Washington, D.C. · Public charity
Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc
The animal legal defense fund's mission is to protect the lives and advance the interests of animals through the legal system. The animal legal defense fund accomplishes this mission by filing high impact lawsuits to protect animals from harm, providing free legal assistance and training for animal cruelty case stakeholders to ensure…
- $668k
- Granted FY2025(still arriving)
- 6
- Itemized grants FY2025
- 5
- Organizations funded FY2024
- 20%
- First-time grantees FY2024
- Itemized, FY2025
- $473k
- The rest is grants the schedule does not break out
- Median grant, FY2025
- $100,000
- Largest grant, FY2025
- $150,000
- Organizations funded a year
- 3 to 12
- FY2017 to FY2024
- States reached, FY2025
- 5
- Total assets, FY2025
- $25M
How open it is to new grantees
In FY2024, 20% of the organizations Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc funded were first-time grantees, receiving 35% of its grant dollars.
New vs renewed · share of each year
In FY2024, 65% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $150k went to new ones.
Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant
How this is measured
The numbers by year
| Fiscal year | Organizations funded | To those organizations | First-time grantees |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025still arriving | 6 | $473k | 33% |
| FY2024 | 5 | $430k | 20% |
| FY2023 | 12 | $1.8M | 75% |
| FY2022 | 12 | $991k | 67% |
| FY2021 | 10 | $913k | 60% |
| FY2019 | 8 | $715k | 50% |
| FY2018 | 7 | $545k | 57% |
| FY2017 | 3 | $537k | n/a |
What it funded, over time
Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2025.
Where its grants go
Grant dollars by states, across the years we hold.
Which US states its grants reach
Top grantees
Largest recipients by total granted, FY2017 to FY2025, and the share of each one’s budget the grants supplied at peak.
| Grantee | Total granted | Years | Share of their budget |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lewis & Clark College | $1,775,459 | 6 | 0% |
| The George Washington University | $1,103,042 | 1 | 0% |
| Association of Prosecuting Attorneys Inc | $703,000 | 8 | 4% |
| National Council of Juvenile & Family Court Judges | $415,000 | 4 | 1% |
| Benton County Health Department | $240,000 | 2 | n/a |
| Washington State Attorney General | $150,000 | 1 | n/a |
| University of Connecticut | $141,070 | 3 | n/a |
| National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges Fund Inc | $125,000 | 2 | 72% |
| Born Free USA united with API | $115,000 | 1 | 5% |
| University of Denver | $110,000 | 2 | 0% |
Show all 31 grantees
| Grantee | Total granted | Years | Share of their budget |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lewis & Clark College | $1,775,459 | 6 | 0% |
| The George Washington University | $1,103,042 | 1 | 0% |
| Association of Prosecuting Attorneys Inc | $703,000 | 8 | 4% |
| National Council of Juvenile & Family Court Judges | $415,000 | 4 | 1% |
| Benton County Health Department | $240,000 | 2 | n/a |
| Washington State Attorney General | $150,000 | 1 | n/a |
| University of Connecticut | $141,070 | 3 | n/a |
| National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges Fund Inc | $125,000 | 2 | 72% |
| Born Free USA united with API | $115,000 | 1 | 5% |
| University of Denver | $110,000 | 2 | 0% |
| Vancouver Humane Society and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals | $59,000 | 1 | n/a |
| McHenry County | $50,945 | 1 | n/a |
| North Carolina Central University | $50,000 | 1 | n/a |
| Lewis & Clark Law School | $43,162 | 3 | n/a |
| Bark Nation | $21,254 | 1 | n/a |
| Animal Rescue Corps Inc | $20,000 | 1 | 4% |
| Hooved Animal Humane Society | $17,695 | 1 | 1% |
| Earth Island Institute Inc | $17,600 | 1 | 0% |
| Sage Counseling Inc | $15,000 | 1 | n/a |
| Virginia Animal Fighting Task Force | $13,856 | 1 | 22% |
| Godspeed Horse Hostel Inc | $10,000 | 1 | 17% |
| Yuba County HHS | $10,000 | 1 | n/a |
| Center Valley Animal Rescue | $10,000 | 1 | 2% |
| Sound Equine Options | $10,000 | 1 | 2% |
| Whidbey Animals Improvement Foundation | $10,000 | 1 | 1% |
| Deschutes County | $10,000 | 1 | n/a |
| Prevent Cruelty California a Humane Society Committee | $10,000 | 1 | 0% |
| The Wild Animal Sanctuary | $9,600 | 1 | 0% |
| Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals | $8,263 | 1 | 0% |
| Southern Illinois University- Carbondale | $5,424 | 1 | n/a |
| University of Toledo | $5,187 | 1 | n/a |
Plus 6 recipients with no EIN on record ($1.1M), not named here.
Where it is load-bearing
Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc supplied at least a quarter of the budget for 1 of its grantees at some point. The chart plots its 18 largest grantees; load-bearing ones sit top left.
Tap a dot to name the grantee.
How this is measured
Co-funders
Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.
Open a dossier: Humane World for Animals Inc · Petsmart Charities Inc · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Paypal Charitable Giving Fund · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile Foundation
How this is measured
About Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc
- How much does Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc give?
- Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc reported 6 itemized grants totaling $472,856, out of $668,105 in total grant expense reported on the return in its FY2025 IRS filing. It funded between 3 and 12 organizations a year over FY2017 to FY2024.
- What does Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc fund?
- By grant dollars over FY2017 to FY2025, its largest causes are Animals (96%), Crime & Legal (3%), Education (1%).
- Who are Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc's largest grantees?
- By total granted over FY2017 to FY2025: Lewis & Clark College ($1.8M), The George Washington University ($1.1M), Association of Prosecuting Attorneys Inc ($703k).
- Does Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc fund new organizations?
- In FY2024, 20% of the organizations it funded were first-time grantees.
- Which funders back the same organizations as Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc?
- Its strongest co-funders, measured against what their size predicts, include Humane World for Animals Inc, Petsmart Charities Inc, The Pfizer Foundation Inc.
- Where is Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc based?
- Animal Legal Defense Fund Inc is based in DC.
Play a game based on Animal Legal Defense’s filings →