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Nonprofiteer
← FORWARD JUSTICE

Form 990 for tax year 2023

Filed by FORWARD JUSTICE.

Totals

Total revenue
$4,554,303
Total expenses
$3,125,334
Contributions and grants received
$2,829,864
Grants paid
$0
Program service revenue
$1,564,430
Investment income
$70
Other revenue
$159,939
Total assets, end of year
$10,981,274
Total liabilities, end of year
$574,596
Net assets or fund balances, end of year
$10,406,678
Program services expenses (Part IX)
$2,080,849
Management and general expenses
$616,739
Fundraising expenses
$427,746
Program service expenses (Part III)
$2,080,849

Program services were 66.6% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Revenue

Part VIII, the statement of revenue.

  • 1a · Federated campaigns

    $0

  • 1b · Membership dues

    $0

  • 1c · Fundraising events

    $0

  • 1d · Related organizations

    $0

  • 1e · Government grants (contributions)

    $0

  • 1f · All other contributions, gifts and grants

    $2,829,864

  • 1g · Noncash contributions included above

    $0

  • 2a · Program service revenue: Restricted Grant Income

    total $1,564,430 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 2b · Program service revenue

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 2c · Program service revenue

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 2d · Program service revenue

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 2e · Program service revenue

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 2f · All other program service revenue

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 3 · Investment income

    total $70 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 4 · Income from investment of tax-exempt bond proceeds

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 5 · Royalties

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 6a · Gross rents

    real property $0 · personal property $0

  • 6b · Less rental expenses

    real property $0 · personal property $0

  • 6c · Rental income or loss

    real property $0 · personal property $0

  • 6d · Net rental income or loss

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 7a · Gross sales of assets other than inventory

    securities $0 · other assets $0

  • 7b · Less cost or other basis and sales expenses

    securities $0 · other assets $0

  • 7c · Gain or loss

    securities $0 · other assets $0

  • 7d · Net gain or loss

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 8a · Fundraising events: gross income

    $30,877

  • 8a · Fundraising events: contributions included on line 1c

    $30,877

  • 8b · Fundraising events: direct expenses

    $0

  • 8c · Net income from fundraising events

    total $30,877 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 9a · Gaming: gross income

    $0

  • 9b · Gaming: direct expenses

    $0

  • 9c · Net income from gaming

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 10a · Gross sales of inventory

    $0

  • 10b · Cost of goods sold

    $0

  • 10c · Net income from sales of inventory

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 11a · Other revenue: Miscellaneous Revenue

    total $16,041 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 11b · Other revenue: Billable Expenses

    total $113,021 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 11c · Other revenue

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 11d · All other revenue

    total $0 · related or exempt $0 · unrelated business $0 · excluded $0

  • 11e · Other revenue, total

    $129,062

Functional expenses

Part IX, the statement of functional expenses.

  • 1 · Grants to domestic organizations and governments

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 2 · Grants to domestic individuals

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 3 · Grants to foreign organizations and individuals

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 4 · Benefits paid to or for members

    total $0 · program services $0

  • 5 · Compensation of officers, directors and key employees

    total $1,676,060 · program services $1,107,969 · management and general $287,728 · fundraising $280,363

  • 6 · Compensation of disqualified persons

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 7 · Other salaries and wages

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 8 · Pension plan contributions

    total $47,398 · program services $32,112 · management and general $7,239 · fundraising $8,047

  • 9 · Other employee benefits

    total $193,940 · program services $127,676 · management and general $36,249 · fundraising $30,015

  • 10 · Payroll taxes

    total $132,925 · program services $87,883 · management and general $22,963 · fundraising $22,080

  • 11a · Fees: management

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 11b · Fees: legal

    total $12,550 · program services $5,345 · management and general $7,205 · fundraising $0

  • 11c · Fees: accounting

    total $15,500 · program services $0 · management and general $15,500 · fundraising $0

  • 11d · Fees: lobbying

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 11e · Fees: professional fundraising services

    total $0 · fundraising $0

  • 11f · Fees: investment management

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 11g · Fees: other

    total $97,808 · program services $31,973 · management and general $61,665 · fundraising $4,171

  • 12 · Advertising and promotion

    total $14,365 · program services $14,365 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 13 · Office expenses

    total $69,927 · program services $19,329 · management and general $46,362 · fundraising $4,235

  • 14 · Information technology

    total $57,534 · program services $47,196 · management and general $7,157 · fundraising $3,180

  • 15 · Royalties

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 16 · Occupancy

    total $196,290 · program services $132,021 · management and general $42,107 · fundraising $22,162

  • 17 · Travel

    total $186,315 · program services $138,608 · management and general $40,741 · fundraising $6,966

  • 18 · Travel or entertainment for public officials

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 19 · Conferences, conventions and meetings

    total $92,379 · program services $67,789 · management and general $1,860 · fundraising $22,729

  • 20 · Interest

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 21 · Payments to affiliates

    total $713 · program services $0 · management and general $713 · fundraising $0

  • 22 · Depreciation, depletion and amortization

    total $15,645 · program services $10,523 · management and general $3,356 · fundraising $1,766

  • 23 · Insurance

    total $7,821 · program services $0 · management and general $7,821 · fundraising $0

  • 24a · Other expenses: CONTRACTED SERVICES

    total $232,392 · program services $209,064 · management and general $9,521 · fundraising $13,808

  • 24b · Other expenses: DUES & SUBSCRIPTIONS

    total $72,847 · program services $48,996 · management and general $15,627 · fundraising $8,224

  • 24c · Other expenses: MISCELLANEOUS

    total $31 · program services $0 · management and general $31 · fundraising $0

  • 24d · Other expenses: REPAIRS & MAINTENANCE

    total $2,894 · program services $0 · management and general $2,894 · fundraising $0

  • 24e · All other expenses

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

  • 26 · Joint costs (an allocation of the lines above)

    total $0 · program services $0 · management and general $0 · fundraising $0

Balance sheet

Part X, book values.

  • 1 · Cash, non-interest-bearing

    beginning of year $6,885,941 · end of year $6,626,831

  • 2 · Savings and temporary cash investments

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $1,101,165

  • 3 · Pledges and grants receivable

    beginning of year $2,102,000 · end of year $2,675,000

  • 4 · Accounts receivable

    beginning of year $26,712 · end of year $35,215

  • 5 · Loans and receivables from officers and key people

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 6 · Loans and receivables from disqualified persons

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 7 · Other notes and loans receivable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 8 · Inventories for sale or use

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 9 · Prepaid expenses and deferred charges

    beginning of year $23,815 · end of year $5,137

  • 10a · Land, buildings and equipment: cost or other basis

    $109,651

  • 10b · Land, buildings and equipment: accumulated depreciation

    $52,041

  • 10c · Land, buildings and equipment, net

    beginning of year $28,670 · end of year $57,610

  • 11 · Investments: publicly traded securities

    beginning of year $12,294 · end of year $12,295

  • 12 · Investments: other securities

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 13 · Investments: program-related

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 14 · Intangible assets

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $466,254

  • 15 · Other assets

    beginning of year $14,025 · end of year $1,767

  • 17 · Accounts payable and accrued expenses

    beginning of year $121,958 · end of year $574,596

  • 18 · Grants payable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 19 · Deferred revenue

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 20 · Tax-exempt bond liabilities

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 21 · Escrow or custodial account liability

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 22 · Loans and payables to officers and key people

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 23 · Secured mortgages and notes payable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 24 · Unsecured notes and loans payable

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 25 · Other liabilities

    beginning of year $0 · end of year $0

  • 27 · Net assets without donor restrictions

    beginning of year $5,123,921 · end of year $5,687,442

  • 28 · Net assets with donor restrictions

    beginning of year $3,847,578 · end of year $4,719,236

Mission and programs · 2023

Mission

FORWARD JUSTICE IS A NONPARTISAN LAW POLICY AND STRATEGY CENTER DEDICATED TO ADVANCING RACIAL SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC JUSTICE.

  • In 2023 despite incessant state-sanctioned attempts to restrict our freedoms and destroy our democracy we moved forward in our advocacy. Our legal team gave historic arguments in front of the North Carolina Supreme Court to protect the voting rights of over 56,000 North Carolinians with prior felony convictions. Nationally we actively expanded the practice of movement lawyering as we proudly served as legal counsel for community groups in the ongoing water crisis in Jackson Mississippi. Through this resistance Forward Justice and our movement partners centered the leadership of those who are directly impacted and together we pursued justice for all

    Expenses $1,869,499 · Grants $1,844,430

  • In 2023 there was a resurgence of reclaiming our voices as we moved forward in our narrative change and policy work. Our team gathered over 800 people at the state legislature to demand changes in policies impacting people with criminal records supported the reintroduction of the third reconstruction resolution and countered harmful narratives by utilizing storytelling as a tool of resistance and radicalization. As there has been a concerted effort to misrepresent the experiences of Black brown and poor people who are directly impacted by interlocking injustices our work centers the stories and humanity of those voices targeted by laws meant to silence them. I

    Expenses $211,350 · Grants $500,000

As filed on the 2023 return.

Listed in Part VII

  • Caitlin Swain

    Co-Director

    Total calculated
    $222,626
    From this org
    $145,566
    From related orgs
    $77,060
    Other
    $0
    Hours/week
    40

    Schedule J breakdown matched by us

    Base
    $145,566 + $50,060 related
    Bonus
    $0 + $27,000 related
    Other
    $0
    Deferred
    $0
    Nontaxable benefits
    $0
    Filer's total
    $145,566 + $77,060 related

  • Daryl Atkinson

    Co-Director

    Total calculated
    $229,223
    From this org
    $152,087
    From related orgs
    $77,136
    Other
    $0
    Hours/week
    40

    Schedule J breakdown matched by us

    Base
    $152,089 + $50,138 related
    Bonus
    $0 + $27,000 related
    Other
    $0
    Deferred
    $0
    Nontaxable benefits
    $0
    Filer's total
    $152,089 + $77,138 related

  • James Coleman

    Secretary

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.05

  • Jamie Cole

    Chairwoman

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.05

  • Norris Henderson

    Treasurer

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.05

  • Attica Scott

    Officer

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.05

  • Roxanne Saucier

    Officer

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    0.05

  • Dr Ashley Marshall

    Senior Director of Sustainability Emergence

    Total calculated
    $189,318
    From this org
    $112,264
    From related orgs
    $77,054
    Other
    $0
    Hours/week
    40

    Schedule J breakdown matched by us

    Base
    $112,264 + $50,054 related
    Bonus
    $0 + $27,000 related
    Other
    $0
    Deferred
    $0
    Nontaxable benefits
    $0
    Filer's total
    $112,264 + $77,054 related

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those. A Schedule J breakdown is as filed: base pay, bonus, other, deferred compensation and nontaxable benefits from this organization, with any from related organizations beside each, and the filer's own total. It is shown with the Part VII listing of the same name on the same return. The form gives no key between the two, so that pairing is ours, and is marked matched by us.

Schedule J

Answered yes

None.

Answered no

  • 4a · Severance or change-of-control payment
  • 4b · Supplemental nonqualified retirement plan
  • 4c · Equity-based compensation arrangement
  • 5a · Pay contingent on this organization's revenues
  • 5b · Pay contingent on a related organization's revenues
  • 6a · Pay contingent on this organization's net earnings
  • 6b · Pay contingent on a related organization's net earnings
  • 7 · Other non-fixed payments
  • 8 · Paid under the initial-contract exception

Part I's answers as filed. A line not listed was left unanswered; on lines 1a and 3 that means the box was not checked.

Grants on this return

No itemized grants to organizations on this return.

Related organizations on this return

Schedule R Part II: tax-exempt organizations related to the filer by control. It does not record shared board members or money.

Provenance

Return type
form_990
Tax year
2023
Filed
16 November 2024
IRS schema version
2023v5.1
Source object
202413219349301331

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