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IOLTA BACKGROUND INFORMATION

By Order dated October 10, 1985, the Supreme Court of South Carolina adopted the Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts program (IOLTA). This program permits lawyers and law firms to deposit nominal or short-term client funds in interest-bearing checking accounts. The interest generated by IOLTA accounts is forwarded by participating financial institutions directly to the South Carolina Bar Foundation, Inc., a not‑for‑profit organization. In 1987, the Board of Directors of the Foundation began making grants from the IOLTA fund.  

 

IOLTA grants may be awarded for three purposes:

(1)   to provide civil legal services to indigents in South Carolina;

(2)   to offer law related education to the public in South Carolina and

(3)   to improve the administration of justice in South Carolina.

 

Since the inception of the IOLTA program, more than $42 million in grant funding has been provided to promote access to justice throughout South Carolina.  

 

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS: Applicants must:

  1. be not-for-profit entities, tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the IRS Code or subsequent provision, or otherwise clearly demonstrate the charitable purposes of the applicant organization or the project and provide assurances that no IOLTA funds will be used for other than charitable purposes;

  2. submit a written grant proposal pursuant to the Foundation’s guidelines and within the established time schedule;
  3. respond adequately to the recommended grant proposal format and to any additional requests for information;
  4. carry out the program for which funds are requested, report on progress and results and promptly return any grant funds including interest earned thereon which are not utilized in accordance with the grant;
  5. cooperate with data collection and evaluation activities requested by the Foundation and
  6. submit financial statements required by the grant agreement.

IMPORTANT NOTICE:

Due to the continued decline in interest rates, IOLTA income remains critically low. As such, the South Carolina Bar Foundation has decided to limit the organizations from which it would accept grant applications. If your organization is not a current grantee, the Foundation will not be able to accept an application from you for the 2013 funding cycle. 

We regret that we cannot accept more requests, but the reality is that we are not able to meet the needs of the current grantee pool. As interest rates increase, IOLTA income should also rise, increasing the funds available for grants in future years. The Foundation is permitted to make an award to an entity that currently is not funded, but it will be at the Board's invitation that they apply.

 

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