National Center for Access to Justice Inc
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR ACCESS TO JUSTICE IS THE ACADEMICALLY AFFILIATED NATIONAL ORGANIZATION THAT RELIES ON DATA TO SUPPORT POLICY REFORMS THAT HELP PEOPLE OBTAIN ACCESS TO JUSTICE IN THE CIVIL AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEMS. THE CENTER PARTNERS WITH THE BAR, JUDICIARY, LAW SCHOOLS, THE LEGAL SERVICES COMMUNITY, AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS. THE CENTER'S TOOLS INCLUDE LITIGATION, BOOKS AND REPORTS, PUBLIC EDUCATION AND PUBLIC ADVOCACY, CONFERENCES, AND LEGISLATIVE DRAFTING.
- Income
- $515,392
- Spending
- $571,005
- Spent on programs
- 65%
- Reserves
- 8.2 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 100%
- Employees
- 2
- Volunteers
- 11
- Highest pay
- $230,859, executive di
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Good: 82 out of 100.
Reserves
28 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 8.2 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 5% of what it owns.
Living within its means
4 of 15Spending exceeded income by 11% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 31% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1565% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 19 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 92 out of 100.
Independent board
25 of 2511 of 12 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
0 of 8Reports no 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.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, 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)
- $372,860 spent. SIGNATURE PROJECTS THE JUSTICE INDEX PROJECT - THE JUSTICE INDEX, (HTTPS://NCAJ.ORG/STATE- RANKINGS/JUSTICE-INDEX), CREATED BY NCAJ IN 2021 AND UPDATED PERIODICALLY, IS A WEB-BASED SYSTEM IN WHICH NCAJ PRESENTS DATA SHOWING THE EXTENT TO WHICH THE 50 STATES, THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, AND PUERTO RICO, HAVE ADOPTED, AS LAWS AND PRACTICES, CERTAIN SELECTED BEST POLICIES FOR ASSURING ACCESS TO JUSTICE FOR ALL. THIS PROJECT RELIES ON THE CONCEPT THAT PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS FUNCTION BEST WHEN PEOPLE CAN UNDERSTAND HOW THEY OPERATE, WHEN PERFORMANCE CAN BE READILY EVALUATED, AND WHEN OFFICIALS CAN BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE TO NORMS AND STANDARDS. BY SETTING BENCHMARKS, IDENTIFYING THE PRESENCE (AND ABSENCE) IN EACH STATE OF SELECTED LAWS AND PRACTICES THAT MEET THE BENCHMARK, AND THEN PUBLISHING THE FINDINGS, THE JUSTICE INDEX EMPOWERS JUDGES, COURT ADMINISTRATORS, OTHER GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, JOURNALISTS, ACADEMICS, ACTIVISTS, AND OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC IN THEIR RESPECTIVE EFFORTS TO IMPROVE OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM. THE JUSTICE INDEX CURRENTLY PRESENTS FINDINGS ON BEST POLICIES IN SIX CATEGORIES, SPECIFICALLY CONSUMER DEBT LITIGATION, GOVERNMENT-IMPOSED FINES AND FEES, ATTORNEY ACCESS, SELF-REPRESENTED LITIGANT ACCESS, LANGUAGE ACCESS, AND DISABILITY ACCESS. IN CERTAIN AREAS COVERED BY THE JUSTICE INDEX, NCAJ PUBLISHES ADDITIONAL MATERIALS AND PROVIDES ADDITIONAL SUPPORT TO INTERESTED STAKEHOLDERS WHO CONNECT WITH NCAJ STAFF ABOUT CERTAIN LAWS AND PRACTICES COVERED IN THE JUSTICE INDEX. FINES AND FEES - NCAJ IS A RESOURCE FOR INFORMATION ABOUT GOVERNMENT- IMPOSED FINES AND FEES POLICIES IN THE LEGAL SYSTEM, AND WORKS TO ENSURE THAT COURTS, LAWYERS, LITIGANTS, AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF ADDRESSING HARMS LINKED TO GOVERNMENTAL RELIANCE ON FINES AND FEES. OUR JUSTICE INDEX INCLUDES A FINES AND FEES INDEX WITH FINDINGS THAT ARE ROUTINELY USED BY THE PUBLIC TO PROMOTE ADOPTION OF, AND ACCOUNTABILITY TO, SELECTED BEST LAWS AND PRACTICES IN THIS POLICY AREA, AND NCAJ PRODUCES MATERIALS AND PROVIDES INFORMATION AND SUPPORT IN THIS POLICY AREA. CONSUMER DEBT LITIGATION - NCAJ IS A RESOURCE FOR INFORMATION ABOUT CONSUMER DEBT LITIGATION, AND WORKS TO ENSURE THAT COURTS, LAWYERS, LITIGANTS, AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF ADDRESSING HARMS LINKED TO GOVERNMENTAL RELIANCE ON FINES AND FEES. OUR JUSTICE INDEX INCLUDES A CONSUMER DEBT LITIGATION INDEX WITH FINDINGS THAT ARE ROUTINELY USED BY THE PUBLIC TO PROMOTE ADOPTION OF, AND ACCOUNTABILITY TO, SELECTED BEST LAWS AND PRACTICES IN THIS POLICY AREA, AND NCAJ ALSO PRODUCES MATERIALS AND PROVIDES INFORMATION AND SUPPORT IN THIS POLICY AREA. LANGUAGE ACCESS -NCAJ IS A RESOURCE FOR INFORMATION ABOUT LANGUAGE ACCESS IN THE LEGAL SYSTEM, AND WORKS TO ENSURE THAT COURTS, LAWYERS, LITIGANTS, AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF LANGUAGE ACCESS. OUR JUSTICE INDEX INCLUDES A LANGUAGE ACCESS INDEX THAT IS ROUTINELY USED BY THE PUBLIC TO PROMOTE ADOPTION AND OF, AND ACCOUNTABILITY TO, SELECTED BEST LAWS AND PRACTICES FOR ASSURING PEOPLE WHO DO NOT SPEAK ENGLISH WILL HAVE ACCESS TO JUSTICE. DISABILITY ACCESS - NCAJ IS A RESOURCE FOR INFORMATION ABOUT DISABILITY ACCESS IN THE LEGAL SYSTEM, AND WORKS TO ENSURE THAT COURTS, LAWYERS, LITIGANTS, AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF DISABILITY ACCESS. OUR JUSTICE INDEX INCLUDES A DISABILITY ACCESS INDEX THAT IS ROUTINELY USED BY THE PUBLIC TO PROMOTE ADOPTION OF, AND ACCOUNTABILITY TO, SELECTED BEST LAWS AND PRACTICES FOR ASSURING THAT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WILL HAVE ACCESS TO JUSTICE. THE LEGAL EMPOWERMENT PROJECT - NCAJ IS RESEARCHING AND WRITING ABOUT THE POTENTIAL VALUE OF DIVERSE POLICY MODELS THAT WOULD POTENTIALLY ENABLE PEOPLE TO OBTAIN BASIC LEGAL ADVICE FROM CATEGORIES OF TRAINED AND QUALIFIED PRACTITIONERS WHO ARE NOT ATTORNEYS, BUT RATHER WHO MAY BE ABLE TO HELP PEOPLE ADDRESS PROBLEMS THAT HAVE A LEGAL DIMENSION, FOR EXAMPLE, SOCIAL WORKERS, LIBRARIANS, CASEWORKERS, ORGANIZERS AND OTHER TRAINED AND QUALIFIED MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC. NCAJ ALSO SUPPORTS THE MOVEMENT FOR A CIVIL RIGHT TO COUNSEL FOR INDIVIDUALS CONFRONTED BY LEGAL CONCERNS THAT IMPLICATE FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN NEEDS. PUBLIC EVENTS - THROUGH SUCH EVENTS AS THE SOLUTIONS SYMPOSIUM, ACCESS TO JUSTICE ROUNDTABLE, EVENING PANEL DISCUSSIONS, AND OTHER PUBLIC EVENTS, NCAJ WORKS ON PROJECTS, SOMETIMES IN PARTNERSHIP WITH FORDHAM UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW, THAT BRING TOGETHER ADVOCATES, SCHOLARS, REFORMERS, AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC FOR DIALOGUE ABOUT THE ACCESS TO JUSTICE MOVEMENT, INCLUDING ABOUT THE POLICY SOLUTIONS AT THE LEADING EDGE OF THE MOVEMENT. NCAJ HELPS TO EDUCATE THE ACCESS TO JUSTICE COMMUNITY AND THE LARGER SOCIETY ABOUT THE NATURE AND IMPORTANCE OF SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH ON POLICIES INTENDED TO INCREASE ACCESS TO JUSTICE. SIGNATURE PROJECTS THE JUSTICE INDEX PROJECT - THE JUSTICE INDEX, (HTTPS://NCAJ.ORG/STATE- RANKINGS/JUSTICE-INDEX), CREATED BY NCAJ IN 2021 AND UPDATED PERIODICALLY, IS A WEB-BASED SYSTEM IN WHICH NCAJ PRESENTS DATA SHOWING THE EXTENT TO WHICH THE 50 STATES, THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, AND PUERTO RICO, HAVE ADOPTED, AS LAWS AND PRACTICES, CERTAIN SELECTED BEST POLICIES FOR ASSURING ACCESS TO JUSTICE FOR ALL. THIS PROJECT RELIES ON THE CONCEPT THAT PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS FUNCTION BEST WHEN PEOPLE CAN UNDERSTAND HOW THEY OPERATE, WHEN PERFORMANCE CAN BE READILY EVALUATED, AND WHEN OFFICIALS CAN BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE TO NORMS AND STANDARDS. BY SETTING BENCHMARKS, IDENTIFYING THE PRESENCE (AND ABSENCE) IN EACH STATE OF SELECTED LAWS AND PRACTICES THAT MEET THE BENCHMARK, AND THEN PUBLISHING THE FINDINGS, THE JUSTICE INDEX EMPOWERS JUDGES, COURT ADMINISTRATORS, OTHER GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, JOURNALISTS, ACADEMICS, ACTIVISTS, AND OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC IN THEIR RESPECTIVE EFFORTS TO IMPROVE OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM. THE JUSTICE INDEX CURRENTLY PRESENTS FINDINGS ON BEST POLICIES IN SIX CATEGORIES, SPECIFICALLY CONSUMER DEBT LITIGATION, GOVERNMENT-IMPOSED FINES AND FEE
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, 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 December 2024.
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 July 2011.
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.
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