CALIFORNIA WESTERN SCHOOL OF LAW Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

CALIFORNIA WESTERN SCHOOL OF LAW

EIN 95-2944594 · Education (B500)

What they do

CALIFORNIA WESTERN SCHOOL of LAW is AN INDEPENDENT, ABA/AALS and WASC SENIOR COLLEGE and UNIVERSITY COMMISSION (WSCUC) ACCREDITED S.D. LAW SCHOOL THAT PREPARES GRADUATES for THE PRACTICE of LAW THROUGH A CAREFULLY SEQUENCED PROGRAM of STUDY COMBINING TRADITIONAL LEGAL THEORY WITH HANDS-ON LEARNING IN REAL and SIMULATED CLIENT ENVIRONMENTS. CALIFORNIA WESTERNS CLINICS ARE A LEGAL RESOURCE to THE COMMUNITY, and THROUGH THEM THE LAW SCHOOL MAKES SIGNIFICANT, MEASURABLE CONTRIBUTIONS to THE SOLUTION of LEGAL PROBLEMS IN OUR COMMUNITY, OUR SOCIETY, and OUR WORLD.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $86.10 was reported for mission work. Use the spending picture below and ask what results that work produced.

Plain answer: A tax form cannot prove that a charity is doing good. It can show how the charity says it spent its money—and point out questions you should ask.

Basic facts we verified

IRS warning checkNo IRS revocation warning appears in this data.

Money report from 2024The charity has a recent tax report to read.

They explain their jobThe charity tells us what it is trying to do.

They name their leaders30 people are listed in the latest report.

You can reach themThey list contact information, so you can ask questions.

Money made simple

82.41%of revenue went to mission work86.1% of expenses · Program services

1.34%of revenue went to fundraising1.4% of expenses

$95.76spent for every $100 of revenueRevenue covered expenses this year.

12.01%of revenue went to management and office costs12.5% of expenses

$1.82in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

2.6%of its money came from giftsOther money may come from services or investments.

Ask these three easy questions

Who did you help? Ask for a recent story or report that shows real results.
What will my money do? Ask exactly what your gift will pay for.
Is this really the charity? Give only through its official website or confirmed phone number.

Pay context: The highest compensation shown in this filing is $429,446 for SEAN SCOTT (FMR PRES & DEAN). Compare pay with organizations of similar size and complexity.

Bottom line: Do not decide from a name, mission statement, or tax status alone. Look at where the money went, then ask what changed, who was helped, and what your gift will do. YouCanGiveBack does not endorse or grade organizations.

Money

Financial picture

Tax year 2024

A plain-language look at the latest Form 990 figures available. These numbers help you ask better questions; they do not, by themselves, rate whether a charity is good or bad.

$100revenue

How each $100 of revenue was used

The large number compares each expense with revenue. The smaller number shows its share of total expenses.

Total reported revenue$45,105,610

Mission workProgram services$37,170,96882.41% of revenue86.1% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$5,417,57712.01% of revenue12.5% of expenses

FundraisingAsking for donations$605,6601.34% of revenue1.4% of expenses

Revenue left after expensesReported annual surplus$1,911,4054.24% of revenueShown in gray on the chart

Total expenses$43,194,20595.76% of revenue

Gray means reported revenue left after expenses for this filing year. It does not necessarily mean cash sitting in a bank account.

Has the pattern changed?

Colored bars = expense mix: how each year’s expenses were divided. Total expenses vs. revenue shows whether the charity spent less or more than it received. The current filing is first.

YearExpense mixDetails

2024CurrentExpense mix: 86.1% mission · 12.5% management · 1.4% fundraisingTotal expenses: 95.76% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 86.1% mission · 12.7% management · 1.3% fundraisingTotal expenses: 90.85% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 85.7% mission · 12.8% management · 1.5% fundraisingTotal expenses: 88.55% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 86.1% mission · 12.0% management · 1.9% fundraisingTotal expenses: 93.38% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 84.7% mission · 13.9% management · 1.4% fundraisingTotal expenses: 89.58% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 86.6% mission · 12.7% management · 0.7% fundraisingTotal expenses: 101.41% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 80.6% mission · 18.4% management · 1.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 110.12% of revenue

2017Expense mix: 76.2% mission · 22.2% management · 1.6% fundraisingTotal expenses: 106.23% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$45,105,610

Expenses$43,194,205

Annual surplus $1,911,405 Revenue was higher than expenses for this filing year.

Reported spending amounts

Mission work means the Form 990 category called program services. These are reported accounting categories—not an independent measurement of results.

Mission work (program services)$37,170,968 · 86.1% of expenses

Management and office costs$5,417,577 · 12.5% of expenses

Fundraising$605,660 · 1.4% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$45,105,610

Expenses$43,194,205

Assets$78,519,082

Income$51,300,285

Contributions$1,166,221

Mission work (program services)$37,170,968

Fundraising$605,660

Management and general$5,417,577

Stocks and bonds$30,013,441

Accounting fees$80,918

People

Leadership and board

Tax year 2024

Names, titles, time, and compensation below are reported by the organization on its Form 990.

People reported as paid

Person and titleCompensation

SEAN SCOTTFMR PRES & DEAN · 65 hrs/week $429,446Base $382,166 · Other $47,280

HANNAH BRENNER JOHNSONFMR VICE DEAN · 50 hrs/week $270,445Base $234,115 · Other $36,330

ERIN SHELEYFMR PROF. OF LAW · 40 hrs/week $243,397Base $215,619 · Other $27,778

JESSICA K FINKPROF. OF LAW · 40 hrs/week $233,449Base $161,071 · Other $72,378

WILLIAM J ACEVESPROF. OF LAW · 40 hrs/week $229,985Base $220,955 · Other $9,030

DANIEL B YEAGERPROF. OF LAW · 40 hrs/week $227,527Base $219,288 · Other $8,239

PHILLIP T GRAGGASSOC DEAN LIBRARY · 50 hrs/week $223,430Base $196,347 · Other $27,083

CYNTHIA BERTRANDFORMER CFO · 50 hrs/week $223,410Base $202,449 · Other $20,961

JOANNA K SAXPROF. OF LAW · 40 hrs/week $223,220Base $211,168 · Other $12,052

LISA FERREIRADEAN OF STUDENT · 40 hrs/week $211,431Base $172,950 · Other $38,481

DAVID BLAKEFMR VP OF ADMIN · 40 hrs/week $30,409Base $27,920 · Other $2,489

Compensation alone does not tell whether pay is reasonable. Consider the charity’s size, work, location, and results.

See everyone listed on the board or leadership roster (30)

SEAN SCOTTFMR PRES & DEAN

HANNAH BRENNER JOHNSONFMR VICE DEAN

ERIN SHELEYFMR PROF. OF LAW

JESSICA K FINKPROF. OF LAW

WILLIAM J ACEVESPROF. OF LAW

DANIEL B YEAGERPROF. OF LAW

PHILLIP T GRAGGASSOC DEAN LIBRARY

CYNTHIA BERTRANDFORMER CFO

JOANNA K SAXPROF. OF LAW

LISA FERREIRADEAN OF STUDENT

DAVID BLAKEFMR VP OF ADMIN

THOMAS J LOFARO ESQTRUSTEE

TINA FRYAR ESQTRUSTEE

SALLY WONG AVERY ESQTRUSTEE

ROY MORROW BELL ESQTRUSTEE

KPISH GOYAL ESQTRUSTEE

ROBERT K SCOTT ESQTRUSTEE

RAHIL K SWIGART ESQVICE CHAIR

MIRIAM HECHLER BAERCUR DEAN & PRES

MICHAEL J WHITTON ESQCHAIR

LISA DORDOEZ PHDTRUSTEE

LIAM VAVSOURCUR VICE DEAN

BRUCE E MACDONALD ESQTRUSTEE

KENNETH L GREENMAN JR ESQTRUSTEE

JEANNIE L POSNERCURRENT CFO

JASON S BAZAR ESQTRUSTEE

GAYLE M BLATT ESQTRUSTEE

DUANE W LAYTON ESQTRUSTEE

D RUSSELL HYMAS ESQSECRETARY

CHARLES R GREBING ESQTRUSTEE

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1975
Location: 225 CEDAR ST, SAN DIEGO, CA 92101-3046
County: San Diego
In care of: JEANNIE L POSNER
Primary officer: JEANNIE L POSNER, CFO

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Emailinfo@cwsl.edu Phone(619) 525-7073

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2024
Tax period began: August 1, 2024
Return type: 990
Tax preparer: WEST RHODE & ROBERTS
NTEE classification: Education (B500)