Washington Square Legal Services Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
THE PURPOSE OF THE CORPORATION IS TO SUPPORT THE EDUCATION PROGRAMS OF NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW BY PROVIDING LEGAL REPRESENTATION BY LAW STUDENTS UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF ATTORNEY FACULTY MEMBERS, CONSISTENT WITH AND DETERMINED BY THE EDUCATIONAL NEEDS AND PROGRAMS (continued on schedule o)
- Income
- $52,559
- Spending
- $52,854
- Spent on programs
- 9%
- Reserves
- 0.3 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- fees for its services, 100%
- Employees
- 0
- Volunteers
- 0
- Highest pay
- $771,582, director & chair
Source: Form 990 for the year ending August 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Weak: 17 out of 100. Higher than 3% of charities in its peer group (education, under $250k).
Reserves
4 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 0.3 months of spending.
Debt
5 of 20It owes 53% of what it owns.
Living within its means
8 of 15Spending exceeded income by 1% of income.
Income trend
0 of 15Income fell 62% on the year before.
Spending floor
0 of 159% of spending went to programs.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending August 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Good: 76 out of 100. Higher than 70% of charities in its peer group (education, under $250k).
Independent board
5 of 250 of 8 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending August 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (1)
- $4,672 spent. WASHINGTON SQUARE LEGAL SERVICES PROVIDES LEGAL SERVICES THROUGH ITS CLINICAL PROGRAM. Name of Law School Faculty Member in Charge of Clinical Program: Deborah Archer Total Law School Population: Around 1320 for the JD division. Figure represents juris doctor candidates in all three years; however, only approximately 2/3 or 887 students were eligible for clinic enrollment because first-year law students are not admitted to clinics. Percent of all JD candidates that Participated in Clinical Programs under WSLS: 28.56% (377/1320) (continued on schedule o) Number of Students per School Year doing clinical work under WSLS: 377 Clinics/Externships: approximately 377 upper class students in WSLS clinics. Poverty Areas: approximately 270 students worked on a WSLS poverty case (71.57% of overall cases). NUMBER OF SUPERVISING ATTORNEYS UNDER WSLS - TOTAL: 54 FULL TIME: 32 PART TIME: 22 CLINICS: 25 POVERTY AREAS: 71.57% AVERAGE NUMBER OF STUDENTS SUPERVISED BY ATTORNEY: 7 TOTAL NUMBER OF MATTERS UNDER WSLS PER YEAR: 654 APPROXIMATELY CASE TYPE PERCENT OF CASES UNDER WSLS AS CRIMINAL: 30.74% JUVENILE: 13.00% ADULT, CRIMINAL, AND POST-CONVICTION: 17.74% PERCENT OF CASES UNDER WSLS AS CIVIL: 69.26% CIVIL RIGHTS: 4.43% CORPORATE: 3.98% EDUCATION: 17.58% ENVIRONMENTAL: 1.83% FAMILY/CHILD/SPOUSE ABUSE: 2.29% HUMAN RIGHTS: 1.38% IMMIGRATION: 7.03% MEDIATION: 20.95% OTHER: (Consumer Protection, Digital Risk, Employment Discrimination, Housing, Intellectual Property, International Law, Nonprofit formation): 9.80% CHARACTERISTICS OF CLIENT POPULATION SERVED BY WSLS: POOR: 71.57% ELDERLY: UNKNOWN JUVENILE: 15.29%
Source: Form 990 for the year ending August 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending August 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since August 1974.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.