGAL SERVICES | BOSTON, MA | $31,137 | 2024 | LEGAL GRANT |
| EJA DISABILITY LAW CLINIC | NEW YORK, NY | $26,004 | 2024 | LEGAL GRANT |
| TEXAS RIOGRANDE LEGAL AID | WESLACO, TX | $21,005 | 2024 | — |
| PRISONERS LEGAL SERVICES OF MASS | BOSTON, MA | $13,000 | 2024 | LEGAL GRANT |
| THE LEGAL AID SOCIETY | NEW YORK, NY | $12,516 | 2024 | LEGAL GRANT |
OTHERS UNDER 5000
$232,110LEGAL GRANTS
LEGAL GRANT
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN LAW SCHOOL
$11,527LEGAL GRANT
MANHATTAN LEGAL SERVICES
$7,150LEGAL AID SOCIETY OF SAN DIEGO
$6,553EQUIP FOR EQUALITY
$5,200OTHERS UNDER 5000
$367,451LEGAL GRANTS
ACLU OF DC
$5,013OTHERS UNDER 5000
$121,049LEGAL GRANTS
PRISONERS LEGAL SERVICES OF MASS
$13,000LEGAL GRANT
