American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a professional membership organization and business league (501(c)(6)) founded in 1905, headquartered in Chicago, Illinois with an additional office in Washington, D.C. The organization serves both the legal profession and the public by providing resources to assist lawyers and judges, accrediting law schools, and working to improve the legal system. The ABA operates as a voluntary membership organization with approximately 472-835 employees and around 8,500 volunteers.
Financial Overview
From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing
Total Assets
$318.8M
+1.9% YoY
Annual Giving
$252K
-25.2% YoY
Grant Count
33
-19.5% YoY
Avg Grant Size
$8K
-7.1% YoY
Mission & Focus Areas
Mission Statement: To serve equally the members of the legal profession and the public by defending liberty and delivering justice as the national representative of the legal profession, to apply the knowledge and experience of the profession to promote the public good and to encourage cordial discourse among the members of the Bar.
Program Areas: The ABA provides lawyers with professional growth and service opportunities through 22 Sections, 7 divisions, and 6 forums dedicated to specific areas of law. These include:
- Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice
- Antitrust Law
- Business Law
- Criminal Justice
- Dispute Resolution
- Environment, Energy and Resources
- Family Law
- Health Law
- Civil Rights and Social Justice
- Intellectual Property Law
- International Law
- Labor and Employment Law
- Legal Education
- Litigation
- Public Contract Law
- Infrastructure and Regulated Industries
- Real Property, Trust and Estate Law
- Science and Technology Law
- State and Local Government Law
- Taxation
- Tort, Trial and Insurance Practice
Grantmaking
The ABA makes grants with typical award sizes ranging from $4,100 to $908,000. According to the most recent filings, the organization distributed approximately $527,885 in total giving.
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Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
Primary funding areas include the District of Columbia, South Carolina, and Arkansas.
Grant Distribution by State
States
Cities
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
As of 2024:
- Total Assets: $318,819,299
- Total Revenues: $119,070,500
- Total Expenses: $136,212,880
- Total Giving: $527,885
As of 2023:
- Total Assets: $313,000,000
- Total Revenues: $108,000,000
- Total Expenses: $118,000,000
Additional Financial Details:
- Total Liabilities (2023): $180,000,000
- Unrelated Business Income (2023): $2,788,356
- Net Unrelated Business Income (2023): $530,860
- Program Service Revenue (2023): $77,483,727
- Investment Income (2023): $12,444,075
The organization is tax-exempt since September 1994 (EIN: 36-0723150) and is incorporated in the District of Columbia with legal domicile in Illinois.
| Metric | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $318,819,299 | $312,769,241 | $264,609,273 |
| Revenue | $119,070,500 | $107,983,462 | $98,371,329 |
| Expenses | $136,212,880 | $118,296,342 | $114,125,516 |
| Qualifying Distributions | — | — | — |
| Net Investment Income | $10,138,462 | $12,444,075 | $8,607,821 |
| Distributable Amount | — | — | — |
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
Grant Insights
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
Grant Size Distribution
186 grants across all recorded years
Open Grants
1 open opportunity from American Bar Association
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
No grants recorded for .
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Principal Officer: Reynonda McFarland
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
From 2024 filing
| Name | Title | Hours | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jack L Rives | Executive Director Former | 40 | $1,000,477 |
| Alpha M Brady | Executive Director | 45 | $557,881 |
| William K Phelan | Sr Assoc. Executive Director and CFO | 45 | $471,307 |
| Holly O Cook | Sr Assoc Exec Dir-Govt Affairs and PIL | 50 | $405,643 |
| William E Adams | Managing Director-Legal Educ | 40 | $354,557 |
| Ken Zinn | Chief Membership and Marketing Officer | 38 | $373,709 |
| Annaliese Fleming | Sr Assoc Exec Dir and General Counsel | 25 | $312,593 |
| Amy B Eggert | Sr Assoc Exec Dir and Chief of Staff | 75 | $325,308 |
| Peter Markos | Chief Technology Officer | 38 | $276,009 |
| Carol Stevens | Assoc Exec Director-Media Relations and Strategic Comm | 40 | $285,187 |
| Joshua Poje | Chief Product Officer-Chief Member Experience Officer | 38 | $248,474 |
| Daniel D Andresen | ABA ROLI Chief Operating Officer Global Programs | 15 | — |
| Stephanie Giggetts | Deputy Managing Dir-Accreditation | 38 | $214,921 |
| Janae LeFlore | Associate Executive Director and Chief Governance Officer | 38 | $226,465 |
| Candace Cavalier | Division Director Human Resources | 38 | $215,234 |
| Amy E Horton-Newell | Director-Public Interest Law | 38 | $230,138 |
| Jim Walsh | Associate Executive Director and Chief Communication Officer | 38 | $164,713 |
| Mary L Smith | President | 50 | $100,000 |
| Deborah Enix-Ross | Immediate Past President | 10 | $50,000 |
| William R Bay | President-Elect | 40 | — |
| Palmer G Vance II | Chair, House of Delegates | 10 | — |
| Marvin SC Dang | Secretary | 20 | — |
| Frank H Langrock | Treasurer | 10 | — |
| Thomas W Lyons III | Board of Governors | 5 | — |
| Thomas C Rombach | Board of Governors | 9 | — |
| Thomas G Wilkinson Jr | Board of Governors | 5 | — |
| Tracy A Giles | Board of Governors | 1 | — |
| Jennifer Busby | Board of Governors | 3 | — |
| Samuel Lester Tate III | Board of Governors | 1 | — |
| Aurora Abella-Austriaco | Board of Governors | 7 | — |
| Jo Ann Engelhardt | Board of Governors | 1 | — |
| Grant C Killoran | Board of Governors | 4 | — |
| James S Hill | Board of Governors | 5 | — |
| M Joe Crosthwait Jr | Board of Governors | 10 | — |
| Frank X Neuner Jr | Board of Governors | 3 | — |
| Carlos A Rodriguez-Vidal | Board of Governors | 9 | — |
| Elizabeth Kelly Meyers | Board of Governors | 2 | — |
| Seymour Wesley James Jr | Board of Governors | 2 | — |
| John Preston Bailey | Board of Governors | 2 | — |
| Michael Oths | Board of Governors | 9 | — |
| Daniel A Schwartz | Board of Governors | 8 | — |
| Beverly A Carroll | Board of Governors | 3 | — |
| James E Lockemy | Board of Governors | 1 | — |
| Brian Plaut | Board of Governors | 10 | — |
| Leonard H Gilbert | Board of Governors | 10 | — |
| Richard M Lipton | Board of Governors | 2 | — |
| Maureen O Rourke | Board of Governors | 2 | — |
| Pamela C Enslen | Board of Governors | 1 | — |
| Michael W Mutek | Board of Governors | 5 | — |
| Anita M Ventrelli | Board of Governors | 4 | — |
| Theodore H Davis Jr | Board of Governors | 2 | — |
| Lucian T Pera | Board of Governors | 2 | — |
| Linda L Randell | Board of Governors | 4 | — |
| Victor M Marquez | Board of Governors | 4 | — |
| Denise R Avant | Board of Governors | 4 | — |
| Amy Lin Meyerson | Board of Governors | 1 | — |
| Katherine Larkin-Wong | Board of Governors | 5 | — |
| Eileen Sullivan | Board of Governors | 2 | — |
| Jamie Davis | Board of Governors | 1 | — |
| Christopher Steven Jennison | Board of Governors | 10 | — |
Contact Information
Chicago Headquarters: American Bar Association 321 North Clark Street Chicago, IL 60654
Washington DC Office: American Bar Association 1050 Connecticut Ave. N.W., Suite 400 Washington, D.C. 20036 (202) 662-1000
Service Center Hotline: Phone: (800) 285-2221 International: +1(312) 988-5000 Email: [email protected] Hours: Monday - Friday 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM ET
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Data last updated April 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated April 2026.
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