The Kansas Bar Foundation has had a remarkable impact on the citizens and youth of Kansas. Its mission of funding legal services for the disadvantaged, educating the public about the role lawyers play in society, and fostering the well-being of the profession is distinct within the charitable community.

The Kansas Bar Foundation serves as the charitable arm of the Kansas legal community and prides itself on being the primary means by which lawyers can give back to the profession.

Among its many accomplish-ments, the Kansas Bar Foundation has:

• Funded civil legal aid, contributing more than $2 million to Kansas Legal Services since 1986;

• Coordinated Law Wise, a law-related educational newsletter distributed annually to approximately 1,600 Kansas teachers and community leaders;

• Supported the Supreme Court in Review program, which re-creates and re-enacts U.S. Supreme Court cases through Kansas lawyers and judges, serving more than 20,000 students since 1996; and

• Enriched the direct educational experience of hundreds of high school students as a sponsor of annual statewide mock trial competitions.

The Kansas Bar Foundation is pleased to be at the forefront of law-related educational efforts in Kansas, engaging students in quality law and civic education programs to enhance their understanding and applications of our nation’s constitutional history, legal heritage, and how the justice system holds together a democratic form of government.

Lawyers support the Foundation and its mission not because it’s required, but because it’s the right thing to do.

Today, however, the Foundation faces new challenges. A traditional source of income - the Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) program - has suffered as a result of declining interest rates (see graph). To meet current and future needs, bar foundation leadership agrees that the best way to ensure long-term financial stability is to focus development efforts on building a strong, vibrant endowment.

As part of our Raising the Bar effort, the Kansas Bar Foundation is committed to raising $500,000 to double its current endowment. In coming years, the Foundation will work to supplement today’s endowment with planned and deferred gifts from Kansas attorneys interested in leaving a legacy to the profession. Returns from the endowment will fund law-related education efforts for years to come as we invest in our youth and ensure justice is accessible to all Kansans.

The Kansas Bar Foundation is active in bringing
the reality of our justice system to young people through numerous in-school programs.

The Decline in IOLTA Funding