Legal Services: I & R Grants; Sector Support Grants

The Bigglesworth Family Foundation's Legal Services Program supports innovative projects aimed at enhancing legal aid effectiveness. Originating post-2008 financial crisis, this initiative helps non-profits combat poverty through legal assistance, targeting both individual organizations and the broader sector. Grants include I&R projects for testing new models and sector support for organizations providing technical assistance. Eligibility is primarily for 501(c)(3) nonprofits and public entities, with specific limitations on budget sizes and project types.

Legal Services Program
The BFF Legal Services Program originated from a query about the role of and definition of “safety net” organizations. Following the financial crisis of 2007-2008, the founders of BFF began to explore the various different types of non-profits that were called to action to help those most impacted by the Great Recession. Alongside medical clinics, food banks and shelters, legal services representatives worked tirelessly to help their clients.
From this origin, BFF began to explore the role of legal services both as a “safety net provider” and as a poverty alleviation tool. Based on a metric created by the Robin Hood Foundation and on impact report submitted by over a dozen different types of organizations, it became apparent to us that legal aid is, dollar for dollar, more effective than all other anti-poverty interventions. Time and time again when we read the Social Return on Investment reports (SROIs) from our grantees, we are both amazed and impressed with their outcomes.
Our I & R Grants target projects and programs that are both innovative and replicable. We support these grants to allow legal services leaders to test new models that have the potential to help their individual organizations and when replicated, to help their peer organizations.
This includes, but is not limited to, new strategy-focused projects designed to enhance the effectiveness of an organization to answer questions posed by either the organization or by the legal services sector.
Sector Supporting Grants
"Hubs": Organizations that do not generally provide direct legal services programs, but provide technical assistance and substantive back-up to the direct services programs. They provide support service to legal services offices in the following areas: training, technical assistance, research and advocacy. Examples include:

• Support CentersThink TanksDesign Labs Impact Litigation

Recruitment & Retention Grants: In an effort to support the legal services sector and ensure a strong and consistent pipeline of new legal services staff, we support grants that focus on recruitment & retention of legal services professionals. Examples of such grants include:

• Public Services Loan Forgiveness ProgramsLoan Assistance Repayment ProgramsFellowshipsStaff Well-Being
• Advocacy Grants: We fund advocacy work that supports to the legal service sector.

Eligibility

All potential grantees must be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization or a public entity. Indirect Costs for Program Grants: It is the policy of the Foundation to provide a maximum indirect cost recovery of 25 percent of project costs on all project grants. This indirect cost policy applies only to project grants to nonprofit organizations with organizational budgets in excess of $5M. Organizations with budgets less than $5M will be handled on a case-by-case basis. We primarily fund in California. National organizations may apply for grants for the following types of programs:Programs that support increased Access to Justice Leadership development programsLeadership development programs
Hubs and “think tank” programs for civil legal aidGrant Eligibility By Budget Size:Legal Services Organizations with Operating Budget Under $1M: LSOs with operating budgets less than $1M are welcome to request general operating support.Legal Services Organizations with Operating Budgets Between $1M-$5M: LSOs with operating budgets between $1M and $5M are encouraged to request general operating support. They may request programmatic support, provided they explain the rationale for doing so. For example, an organization may opt to request a program/project grant for initiatives they wish to pilot, for capital projects or as part of a funding initiative.
Legal Services Organizations with Operating Budgets Over $5M: LSOs with operating budgets over $5M are welcome to request support for new/pilot programs or for existing programs with limited funding opportunities (e.g.: inter-sectional work, impact litigation, research).Legal Service Programs Within Social Service Organizations or Law Schools With $5M+ Operating Budgets: As an exception to the above, legal service programs embedded within organizations with $5M+ budgets, are eligible to request general operating support for the legal services program.

Ineligibility

We do not fund lobbying efforts on new laws, legislation or for candidates.BFF will not support organizations that discriminate against a person or group on the basis of age, political affiliation, race, national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, sexual orientation or religious belief.BFF does not fund individuals, direct scholarships or capital campaigns.Grant Ineligibility by Budget SizeLegal Services Organizations with Operating Budget Under $1M: In most cases they are not eligible to receive program/project support.Legal Services Organizations with Operating Budgets Over $5M: These organizations are not eligible to receive funding for general operating support.Legal Service Programs Within Social Service Organizations or Law Schools With $5M+ Operating Budgets: Note, we do not fund CBOs that do not have a legal department and/or attorneys on staff.