Legal Aid Chicago

What Legal Aid Chicago does

Legal Aid Chicago is a Cook County-based nonprofit legal aid organization that provides free civil legal services to people living in poverty across Chicago and suburban Cook County, Illinois. Founded in 1969 (originally as Legal Assistance Foundation, rebranded to Legal Aid Chicago in 2025), the organization operates with 206 full-time attorneys, staff, and fellows organized into six specialized practice groups: Housing, Children & Families, Consumer, Immigrants & Workers' Rights, Public Benefits, and Long-Term Care. Its service portfolio includes direct legal representation, 32 community-based legal clinics, court-based help desks, in-hospital legal support through the Medical-Legal Partnership with UChicago Medicine, online intake via Illinois Legal Aid Online, and self-service tools such as the Legal Health Check-Up Tool and Eviction Toolkit. In 2025 the organization handled 13,700+ individual legal matters with a 93%+ case success rate, generating $31,785,000 in financial impact for clients through increased assets, income, and reduced debt.

The organization's technology stack is intentionally lightweight: case management systems, web-based intake, SMS client communications, and multilingual outreach resources, supplemented by a $581,030 LSC Technology Initiative Grant received in November 2024 to fund service-delivery technology improvements. There is no indication of proprietary AI/ML tooling. Service delivery is supported by a 1,067-volunteer pro bono network that contributed 10,230 hours in 2023 (a 44% year-over-year increase), partnerships with 45+ law firms including Sidley Austin, Kirkland & Ellis, Dentons, Latham & Watkins, and Winston & Strawn, and co-funded programs such as the $7.1M Right to Counsel Pilot Program and the $2.6M Recovery Legal Care program. The leadership team is led by CEO/Executive Director Katherine Shank with a full C-suite (CFO, CIO, CSO, CAO) and dedicated practice-group directors.

Legal Aid Chicago operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with no equity ownership. Revenue is generated exclusively through grants and donations: federal Legal Services Corporation funding, state and city grants, foundation grants, individual donations (notably a $3.6M unrestricted gift from Mackenzie Scott in January 2024), planned giving/bequests, and corporate event sponsorships (Annual Luncheon, Justice Is Served). All services are provided at no cost to eligible clients. The organization's primary customer-facing brand is free civil legal representation for income-eligible Cook County residents across six target segments: people at risk of homelessness, seniors and veterans, women and children, survivors of violence and trafficking, people with disabilities, and workers' rights claimants. The business is fundamentally a grant- and donation-funded professional services organization rather than a commercial enterprise.

Name

Legal Aid Chicago

Legal name

Legal Aid Chicago

Website

https://legalaidchicago.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Legal Aid Chicago is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing free civil legal services to low-income residents of Cook County, Illinois across housing, family law, immigration, consumer, public benefits, and workers' rights through 206 staff and a 1,067-volunteer pro bono network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Legal Aid

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (54111), Individual and Family Services (6241), Human Rights Organizations (813311)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Defense & Legal Aid Services (BPAIAFAC)

Keywords

• Civil legal aid
• Legal services
• Public interest law
• Nonprofit legal services
• Pro bono representation

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government Grants: Primary funding from Legal Services Corporation (LSC) and other federal/state government grants. Illinois could lose $18M in legal aid funding if certain budget proposals pass, affecting Legal Aid Chicago and other providers.
2. Private Donations: Individual donations, corporate matching gifts, and contributions from foundations including a $3.6M gift from MacKenzie Scott in 2024.
3. Planned Giving / Bequests: Estate planning vehicles including wills, trusts, retirement account beneficiaries, donor advised funds, and life insurance policy designations. The Legal Aid Chicago Remembered honorary society recognizes planned giving donors.
4. Event Sponsorships: Corporate sponsorships from law firms and businesses for Annual Luncheon and Justice Is Served events. Multiple sponsorship tiers including Leadership, Director, Stewardship, Collaborator, Defender, and Associate levels.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Legal Aid Chicago is a nonprofit organization that provides free civil legal services to low-income individuals and families living in poverty in Cook County, Illinois. The organization offers direct legal representation, advice, brief services, and community legal education across multiple practice areas including housing, children and families, consumer, immigrants and workers' rights, public benefits, and long-term care.

Product overview

Legal Aid Chicago is a nonprofit legal aid organization providing free civil legal services to people living in poverty in Cook County, Illinois. The organization offers a unified portfolio of legal services organized into practice groups covering housing, children and families, consumer law, immigrants and workers' rights, public benefits, and long-term care. Service delivery includes direct legal representation, community-based legal clinics, court-based help desks, online tools such as the Legal Health Check-Up Tool and Eviction Toolkit, and specialized programs like the Medical-Legal Partnership and Trafficking Survivors' Assistance Project. The organization also coordinates extensive pro bono volunteer opportunities through partnerships with law firms and community organizations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Housing Practice Group Provides free legal representation and advice to low-income tenants and homeowners facing eviction, unsafe housing conditions, foreclosure, and other housing-related civil legal issues in Cook County, Illinois.
• Children & Families Practice Group Provides legal representation to low-income families and children on issues including family law, guardianship, education rights, juvenile matters, and child welfare.
• Consumer Practice Group Provides free legal assistance to low-income consumers facing debt collection, predatory lending, bankruptcy, identity theft, and unfair consumer practices.
• Immigrants & Workers' Rights Practice Group Provides free legal representation to immigrants and low-wage workers on immigration matters, employment disputes, wage theft, and workplace discrimination.
• Public Benefits Practice Group Assists low-income individuals with obtaining and maintaining public benefits such as SNAP, Medicaid, TANF, Social Security, and other government assistance programs.
• Long-Term Care Practice Group Provides free legal services to elderly and disabled residents on issues including long-term care planning, nursing home residents' rights, and adult guardianship.
• Medical-Legal Partnership

Quantifiable outcome

• 13,700+ individual legal matters handled annually with 93%+ case success rate
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, minor and core.

• University of Chicago Medicine Trauma CenterflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 June 20262026 Champions of Justice Award honoree recognized for outstanding partnership and collaboration with Legal Aid Chicago through the Medical-Legal Partnership program.
• Kirkland & EllisminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 14 March 2024Partnership for first-ever Pro Se Asylum Clinic. Kirkland & Ellis attorneys provided volunteer training in the morning, and by afternoon 19 attorneys with 9 interpreters assisted 21 individuals with asylum applications.
• UChicago MedicinecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 December 2022Medical-Legal Partnership providing in-hospital legal support for trauma patients injured by violence. $2.6 million pilot project called Recovery Legal Care helps patients and families focus on healing while lawyers handle public benefits, housing assistance, and employment issues. Goal is to prevent hospital readmissions.
• UIC Great Lakes Center for Farmworker Health and WellbeingminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 September 2022Legal Aid Chicago serves as collaborative grant partner with UIC's $6 million NIOSH-funded center. Supervisory Attorney Lauren Dana serves on Advisory Committee. The partnership strengthens the network of service organizations serving Illinois farmworkers.
• DentonscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 July 2022Order of Protection Appeals Project partnership providing appellate representation to individuals wrongfully denied protective orders. Dentons brings significant resources and attention to these cases, achieving appellate victory in July 2022.
• Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing (LCBH)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 April 2022Right to Counsel Pilot Program partnership with $7.1 million grant from City of Chicago Department of Housing. LCBH leads the program with Legal Aid Chicago and CARPLS as partners providing brief advice and full legal representation to low-income tenants at risk of eviction in Chicago.
• CARPLScoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 April 2022Partner in Right to Counsel Pilot Program alongside Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing and Legal Aid Chicago. CARPLS is Cook County's largest provider of free legal services.
• Resilience (Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGender Based Violence partner agency for the Comprehensive Legal Assistance for Survivors Project (CLASP). Jointly empowers survivors of sexual violence to assert their rights and seek justice through trauma-informed advocacy.
• HOPE Fair Housing CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFair housing partnership with Eviction Resource Toolkit to combat housing discrimination. In April 2024, partnered to file lawsuit against Fulton Grace Realty for source of income discrimination.
• Sidley Austin LLPflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerLeadership Level sponsor of Legal Aid Chicago's 2026 Annual Luncheon. Among Chicago's largest and most prestigious law firms supporting the organization's fundraising events.
• Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLPflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerDirector Level sponsor of 2026 Annual Luncheon supporting access to justice mission.
• Katten Muchin Rosenman LLPflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerDirector Level sponsor and author of amicus brief supporting Order of Protection Appeal Victory. Strong pro bono partnership supporting survivors of domestic violence.
• Latham & Watkins LLPflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerDirector Level sponsor of 2026 Annual Luncheon supporting Legal Aid Chicago's mission.
• Winston & Strawn LLPflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerDirector Level sponsor of 2026 Annual Luncheon supporting equal justice initiatives.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• The Legal Aid Society: The Legal Aid Society (NYC) is the closest direct peer - an LSC-funded nonprofit providing free civil legal services to low-income residents, with multiple practice groups, court-based help desks, and a large pro bono network. Operates under a similar Legal Services Corporation grantee framework serving a single major metro jurisdiction.
• Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles: LAFLA is a major LSC-funded legal aid organization serving Los Angeles County's low-income residents across housing, family, public benefits, and consumer law. Highly comparable in scale, multi-practice-group structure, and courthouse/clinic-based service delivery.
• Greater Boston Legal Services: GBLS is a Boston-area LSC grantee providing free civil legal aid across similar practice areas (housing, family, public benefits, immigration). Closely analogous in service model, practice group structure, and pro bono coordination.
• Community Legal Services of Philadelphia: CLS Philadelphia is an LSC-funded legal aid organization serving Philadelphia's low-income residents with a comparable range of civil practice areas and a comparable operating model including neighborhood-based offices and pro bono engagement.
• Maryland Legal Aid: Maryland Legal Aid is a statewide LSC grantee providing free civil legal services through multiple offices across similar practice groups (housing, family, public benefits, consumer). Comparable in scale, scope, and multidisciplinary service-delivery approach.
• Atlanta Legal Aid Society: Atlanta Legal Aid Society is a Georgia-based LSC grantee providing free civil legal services in similar practice areas using neighborhood offices, clinics, and pro bono volunteers. Directly comparable model to Legal Aid Chicago.
• Lone Star Legal Aid: Lone Star Legal Aid is one of the largest LSC-funded civil legal aid programs in the U.S., serving low-income Texans across housing, family, public benefits, and consumer law. Comparable in mission, structure, and practice-group organization.
• CARPLS (Cook County): CARPLS is Cook County's largest provider of free legal services and an explicit partner with Legal Aid Chicago in the Right to Counsel Pilot Program. Highly comparable mission and service model in the same geography, making it the closest local direct peer.
• Lawyers' Committee for Better Housing: LCBH is a Chicago-based nonprofit legal aid organization focused specifically on housing-related legal services for low-income renters. It is the lead partner with Legal Aid Chicago on the Right to Counsel Pilot, making it a tight direct peer within the same geography.

Regional players

• Chicago Volunteer Legal Services: CVLS is a Chicago-based nonprofit that coordinates volunteer attorney referrals to low-income residents across civil matters. Same geography and client base as Legal Aid Chicago, but uses a referral-based pro bono model rather than direct staff representation, making it a complementary regional peer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/legalaidchicago
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/legalaidchicago
• Instagraminstagram.com/legalaidchicago

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Legal Aid Chicago