Immigrant Defenders Law Center
Immigrant Defenders Law Center reported $39.0 million in revenue and $19.5 million in expenses for calendar year 2025. Of every $100 it spent, $87.32 went to program services, $11.04 to management and general costs and $1.64 to fundraising. Its largest source of revenue was contributions and grants: 99.4% of the total. The highest compensation it reported for one person was $223,068 (PRESIDENT). 9 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation. Revenue rose 556% between 2019 and 2025. Source: Form 990, 2025.
Where $100 of spending went
Calendar year 2025 · Form 990, Part IX, line 25 · total expenses $19MFor context, the median across 274 covered crime & legal-related charities: $87.85 programs, $11.30 management, $0.85 fundraising (medians computed separately, so they may not sum to $100).
Where $100 of revenue came from
Calendar year 2025 · Form 990, Part VIII · total revenue $39MOther revenue was negative: −$211K. The bar shows the positive sources only.
The 990 scorecard · same measures for every charity, no grades
| Measure | 2025 | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Program services Part IX 25(B) ÷ 25(A) | 87.3% | 86.7% |
| Management & general Part IX 25(C) ÷ 25(A) | 11.0% | 11.1% |
| Fundraising Part IX 25(D) ÷ 25(A) | 1.6% | 0.8% |
| Fundraising cost per $1 of contributions Part IX 25(D) ÷ Part VIII 1h | $0.01 | $0.01 |
| Contributions & grants share of revenue Part VIII 1h ÷ 12 | 99.4% | 94.8% |
| Government grants share of revenue Part VIII 1e ÷ 12 | 0.0% | 50.1% |
| Program service revenue share Part VIII 2g ÷ 12 | 0.0% | 0.7% |
| Highest reported compensation Part VII-A, columns D–F | $223,068 | $245,814 |
| Highest compensation as share of expenses Part VII-A ÷ Part IX 25(A) | 1.15% | 1.41% |
| People paid over $100,000 Part VII, line 2 | 9 | 8 |
| Net assets, in months of expenses Part X 33(B) ÷ monthly expenses | 20.6 | 6.4 |
| Independent voting board members Part VI 1a–1b | 8 of 8 | 100.0% |
A median is context, not a target: hospitals, universities, food banks and grantmakers spend in very different ways. What these measures can and can't tell you.
What the money paid for, in its own words
2025 · Form 990, Part III · the three largest programs by expenseImmigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef) fights to protect the rights of immigrants and uphold due process in the U.S. immigration system by providing free, high-quality deportation defense and related legal support across Southern California. As the state's largest pro bono nonprofit deportation defense provider, ImmDef represents people in immigration court through offices in Los Angeles, Riverside, Santa Ana, and San Diego-reaching approximately 10,000 adults and children each year in more than 10 counties. Through direct representation and legal support services, ImmDef helps individuals…
Highest reported compensation
2025 · Form 990, Part VII, Section A · roles as filed; names are in the filing, not here| Role | From this org | From related orgs | Other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRESIDENT Officer, 40.0 hrs/week | $201,503 | $0 | $21,565 | $223,068 |
| Chief of Staff Highest compensated employee, 35.0 hrs/week | $180,898 | $0 | $30,218 | $211,116 |
| Chief Program Officer Key employee, 40.0 hrs/week | $182,803 | $0 | $25,148 | $207,951 |
| COO & General counsel Highest compensated employee, 35.0 hrs/week | $158,503 | $0 | $22,850 | $181,353 |
| Litigation & Advocacy Director Highest compensated employee, 35.0 hrs/week | $165,900 | $0 | $13,536 | $179,436 |
| Legal Services Director Highest compensated employee, 35.0 hrs/week | $171,330 | $0 | $5,617 | $176,947 |
| Director of Finance Highest compensated employee, 35.0 hrs/week | $163,288 | $0 | $8,803 | $172,091 |
| Legal Services Director Key employee, 35.0 hrs/week | $148,288 | $0 | $5,819 | $154,107 |
9 people received more than $100,000 in reportable compensation from Immigrant Defenders Law Center (Part VII, line 2). Compensation of current officers, directors and key employees totaled $710K (Part IX, line 5).
7 years of filings
Form 990, Parts I, VII, IX and X · each row is that year's own filing, linkedGovernance answers, as filed
2025 · the organization's own yes/no answers; explanations, if any, are in Schedule O of the filing · what each means- Voting board members, and how many are independent Part VI, lines 1a–1b8 · 8 independent
- Audited financial statements Part XII 2bYes
- Conflict-of-interest policy Part VI 12aYes
- Whistleblower policy Part VI 13Yes
- Document retention policy Part VI 14Yes
- Independent process for top executive pay Part VI 15aYes
- Board given the 990 before filing Part VI 11aYes
- Family or business ties among insiders Part VI 2No
- Aware of a significant diversion of assets Part VI 5No
- Excess benefit transaction with an insider Part IV 25aNo
- Loans to or from insiders outstanding Part IV 26No
- Lobbying, or a 501(h) election in effect Part IV 4Yes
- Over $15,000 of professional fundraising services Part IV 18No
- Over $10,000 of activity outside the U.S. Part IV 14bNo
- Employees Part I, line 5237
- Volunteers Part I, line 69
Private foundation grants it received
9 private foundations reported grants to Immigrant Defenders Law Center totaling $605K on their tax year 2023 Form 990-PF returns. See which foundations, on WHOFUNDS.
Source: WHOFUNDS open grant graph, matched from Form 990-PF Part XV.
Correct a figure or respond
Every number above is copied from Immigrant Defenders Law Center's own Form 990. If one doesn't match the filing, that's our error and we'll fix it. If you work for Immigrant Defenders Law Center, you can publish a response that is linked from this page.
Share or embed this breakdown
Of every $100 Immigrant Defenders Law Center spent in 2025, $87.32 went to programs. The full breakdown, from its IRS Form 990:
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Similar-sized charities in this cause
- Time OrganizationBaltimore, MD · revenue $38M · programs 70.9% · 2024
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All crime & legal-related charities · Largest charities in California
Questions people ask
How much of Immigrant Defenders Law Center's spending goes to programs?
In calendar year 2025, Immigrant Defenders Law Center reported that 87.3% of its $19.5 million in expenses went to program services, 11.0% to management and general and 1.6% to fundraising (Form 990, Part IX).
How much does Immigrant Defenders Law Center pay its top executive?
The largest total compensation Immigrant Defenders Law Center reported for one person in calendar year 2025 was $223,068, for the role of PRESIDENT (Form 990, Part VII, including compensation from related organizations and other compensation).
Where does Immigrant Defenders Law Center get its money?
Of $39.0 million in revenue in calendar year 2025, 99.4% came from contributions and grants and 0.0% from program service revenue (Form 990, Part VIII).
Is Immigrant Defenders Law Center a registered charity?
The IRS lists EIN 47-4473312 as a 501(c)(3) organization (publicly supported organization (170(b)(1)(a)(vi))), and its records show contributions as tax-deductible. Form 990 filings on record here cover tax years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025. A filing shows what the organization reported; it doesn't by itself show whether a program works.
Sources
- 2025: Form 990 for calendar year 2025, object 202631769349301448 · read the filing · XML
- 2024: Form 990 for calendar year 2024, object 202512819349301911 · read the filing
- 2023: Form 990 for calendar year 2023, object 202433069349302708 · read the filing
- 2022: Form 990 for calendar year 2022, object 202302709349301815 · read the filing
- 2021: Form 990 for calendar year 2021, object 202213279349301416 · read the filing
- 2020: Form 990 for calendar year 2020, object 202113169349306281 · read the filing
- 2019: Form 990 for calendar year 2019, object 202013179349301026 · read the filing
All filings for EIN 47-4473312: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer · IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search. Figures are as the organization reported them; we have not audited them.