Oklahoma Bar Foundation
ActiveCrime & Legal-RelatedFunds Individuals
About Oklahoma Bar Foundation
Our vision is to enrich lives, eliminate obstacles and ensure justice by partnering with our community through law-related grants and philanthropy. We provide funding for law-related nonprofits, court improvements and law school scholarships.
Focus Areas
Civil legal aidChild & family legal servicesImmigration legal servicesDomestic violence legal servicesCourtroom technology & court improvementsLaw-related educationScholarships for law studentsHousing protection / foreclosure defense
Who They Fund
low-income individuals and familiesimmigrants and Spanish-speaking tenants/refugeesabused, neglected, and court-involved children
About Oklahoma Bar Foundation
A defining feature of Oklahoma Bar Foundation grantmaking is its direct support for the justice system itself: in 2025 it funded courthouse technology upgrades in Delaware County and Okmulgee County, alongside legal services and law-related education. That mix makes the foundation stand out as more than a typical legal-aid grantmaker. Its portfolio includes support for pro bono infrastructure, court improvements, scholarships, and nonprofit legal services, all tied to access to justice in Oklahoma. Recent grants show a broad but clearly law-centered pattern. The foundation awarded $210,000 to Lawyers Helping Lawyers Foundation for general operations and $196,100 to Ocu Law School for an American Indian Wills Clinic & Help Program. It also gave $140,000 each to The Spero Project for refugee legal support services, Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma for mortgage foreclosure work, and Oklahoma Lawyers for Families and Children Inc for legal services for abused and neglected children. Other grants reached a public defender office, a guardian ad litem institute, a bar association mock trial program, and district courts needing equipment. Across these awards, the foundation funds both direct legal representation and the institutions that make legal services function.
What Oklahoma Bar Foundation Funds
The foundation supports several distinct legal-service areas through named grants. In housing stability, it gave $140,000 to Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma for mortgage foreclosure work and $76,806 to Shelterwell Inc. to expand eviction mediation services with a bilingual mediator serving Spanish-speaking tenants. For immigrant and refugee legal support, it awarded $140,000 to The Spero Project and $60,000 to YWCA of Oklahoma for immigration legal services staffing. Child and family legal services are another recurring area. Oklahoma Lawyers for Families and Children Inc received $140,000 in 2025 and $130,000 in 2024 for legal services for abused and neglected children, while Tulsa Lawyers for Children Inc received $70,000 in 2025 and $60,000 in 2024 for the same purpose. The foundation also backs legal education and training, including $100,000 to Tulsa Community Foundation for the Commutation Program legal interns and $85,000 to the Oklahoma Bar Association for the mock trial program.
How Oklahoma Bar Foundation Gives
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$3.1M
Total Assets
$33.8M
Total Revenue
$9.1M
Total Expenses
$4.1M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $12K and $34K, with a median of $20K.
25th Percentile
$12K
Median
$20K
75th Percentile
$34K
Geographic Reach
Local3 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
DEANNA HARTLEY-KELSO
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