Equal Justice America Inc
Equal Justice America Inc is a public charity based in Midlothian, Virginia. It funds fellowships that place law students and early-career lawyers with nonprofit legal-services organizations, supporting civil legal assistance for low-income and disadvantaged people.
Equal Justice America Inc at a glance
In short: Equal Justice America Inc gave $705K across 25 grants in 2025 (avg $28K), top state Illinois. 28% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $704,591
- -15.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 25
- +78.6% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $28,184
- -52.4% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $10,106
- Total assets
- $264,683
- -8.3% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 28% first-time grantees (7 of 25, 2025)
- Primary geography
- Illinois (17% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Equal Justice America Inc
- Review Cycle
- The listed deadline, March 23, 2026, has passed. The website said decisions would be announced by late April or early May.
- Deadline
- The listed deadline, March 23, 2026, has passed.
- Contact
Mailing address: 13540 E Boundary Road, Midlothian, VA 23112
Phone: (804) 744-4200
Website: https://equaljusticeamerica.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Equal Justice America Inc funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Others Under 5000 ($232K). Together the top 10 received $593K.
Grant Size Distribution
105 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 78 grants of 105 (74%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
EJA’s fellowship program operates through more than 100 law schools, and its filing describes legal-services grants across the United States. Its 2025 filing lists recipients in Illinois, North Carolina, California, Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, Michigan, Texas, Washington, DC, and other locations.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 25 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Equal Justice America Inc open to new grantees?
28%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 7 of 25 grantees (28%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $16K; repeat grants $33K. How we count
Medians: $8K first-time, $11K repeat.
- 36% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−16%). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 filings (2019–2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $133K (2020) to $840K (2022). In 2025 it made 25 grants totaling $705K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Others Under 5000 | Legal Grants | $232,110 |
| Legal Aid Chicago Chicago, IL | Legal Grant | $116,814 |
| Legal Aid of North Carolina Raleigh, NC | — | $65,004 |
| East Bay Community Law Center Berkeley, CA | Legal Grant | $64,996 |
| Greater Boston Legal Services Boston, MA | Legal Grant | $33,268 |
| EJA Disability Law Clinic New York, NY | Legal Grant | $26,004 |
| The Legal Aid Society New York, NY | Legal Grant | $16,774 |
| New Haven Legal Assistance New Haven, CT | Legal Grant | $15,000 |
| University of Michigan Law School Ann Arbor, MI | Legal Grant | $11,527 |
| Texas Riogrande Legal Aid Weslaco, TX | — | $11,182 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $264,683 | $1,726,295 | $1,605,942 | $704,591 | 25 | $8,521 |
| 2024 | $288,618 | $1,703,531 | $1,804,955 | $829,356 | 14 | $-1,362 |
| 2023 | $383,854 | $1,497,465 | $1,574,404 | $672,890 | 23 | $-17,720 |
| 2022 | $376,394 | $1,527,202 | $1,704,355 | $839,899 | 31 | $-5,691 |
| 2021 | $465,139 | $1,289,083 | $1,209,177 | $587,880 | 12 | $4,908 |
| 2020 | $506,286 | $1,171,588 | $1,020,967 | $133,475 | 12 | $40 |
| 2019 | $204,133 | $1,047,099 | $1,396,552 | $743,006 | 19 | $89 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
In its 2024 filing, EJA states that it provides grants to legal aid and civil rights organizations serving low-income and disadvantaged people by funding fellowships for law students and early-career lawyers. Its filing also describes grants to legal-services organizations serving poor and disadvantaged people.
Examples of supported organizations describe their own work in civil legal services. Legal Aid Chicago says it provides civil legal aid to people living in poverty and other vulnerable groups. Legal Aid of North Carolina says it provides free civil legal services to low-income people. East Bay Community Law Center describes providing legal services and policy advocacy responsive to low-income communities, along with law training.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, EJA reported 25 grants totaling $704,591. The grants ranged from $5,200 to $232,110, with a median of $10,106. The largest reported recipient amounts included Legal Aid Chicago ($116,814), Legal Aid of North Carolina ($65,004), East Bay Community Law Center ($64,996), and Greater Boston Legal Services ($33,268). The filing also listed $232,110 for “Others under 5000,” with the purpose stated as legal grants.
EJA’s website offers summer fellowship grants of up to $5,000 to eligible law students. Applicants must attend a qualifying law school and secure a full-time placement of at least 35 hours per week for at least eight weeks with a U.S. nonprofit providing direct civil legal services. Public defender offices and government agencies do not qualify. The application requires a cover letter, resume or CV, two letters of recommendation, and employment verification from the host organization. Students must disclose other grant funding; total summer funding is capped at $15,000, and EJA reduces its grant if other funding would exceed that amount.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists David Santacroce as president, Larry Zabar as treasurer, Sonia Marquez as secretary, Dan Ruben as executive director, and Linda Connolly and Stephen Houghton as directors. EJA’s website identifies Dan Ruben as founder and executive director. It lists David Gruber as director of development, Jackie Tate as director of fundraising operations, and Katie Toman as office manager.
Equal Justice America Inc is led by David Santacroce, President on every filing since 2019; none of the 6 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
David Santacroce
President
On filings since 2019
No compensation reported
Stephen Houghton
Director
On filings since 2021
No compensation reported
Linda Connolly
Director
New on the 2025 filing
No compensation reported
Dan Ruben
Executive Di
On filings since 2019
$105K (2019) → $0 (2025)
Larry Zabar
Treasurer
On filings since 2019
No compensation reported
Sonia Marquez
Secretary
Director → Secretary, 2021
On filings since 2019
No compensation reported
Former officers (2)
- Former: Lisa Tracy (2019–2024) — Director
- Former: Elise Rivers (2019–2020) — Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2024 filing was $100K, to Dan Ruben (Executive Di).
Frequently asked questions about Equal Justice America Inc
How much does Equal Justice America Inc give each year?
Equal Justice America Inc gave $705K across 25 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $829K across 14 grants.
What is Equal Justice America Inc's typical grant size?
Equal Justice America Inc's median grant in 2025 was $10,106, and its average grant was $28,184, across 25 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Organizations receiving their first grant from Equal Justice America Inc that year got $16K on average.
Where does Equal Justice America Inc give grants?
Equal Justice America Inc's top state is Illinois, with 17% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990. The next largest states were California (14%) and North Carolina (9%). The most frequent recipient cities were New York, NY (4 grants), Los Angeles, CA (3 grants), Philadelphia, PA (3 grants) and Chicago, IL (2 grants).
Who are Equal Justice America Inc's largest grantees?
Equal Justice America Inc's largest 2025 grantees include Others Under 5000 ($232,110), Legal Aid Chicago ($116,814) and Legal Aid of North Carolina ($65,004), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 59% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Equal Justice America Inc?
Equal Justice America Inc reported $265K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $1.7M.
What does Equal Justice America Inc fund?
In its 2024 filing, EJA states that it provides grants to legal aid and civil rights organizations serving low-income and disadvantaged people by funding fellowships for law students and early-career lawyers. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Equal Justice America Inc?
Equal Justice America Inc has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check equaljusticeamerica.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Equal Justice America Inc's EIN?
Equal Justice America Inc's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 13-3708596. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(7)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 8, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS June 29, 2026)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS June 29, 2026)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS May 14, 2020)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 16, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS January 11, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS January 10, 2023)
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Equal Justice America Inc funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/equal-justice-america-inc-morg_2f69457cdc424fb4a68739b04504f5d9
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_133708596_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Equal Justice America Inc funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/equal-justice-america-inc-morg_2f69457cdc424fb4a68739b04504f5d9},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-14. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from Equal Justice America Inc's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
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