General Support Grants Program

The DC Bar Foundation is the leading funder of civil legal aid in the District of Columbia and has invested more than $200 million in DC's legal aid network since its inception in 1977. Its work is intended to ensure that District residents have access to justice regardless of income. In addition to grantmaking, the Foundation administers loan repayment assistance programs for attorneys working at DC legal aid organizations and provides training and technical assistance. The General Support Grants Program is supported by individual, law firm, and corporate donations and revenue from the Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts program administered by the Foundation. The General Support Grants Program provides private funding to eligible legal services providers located in the District of Columbia for the grant year January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2027. Funding may take the form of general operating support for an organization or support for a civil legal services project. Funding is provided only for free civil legal services and only for services to District residents with low incomes. Project support must be directed toward the activities and objectives described in the application, while operating support is unrestricted and may be used for organizational needs such as administrative costs, salaries, utilities, and other general operating expenses. Eligible recipients must be not-for-profit District of Columbia corporations, have tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, operate primarily within the District of Columbia, be located within the District, and have as a primary purpose the provision of civil legal services to District residents with low incomes. The primary-purpose requirement is met when the majority of the organization's total resources and/or the resources of its legal services department or project are spent delivering civil legal services to qualifying District residents without charge. Civil legal services must include individual representation of District residents and may also include supervision of such representation, appellate advocacy on behalf of District residents, and policy advocacy in the District associated with representation of individual clients. The Foundation evaluates applicants according to standards for quality, efficiency, effectiveness, capacity, and sustainability. A strong application demonstrates that the organization identifies and responds to pressing civil legal needs; appropriately supervises, trains, and develops staff; uses stakeholder and client feedback; increases access through activities such as self-help assistance, legal information, and community legal education; and engages relevant stakeholders. Priority is also given to applications likely to expand the number of District residents receiving legal assistance, avoid duplication, increase accessibility, expand pro bono participation, strategically leverage Foundation resources, provide services not supported by other funding sources, or test innovative approaches. Applicants should also demonstrate adequate capacity to deliver the proposed services and a high likelihood of sustainability. The application has two required sections. Part One, the Organization Profile, covers the applying organization's budget, mission and legal services, systems for service delivery, executive and board information, and board and staff demographic data. Required financial and organizational uploads are Nonprofit Status, Organizational Budget, Form 990, and recent Audited Financial Statements. Part Two, the Application Proposal, describes the proposed project or program and includes Project Overview and Information, Application Narrative, Project Budget when applying for Project Support, Funding Sources, Project Staffing and Consultants when applying for Project Support, and optional supplemental documentation. Each submitted application must represent a different project. Applications and required files must be submitted through the DC Bar Foundation Grants Management System at https://dcbarfoundation.org/gms. Application samples were released July 24, 2026, and applicants could begin submitting applications through the Grants Management System on August 3, 2026. Applications are due August 31, 2026 by 5:00 pm; because no time zone is stated, the data-entry rules treat the time as Eastern Time while storing the deadline as a date. Awards are scheduled to be announced in December 2026, and the grant year begins January 1, 2027 and ends December 31, 2027. The source does not state that this application deadline recurs annually or on another regular schedule, so no recurrence is recorded. Approved project-support grantees will be required to identify performance measures for tracking progress toward their goals. All General Support grantees must submit semiannual programmatic reports, and organizations may also be required to participate in programmatic and/or financial site visits scheduled directly by the Foundation. Questions regarding the General Support Grants Program, the application process, or monitoring and evaluation may be directed to grants@dcbarfoundation.org. The Foundation's general telephone number shown in the program instructions is 202-467-3750.

Demonstrate that the organization identifies and responds to pressing civil legal needs and has effective supervision, training, feedback, and service-delivery systems. Show adequate capacity and a high likelihood of sustainability. Where applicable, explain how the proposal expands the number of residents receiving assistance, avoids duplication, increases accessibility, expands pro bono participation, leverages DCBF resources, addresses services unsupported by other funding, or tests innovative approaches.