Center for Justice & Accountability

“Form 990 is prepared by an outside accounting firm. After completion of the 990, cja is sent a draft of the returns to be reviewed and examined. Cja makes copies of the returns and distributes to those individuals charged with governance. At that time they can review and, if applicable, discuss any line items in the return with the accountant who has prepared the return. If all items are found to be acceptable, an authorization is signed and provided to authorize the accounting firm to process, sign and provide copies of the returns to be filed (paper or electronically) with the designated governmental agencies. The tax returns are then signed by the executive director and mailed with certified return receipt, or the signed form 8879 is provided to the accounting firm allowing electronic filing.”

“All cja board members and employees are required to fill out a conflict of interest disclosure annually. Each year, a written conflict of interest policy is reviewed and a disclosure statement must be filled out and signed. Completed disclosures are reviewed by the operations and finance director and filed with governance materials.”

“The compensation of the executive director is set by the executive committee of the board of directors and is based on analysis of comparability data and a performance review consisting of a self-assessment by the ed, interviews with staff, and a written evaluation prepared by the executive committee.”

“All tax filings are maintained in a secure environment and held available for inspection by tax authorities and the general public at cja's office in san francisco, ca.”

“All governing documents, conflict of interest policy and financial statements are maintained in a secure environment and held available for inspection by tax authorities and the general public at cja's office in san francisco, ca.”

“The mission is dedicated to deterring torture, war crimes, crimes against humanity and other severe human rights abuses around the world through litigation, policy advocacy and outreach in pursuit of truth, justice and redress for victims and survivors.”

“The center for justice and accountability (cja) is an international human rights organization dedicated to deterring torture, war crimes, crimes against humanity and other severe human rights abuses around the world through litigation, policy advocacy and outreach in pursuit of truth, justice and redress for victims and survivors.”

“Cja is a leading u.s.-based organization pursuing international human rights abusers through litigation. Cja has litigated cases against human rights violators from bosnia, cambodia, chile, china, colombia, el salvador, guatamala, haiti, honduras, indonesia, peru, somalia, syria and the united states. Additionally, cja participates in other cases of importance to the human rights community by authoring amicus briefs in human rights cases in the u.s. And spain as well as cases before multi-lateral jurisdictions such as the inter-american and european courts of human rights. Cja engages in impact litigation. Cja cases address human rights abuses ranging from those committed by the siad barre dictatorship in somalia, to the genocide of over 200,000 myans in guatemala, to the atrocities committed by the kymer rouge regime which is responsible for the deaths of more than 1.7 million people in cambodia. Cja also support initiatives that advance the us government's commitment to criminally prosecute human rights abusers. Cja works on an ongoing basis with u.s. And foreign law enforcement on deporation, extradition and denaturalization of perpetrators when appropriate. Cja works directly with ngos and governments around the world on transitional justice initiatives. We work alongside in-country prosecutors to hold human rights abusers criminally accountable in national courts, especially where defendants in cja's cases have been deported or extradited to stand trial in the home country. Cja attorneys provide expertise in witness preparation and testimony, introduction of evidence, and framing charges for human rights crimes. Cja partners with pro bono law firms to litigate our cases. During the 2017-18 fiscal year, cja worked with 14 law firms, a university, and one independent attorney, which together donated 10,320 hours of services valued at approximately $7,112,931. In addition, these entities contributed $46,681 to cover professional out of pocket expenses. Moreover, cja leverages numerous partnerships with leading human rights law clinics; forensic, military and country experts; survivor coalitions; medical professionals; torture treatment centers; and frontline, in-country ngos. These partnerships are foundational to our success in investigating and gathering for new cases, communicating with key constituencies, locating plaintiffs, and ensuring that torture survivors receive critical medical, psycho-social and legal services. Cja is one of the few international human rights ngos with a base of clients willing and able to speak out publicly against mass atrocities. At the heart of cja's mission lies the belief that survivors themselves are the most effective spokespeople against torture, genocide and other abuses. Cja integrates survivors into our media and public education strategies at every level and devotes considerable resources to supporting clients who, as the result of participating in litigation, are galvanized to dedicate more time and energy to anti-impunity efforts within their communities and home countries. Because of our client-centered approach, we are also members of the national consortium of torture treatment programs and the california consortium of torture treatment centers. The impact of cja's cases can be measured in at least five important ways: 1) the deterrent effect that cases have on potential and actual human rights abusers; 2) the development of a body of international human rights law jurisprudence; 3) the use of cja's cases around the world as a catalyst for building a constituency for transitional justice, accountability, and the rule of law; 4) the therapeutic benefits that torture survivors experience as a result of participating in litigation to seek justice; and 5) the historic record of truth our cases create. More information is available at www.cja.org”