Currently Funded Programs & Guidelines

Supporters of The St. Louis Bar Foundation are aware that one of the Foundation’s most rewarding functions, as funds permit, is the awarding of grants for “innovative projects that address identifiable and unmet needs in the community.”  The grant proposals from eligible non-profit organizations must, according to Foundation guidelines, address one or more of the following categories:

• The advancement of the philosophy of law.
• The promotion and/or improvement of the administration of justice.
• The promotion and/or maintenance of high standards for the judiciary and lawyers.
• The promotion of the public’s awareness, understanding, and appreciation of the rule of law, the practice of law, the court system, and individuals’ rights and responsibilities under the law.

As grant applications arrive each year, we are often taken with the breadth and depth of “unmet“ needs in the community that appropriately turn to the Bar Foundation for support.
In the recent past, fourteen non-profit organizations requested Grant Application forms, but only eight submitted requests for funding. After reviewing all of the applications, the Board of the Foundation was able to fund seven, at least in part. The description of some of those funded projects provides insight into the significant needs that the Foundation was able to address in this year’s requests and may give others an idea of the type of projects to which we are attracted.

• Delta Life Development Foundation and St. Louis Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. work jointly to promote a Law Day Program that will help students become familiar with civil and criminal court proceedings, their rights and lack thereof as minors under the law, and their later roles as potential jurors. Because of the Bar Foundation support, more middle and high schools students in the greater St. Louis metropolitan area will be able to participate in this program.
• Legal Advocates for Abused Women promotes increased access to services for battered women and children through early intervention, legal advocacy, and unduplicated partnerships with law enforcement, civil and criminal court systems and child protective services. Foundation funding will help fund immediate crisis support, safety planning, and free legal assistance—especially in the work of the Victim Assistants.
• St. Louis Volunteer Lawyers and Accountants for the Arts offers accounting and legal services to artists and arts administrators who are increasingly seeking such advice. The Foundation grant will help support expanding the organization’s website to include such areas as web law for arts organizations and links to legal resources.
• Voices for Children, working to improve the administration of justice for children, requested funds for an educational and volunteer recruitment video. The video will present the role of staff child advocacy attorneys and that of local community volunteers the organization trains. The volunteers will become court-appointed volunteer advocates who prepare foster children for court appearances.
• Great Rivers Environmental Law Center, a free public interest legal service for those seeking to protect the environment, requested a grant to support ongoing legal research and opinions on grounds for legal action and to assist citizens working through environmental legal issues.
• Employment Connections, in partnership with the U.S. District Court (Missouri Eastern) Probation and Parole Office, received a Foundation grant to support the attendance of formerly incarcerated people at a career fair to help them secure employment and become connected to services of which they are unaware.
• Missouri Bar Public Defender Task Force, to educate the public and the legislature on the nature and extent of work required to meet the constitutionally mandated prompt, speedy, and adequate defense of accused persons who meet the qualifications of the public defender system.

We know from our past experience that a significant positive benefit results for many in need through the grants the Foundation awards. As  the charitable arm of the Bar Association, it is equally clear that several of these organizations did not receive funding to meet their entire needs, and some have needs in amounts far exceeding our ability to make a difference.

The Foundation endowment must grow through annual support if the Foundation is to have the outreach that its mission needs. Those who are privileged to serve on the Foundation board can attest to a breadth and depth of needs expressed in the proposals received, the gratitude expressed to the Foundation by those receiving grants (even if we were unable to fully fund their requests), and the persisting desire of the Foundation to play an increasingly significant role in more effectively serving the St. Louis metropolitan legal profession, the justice system, and the many “unmet” needs in our community. We, in turn, thank all of you for your financial support.

Previously Funded Programs & Projects

With support from the Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts (IOLTA) Foundation, the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, its Young Lawyers Division, and other organizations, the Saint Louis Bar Foundation has provided grants in support of the following:

• Law Related Education Resource Center (average of $18,000 per year for over 15 years)
• Missouri High School Mock Trial Competition
• St. Louis Internship Program
• St. Louis Crusade Against Crime/Medal of Valor Ceremony
• Professional Housing Resources
• Tel-Law
• HIV/AIDS Legal Information Booklet
• Guardian Ad Litem Training
• Domestic Violence Training for Educators
• Children’s Handbook/Coloring Book on Divorce
• Educational Video on Durable Powers of Attorney for the Elderly
• Seminars on Cultural Differences, the Bill of Rights, and Domestic Violence for Judges
• Directory of Family Support Services
• State Government Educational Field Trips for Low-Income Youth
• Scholarships for Journalism Students

• Scholarships for Legal Assistants
• Scholarships for Minority Law School Students at Washington University in St. Louis School of Law and the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law (over $200,000 in the past decade)
• Educational aspects of National Conferences held in St. Louis including the National Black Law Student Association Midwest Regional Conference, the National Bar Association Annual Meeting, the National Conference of Metropolitan Courts and the Appellate Court Clerks National Conference, 1997 ABA Pro Bono Conference, 1998 National Law Related Education Conference, 1998 National Association of Women Judges Conference, and 1999 National High School Mock Trial Competition.
• Equipment Packages for Trial Courts and Renovation of the Civil Courts Building in St. Louis
• Completion of New Jury Assembly Room in the Civil Courts Building in St. Louis
• Missouri Gender and Justice Task Force
• Homer G. Phillips Memorial and Luncheon

The Cornerstone Fund

In March, 1989, the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis began a fundraising campaign to pay for a major restoration of the civil and municipal court buildings in the City of St. Louis. The City had selected the architectural firm of Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum to prepare the master plan for the detention and judicial facilities. Lawyers were asked to contribute to the cost of renovation, restoration or replacement of these buildings, and otherwise improve the administration of justice in the 22nd Judicial Circuit. A goal of One Million Dollars was set to provide seed money for these projects.

Lawyers answered this call for help and the Saint Louis Bar Foundation received the contributions to the fund, and has paid out of the funds raised to underwrite all of a part of the cost of a long list of projects associated with these renovations. It might be well to recall some of these improvements, which included:

• renovating and furnishing the Jury Assembly Room.
• design and construction of air conditioning for the Civil Courts concourses.
• restoration of tables in jury deliberation rooms.
• building signage
• renovation of the 12th floor lounge and exterior promenade.
• renovation and furnishing of attorney/client interview rooms.
• telephone booth accessories.
• marble cleaning in the lobby and at elevators
• public seating in courtroom floor concourses
• weather vestibules at building entries, and
• security stations and other improvements in the 1st floor lobby necessary for reopening the east side entry to the building.

Lawyers raised more than the One Million Dollar goal, considering the return on funds prior to their distribution, and today have approximately $100,000.00 in unexpended funds.

On January 23, 2009, the Saint Louis Bar Foundation Board welcomed the Hon. Thomas C. Grady, Presiding Judge of the 22nd Judicial Circuit, who, speaking for the Court, addressed current needs. Jury Division 29 has been moved from the Eighth Floor to the Fourth Floor but does not have a Jury Box there. A standard three-tier jury box similar to those in the rest of the Civil Courts Divisions would be constructed. The Jury deliberation room will be on the Fourth Floor mezzanine, but has no toilet facilities. The plan is to construct one ADA compliant toilet and a second standard sized restroom for these jurors.

The original cost estimate for all of this work was $275,000.00. The Court has some money in its budget that can be used for these projects, but has requested, and the Foundation has approved, the funding to the extent of its remaining Cornerstone Funds to assist with this work, with all of the safeguards previously used in making distributions from the Fund.

On January 23rd the Foundation Board appointed a committee to meet with the architects to see exactly the scope of work planned and determine what, if any, cost savings might be made by adjusting the scale of work. Robert Sears headed this committee and reported to the Board that up to date cost estimates were necessary to proceed.

The Foundation Board, at its meeting of February 20th, voted to make a $3,000 Grant to the 22nd Judicial Circuit to cover part of the cost of obtaining cost estimates necessary to proceed with the decision for the scope of work to be covered by remaining Cornerstone Fund and available Court dollars. No Cornerstone dollars will be spent for anything other than the actual costs associated with the construction.