Equal Justice Legacy Society - Options for Planned Giving

Find the Right Gift.

Thank you for taking time to consider the benefits of Planned Giving with the Philadelphia Bar Foundation. Your planned gift helps ensure that the Bar Foundation will continue to achieve excellence while advancing access to justice for all Philadelphians.

Lifetime Gifts and Bequests

You may make a gift at any time during your life, simply by writing a check payable to the Philadelphia Bar Foundation. This gift will generate a federal income tax deduction for most people, reducing the cost of the gift to you. Remembering the Bar Foundation in your will or bequest is the easiest and most popular method of charitable giving. Your gift costs nothing now, but offers the satisfaction of knowing that your legacy will ensure the Bar Foundation's future and impact Philadelphia's most vulnerable residents. 

Gift of Stock or Other Securities

Giving stock to a charitable organization is a wonderful way to stretch your gift even further. If you have owned the stock for more than a year, you receive a tax deduction for the full fair market value of your securities and avoid paying any capital gains tax on appreciated stock. 

Retirement Plan Assets

Unused retirement assets can be used to make a charitable gift. Making the Philadelphia Bar Foundation the beneficiary of your retirement plan ensures that the full amount of your retirement assets will benefit our mission in promoting equal access to justice. 

Life Insurance

The gift of a life insurance policy carries the benefit of a significant charitable deduction. Consider these two ways to set up this gift: 

  • To receive a significant charitable deduction, irrevocably designate the Philadelphia Bar Foundation as both the owner and beneficiary of your policy. 
  • Retain ownership of the policy, but name the Philadelphia Bar Foundation as its irrevocable beneficiary. 

Consult with your insurance agent for more details. 

Charitable Trusts

Charitable trusts allow you to make a significant contribution to the mission of the Philadelphia Bar Foundation. There are two types of charitable trusts: 

  • Charitable Remainder Trusts: allows you to irrevocably transfer assets, while you and your beneficiaries receive payments over the course of your life and another period of time you choose. The Bar Foundation would then receive the remainder of the trust. 
  • Charitable Lead Trusts: allows you to donate a portion of the trust to the Bar Foundation. When a specified time has passed, the beneficiaries would then receive the remainder of the trust. 

These trusts also yield an income tax deduction in the year the trust is established and may be used in planning for retirement and providing funds for education expenses for children, grandchildren, or other loved ones. 

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