Public Counsel

“Public counsel has two members: the los angeles county bar association (lacba) and the beverly hills bar association (bhba).”

“Public counsels bylaws provide that the maximum number of authorized board members is 100. Lacba has the right to appoint 17 and bhba has the right to appoint 8 of public counsels board members, with each such appointed member subject to the approval of the board.”

“Form 990 is prepared by an independent cpa, reviewed and approved by management and the audit committee, and submitted to board of directors executive committee for final approval. A copy of the final form 990 is then sent electronically to all board members prior to it being filed.”

“A conflict of interest policy has been approved by the board of directors. A conflict of interest disclosure statement is furnished annually to each director, officer, and key employee. The forms are reviewed and signed with any conflicts noted and returned to a staff member who handles board affairs.”

“The compensation of the organization's ceo, other compensated officers, and key employees is approved by the compensation committee of the board of directors after consideration of comparable salaries paid by similarly situated organizations. The compensation committee is made up of independent board members and its decisions are contemporaneously documented.”

“Governing documents, conflict of interest policies, and financial statements are available to executive staff and the board of directors. Upon request from the general public, public counsel will provide access to these documents as required by law.”

“During the FYE August 31, 2017, Public Counsel implemented a new program service activity as follows: Women and Girls' Rights: Public Counsel's Audrey Irmas Project for Women and Girls' Rights launched in May 2017 and is Public Counsel's newest program area. The goal of the project is to advance equality and economic opportunity for low income women and girls, while deepening Public Counsel's existing work on gender-related issues across project areas. In addition to direct services, the project works with partners in systems change efforts to improve the lives of women and girls and increase their access to justice. The project is currently focusing on three key areas: economic justice and opportunity, including workplace rights and small business development for women entrepreneurs; girls' empowerment (Alliance for Girls, schools K-12); and meeting the needs of women veterans.”