The CBF is audited annually by the respected firm of McGladrey & Pullen. The CBF's audits and 990 tax returns for the past three fiscal years are available below (the CBF's fiscal year is June 1- May 31).

The CBF's financial statements for the last three years reflect growth and positive results. The CBF has worked hard to stabilize and grow its grants and net assets over the past three years and is in a strong position looking ahead to the future.

In each of the past three years, the CBF made two-year grant commitments to support the general operations of pro bono and legal aid organizations in the Chicago. Grants are recorded as liabilities and expensed at the time they are approved by the CBF's Board of Directors. For multi-year grants, the CBF records an expense when the grant is awarded, not when it is paid. As a result, grant expense on an accrual basis is higher in years when multi-year grants are awarded and will be lower in the second year of a two-year grant. This does not affect the actual payment of the grant which is generally paid evenly each year. Therefore, grant numbers on the financial statements and 990 returns often don't match the annual amount of the CBF's grant paid in a given year to each organization.

In FY 2012, the CBF again awarded multi-year grants. Unrestricted net assets in FY 2012 would have been almost $500,000 higher had these multi-year grant commitments not been made in FY 2012 by the CBF.

Fiscal Year 2012
Form 990
Financial Report

Fiscal Year 2011
Form 990
Financial Report

Fiscal Year 2010
Form 990
Financial Report