News & Events

CBF Awards $24.5 Million in Grants to Connecticut’s Legal Aid Programs
Historic funding levels for 2026 include new grantee, law school scholarships.

Hartford, Conn. — Connecticut Bar Foundation (CBF) and its Board of Directors has announced $24.5 million in grants to fund twelve Connecticut Legal Service Providers. Funding ensures that grantees can continue to deliver essential free civil legal services to low-income residents struggling in areas such as housing, domestic violence, education, immigration, and healthcare.

“Our Grantees are facing and responding to escalating community and client needs with fewer and more difficult-to-access resources. CBF, as the largest funder of legal aid in the state, has the responsibility to meet those increasing funding needs,” CBF Executive Director Angela Schlingheyde said.

Grants are made available on an annual basis through Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA); Interest on Trust Accounts (IOTA); Court Fees Grants-in-Aid (CFGIA); and Judicial Branch Grants-in-Aid (JBGIA). The Connecticut General Assembly stipulates that grants fund nonprofit organizations whose primary purpose is to provide civil legal services to low-income Connecticut residents. A portion of the funding is distributed to the three law schools in Connecticut, with scholarships awarded to qualified students based on financial need.

In addition to its existing grantees, CBF awarded funds to first-time applicant Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), a national organization with a field office in Hartford. KIND provides free legal representation to undocumented children arriving in the United States without a parent or legal guardian.   

The following Legal Service Providers received funding for 2026:

• Center for Children’s Advocacy
• The Children’s Law Center
• Connecticut Fair Housing Center
• Connecticut Legal Rights Project, Inc.
• Connecticut Legal Services
• Connecticut Veterans Legal Center
• Greater Hartford Legal Aid
• Kids in Need of Defense
• Lawyers for Children America
• New Haven Legal Assistance Association, Inc.
• Open Communities Alliance
• Statewide Legal Services of Connecticut

This year’s historic funding amount is an important step towards securing equitable access to the justice system, though more work is needed to close existing gaps. CBF recently published two reports that assessed the state’s civil legal aid system, one of which indicated that while the existing system provides invaluable services, demand far exceeds capacity.

“We will continue to work closely within the network and with our partners at the Judicial Branch to strengthen our state’s capacity to ensure that everyone has access to justice,” Schlingheyde said. "We all have a role to play from our dedicated colleagues working at legal aid organizations, to lawyers offering their services pro bono, to banks who make the decision to pay the highest rates on IOLTA and IOTA balances, which provides us with additional funding. Together we can ensure that every Connecticut citizen can get the help they need to secure safe and stable lives.”

To read CBF’s Legal Needs Reports, visit: https://ctbarfdn.org/ctlegalneeds. 

Connecticut Bar Foundation, established in 1952, is a non-profit organization whose mission is to facilitate systemic change that advances civil justice for all, regardless of power or resources, to achieve a more just and equitable society. The Foundation administers the Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) program for the benefit of legal service agencies and law school scholarships for students attending schools in Connecticut. Its James W. Cooper Fellows program facilitates programs that address access to justice and promote systemic change within the legal profession.