The Barbara McDowell Foundation is seeking applications to improve the economic well-being, social conditions, and civil liberties of disadvantaged persons and groups in the United States.
Areas of Interest
They make grants to organizations that undertake systemic social justice litigation across fifteen issue areas.
Access to benefits
Children’s rights
Disability rights
Discrimination
Domestic violence
Due process
Environmental justice
Healthcare
Homelessness
Housing
Native American rights
Prisoner’s rights
Refugee and immigration rights
Veterans’ rights
Voting rights
Eligibility Criteria
Applications must be for a specific social justice legal case, including the filing of an appeal.
The case must have been filed no earlier than October 1, 2022, or be filed no later than December 31, 2024.
Grant funds are to be used only for attorney time charges and litigation expenses related to the specific case for which an organization is applying to be funded.
Grants are not made for:
Criminal cases.
Claim(s) for an individual(s) (unless the case is of significant precedential value beyond the interest of the individual).
An amicus brief.
The Barbara McDowell Foundation only provides grants to 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations.
Criteria
Grants are made for the sole purpose of paying for litigation costs, including attorney time charges and litigation related expenses.
Applications must be for a specific social justice legal case, including the filing of an appeal. Grant funds are to be used only for attorney time charges and litigation expenses related to the specific case for which an organization is applying to be funded.
An ideal case for the funding
Addresses a social justice issue consistent with the Foundation’s issue areas of interest.
Significantly improves the well-being, social conditions, and/or civil liberties of disadvantaged persons and/or groups in the United States.
Establishes a legal precedent of significant importance to social justice.
Factors considered in the assessment
In addition to evaluating if the proposed case meets the three factors in “an ideal case for the funding,” the Foundation also considers the following in the assessment:
The applicant organization has a strong history of litigating high-impact social justice cases.
The applicant organization has a demonstrated need for a grant from the Foundation, whether or not the applicant organization has or plans to have a litigation partner(s) for the case.
If the applicant organization is receiving support from a law firm(s) or another social justice organization(s) in litigating the proposed case, the applicant organization’s partner(s) have a strong history of litigating high-impact cases.
