The American Bar Endowment: Contributing Through Insurance for Attorneys

Established by the American Bar Association in 1942 for the purpose of, "...Advancement of jurisprudence and the promotion of justice and uniformity of judicial decision throughout the United States, exclusively through education and scientific research in the field of law," the not-for-profit American Bar Endowment provides unique opportunities for all ABA members to get quality, affordable insurance for attorneys, through trusted insurers, while giving back to the good works of the legal profession. Through the ABE, ABA members can donate dividends to help fund the hundreds of legal public service and educational activities of ABA's Fund for Justice and Education (FJE) and the legal research and activities of the American Bar Foundation (ABF).

Insurance That Makes a Difference

From the first ABE-sponsored life insurance for attorneys in 1955 to the quality, affordable ABE-sponsored insurance plans available exclusively to ABA members today, the unique charitable giving feature of each plan provides ABA members the opportunity to donate their dividends to support over 200 legal research, public service and educational programs. Members who leave their portion of any insurance dividends with the Endowment—as nearly 85% elect to do—are eligible for charitable contribution deductions on their personal tax returns. Over the past more than 65 years, these dividend donations have allowed the ABE to grant more than $224 million to the ABA FJE and ABF. In this way, ABA members meet their professional obligation to improve the quality of justice in the United States, while providing important insurance protection for themselves and their families.

Charitable Giving for Lawyers by Lawyers

In addition to the unique charitable giving feature in all of the ABE-sponsored insurance plans, the ABE offers ABA members the ABE Charitable Gift Fund (CGF). The ABE CGF provides ABA members an easy way to support the charities they care about most. Created by lawyers for lawyers, the ABE CGF is managed by the renowned Northern Trust Corporation and offers unsurpassed tax advantages for lawyers with virtually no paperwork.

For additional information about any ABE-sponsored insurance plan or our Charitable Gift Fund, please contact your ABE Personal Insurance Representative.