Allied Attorney Network Frequently Asked Questions

Fundamental freedoms are under assault. Constitutional rights must be defended by dedicated and skilled attorneys. Allied Attorneys work alongside Alliance Defending Freedom so that true freedom can flourish.As a member of the Allied Attorney Network, the following exclusive benefits are yours:

• Access to the Allied Attorney Community Site;
• Online discussion groups in which like-minded attorneys answer questions, give and receive referrals, provide encouragement, and offer practical ways to incorporate personal faith into your legal career;
• In person (CLE eligible) and virtual training opportunities that will educate and equip you regarding the pressing issues and legal theories of the day;
• A grants & funding program that helps ease the cost of mission-focused advocacy;
• Pro bono opportunities and referrals;
• Subscription to The Gazette, a bi-weekly newsletter regarding events; ADF’s legal and advocacy docket; etc.;
• Access to the Allied Attorney Network Directory; and
• Eligibility for recognition awards.*

* An Allied Attorney who provides and reports 450 hours or more of qualifying pro bono service becomes a member of the Honor Corps and is eligible for award recognition.

Absolutely. Making positive, lasting changes in the legal culture requires attorneys with diverse backgrounds, skills, and interests. Whether you are a litigator or a transactional attorney, work in a large or small law firm practice as corporate counsel, teach in a law school, or work for the government, there are ways for you to utilize your unique combination of talents, experience, and passion. We are limited only by our own creativity. Please contact us at AttorneyInfo@ADFlegal.org to set up a call to discuss how you can best use your legal skills to serve alongside ADF on mission.

Typically, requests for pro bono (or non-pro bono) legal help come to you via email from ADF’s Intake team after they talk with the requester to collect key facts, determine whether the request is in the scope of ADF’s mission, and check conflicts. ADF receives 5k+ Requests for Legal Help every year. You might also receive a targeted request from Allied Legal Affairs regarding, for example, moot court, amicus, and local counsel opportunities to engage. Referrals are based on a number of factors including geographic location, practice area, and where the Allied Attorney is barred or admitted to practice. You can always reach out to us pre-emptively if you would like to help with any particular referrals or projects!

Allied Attorneys come from a wide variety of Christian traditions. We simply ask that all allies agree to the following statement of faith:

I affirm my belief in and commitment to the historic Trinitarian Christian faith as revealed in the canon of the Old and New Testaments and commonly expressed in the Nicene-Constantinople and Apostles’ Creeds.

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All applications must be submitted using our online application form.

Apply for a grant

Below are some of the helpful tips you will need to prepare in advance in order to be able to complete an Alliance Defending Freedom online grant application:

• Attorney’s Resume (for 1st time applicant if you are not an Alliance Defending Freedom Blackstone, YLA, or Summit alumni)
• Names and role of all attorneys involved on the case/project.
• Client information.
• Text and citation of any challenged laws, statute, ordinance, regulation, or other authority.
• Electronic copies of initial filings or dispositive motions, key briefing (i.e. Complaint, Answer, Motion for Summary Judgment, Amicus Brief), and any substantive ruling in the case.
• Information to be considered in advance (Note: It is not acceptable to simply refer to attachments in completing the application):
  • Anticipated costs and expenses associated with case or project.
  • Prepare a succinct paragraph summarizing the facts of the case.
  • Prepare a succinct paragraph of the claims in dispute.
  • Prepare a succinct paragraph summarizing the procedural history of the case.

In addition to the online application, some additional material must be submitted as exhibits to the application. Please submit application exhibits by: 

• Emailing to Grants@ADFlegal.org (Preferred)
• Faxing the additional materials to 480-444-0028, Attn: Grants & Funding Dept.
• Mailing a disk with the materials stored to:

Alliance Defending Freedom
Attn: Grants & Funding Dept.
15100 N. 90th Street
Scottsdale, AZ 85260

However, whatever method of delivery you use, all required information must be received by our Arizona office before close of business (4:30pm, MST) on the cut-off day.

Alliance Defending Freedom funds pro-active litigation and advocacy to protect the right of Christians to speak and act consistent with their faith, defend the sanctity and dignity of life from conception to natural end, and protect family values, including a biblical definition of marriage and parental rights. Alliance Defending Freedom also funds legal projects that support or promote such advocacy.

The volume of grant requests received always exceeds the available resources, and there are cases with great merit that Alliance Defending Freedom is not able to fund. Limited resources require requests to be prioritized. Preference is given to cases aligned with priorities identified by the ADF advocacy teams  and those with high potential to set major national and regional precedents that will contribute to the body of case law others can use to litigate future cases. ADF has developed an objective grading system  to help evaluate the potential impact of a matter. Due to funding demands, grants cannot be awarded for cases that only affect individual rights.

• Litigation Grant: Reimbursement for time invested by the legal team along with out of pocket expenses to assist an allied attorney in pursuing a qualifying legal matter.
• Cost Grant: Reimbursement for costs (out of pocket expenses) only to assist an allied attorney in pursuing a qualifying case or project.
• Dedicated Project Grant: Reimbursement for incurred expenses to assist with projects that are clearly designed to accomplish goals consistent with the mission and focus of ADF. For more detailed information see the Grants & Funding Guidelines.
• Amicus Grant: Reimbursement for time and expenses associated with the submission or coordination of amicus briefs at the courts indicated in the Grants & Funding Guidelines.

The primary mechanism for review is the Executive Legal Council review process. The Executive Legal Council (ELC) is an advisory group comprised of the CEO, the leaders of U.S. and International legal teams or their designees, and the senior attorney directing the grants and funding program. The ELC carefully reviews the applications and makes recommendations as to the merits of the applications and amount of funding. Grants are authorized by the Alliance Defending Freedom CEO and are reviewed by the Governing Board of Directors consistent with the Grants & Funding Guidelines.

A legal matter is eligible for a grant when the case is: 1) in litigation at the time Alliance Defending Freedom receives the grant application; or 2) litigation is imminent (i.e., the case has progressed to a point where a demand letter has been sent or a complaint is being prepared) and all preliminary preparations and investigations are complete. As for remuneration, it is not Alliance Defending Freedom’s intent to pay for initial investigation into a case. Consequently, Alliance Defending Freedom may provide limited support for pre-filing work.

The ELC convenes monthly to consider current grant applications. The dates for receiving grant applications for submission to the pending ELC meetings can be found on the Monthly Grant Review Schedule or can be obtained by contacting Grants@ADFlegal.org. 

In general, Alliance Defending Freedom does not extend the time in which to submit applications. You may submit your application after the cut-off date and, if there is room on the pending ELC schedule and Alliance Defending Freedom can prepare the application for submission to the ELC in time, it may be considered. However, that is not often the case. Typically, applications submitted after the cut-off dates are held for consideration during the following ELC meeting, approximately one month later.

Application materials must be received by our Arizona office before close of business (4:30pm, MST) on the cut-off day.

A decision is generally reached within one week of the ELC meeting. We do not reveal the status of the application until the entire process has been completed. A letter will be forwarded to the applicant informing him or her of the decision made regarding the application.

Submit detailed invoices supported by appropriate documentation of work performed and expenses incurred that are within the scope of the grant.

Grant invoices are generally processed each Wednesday, and checks will be mailed within six working days from the day first processed. All invoices that have been received on or before Monday will be processed to be forwarded to the accounting department the following Wednesday with checks typically being sent out on Monday. Alliance Defending Freedom may be unable to process a payment and a delay in processing will occur if any of the following are missing:

• A report on the present status of the case or project;
• The dates on which work occurred;
• A description of the work/activity;
• Identification of the person who completed the task, by name and title;
• The amount of time spent on each activity;
• If the invoice is for an Amicus Brief, it must be accompanied by an electronic copy of the amicus brief as filed, including signatures, in searchable format;
• A completed case update form;
• Completed Disclosure Agreement (must be submitted during 1st payment only if not currently on file)

Although you may ask for whatever funding you believe is necessary, ADF has set forth a funding table to identify our expected investment in typical public interest litigation based on the case stage, the anticipated impact, and its alignment with organizational priorities. The amount of the award is based upon the amount requested, available funds at the time of consideration, and the published funding targets. For exceptional matters, the applicants may petition for additional funds. Applicants are encouraged to request funding for completing a defined stage, i.e., trial, appeal, etc., rather than for the entire case from trial through final appeal. Repeat requests for additional funding for the same stage of litigation is discouraged.

During each review cycle we receive many grant requests for evaluation. Each request is independently considered, and the amount of funding is based on several factors including availability of our grant funding resources and the potential broad impact of the matter as compared with other funding requests. Please note that the grant award recipient may apply for additional funding in the future as a supplemental grant request in a pending case or project.

There could be several factors in denying a grant request including the mission of Alliance Defending Freedom, limited availability of funding resources, and the review committee’s perspective on the potential impact of the matter as compared with the other pending applications.

Yes. Grant award recipients may apply for supplemental funding in a pending case or project. However, simply because Alliance Defending Freedom has funded the case or project in the past does not guarantee that supplemental funding will be granted. Each request for funding, whether for initial or supplemental funding, is considered on its own merits and will undergo the same review process. Applicants are encouraged to request funding for completing a defined stage, i.e., trial, appeal, etc., rather than for the entire case from trial through final appeal. Repeat requests for additional funding for the same stage of litigation is discouraged.

A request for supplemental funding is made by completing the supplemental grant application. The dates for submission of a supplemental request to Alliance Defending Freedom are the same as the cut-off dates for submission of a new grant request.

Generally, the answer is no. Funding of grants is prospective only, commencing from the time Alliance Defending Freedom receives the grant application. The only exceptions to this policy are:

1. When the grant application for a case is submitted before the court has made any interlocutory or dispositive rulings, and then, only in compliance with the Grants & Funding Guidelines.
2. If a grant has been previously awarded for a matter, a limited amount of funding may be awarded for work performed between the exhaustion of prior grant funds and the award of additional funds.
3. In the case of an amicus brief application.

Please see the Grants & Funding Guidelines for the parameters of these exceptions.