J.L. Turner Legal Association

The J.L. Turner Legal Association (JLTLA) is the premier African-American bar association located in Dallas, Texas, founded in 1952. While the JLTLA shares a similar name with the Foundation established in 1996, their purposes differ significantly. The members of JLTLA created the Foundation to focus on raising charitable donations for various initiatives.

The Foundation is recognized as a 501(c)(3) public charity that collects tax-deductible donations to support (a) legal scholarships aimed at law students and paralegals, thereby increasing the number of African-American lawyers and paralegals, (b) pre-law school educational enrichment activities designed to inspire students to pursue law as a career, (c) pro bono legal service organizations that cater to the minority community, (d) specialized training for practicing lawyers to enhance their ability to provide pro bono services, and (e) other general educational and charitable efforts to a lesser extent. Members of the Foundation, who are also part of JLTLA, frequently lead training sessions funded by the Foundation, especially those organized by JLTLA. The Foundation hosts an Annual Scholarship and Awards Gala, and donations made to it are tax deductible.

As a professional bar association, JLTLA is a certified provider of continuing legal education seminars for its members and other Texas lawyers. It also offers a directory of practicing African-American lawyers in the DFW Metroplex to the public, organizes and conducts workshops in underserved neighborhoods of Dallas on various legal topics, provides attorney mentors for law students in the Dallas area, maintains an active paralegal section, and participates in community service activities. JLTLA has its roots as an unincorporated association of distinguished African-American lawyers who contributed significantly to civil rights pro bono legal service through their independent law firms even before its formal incorporation in 1975. It’s important to note that JLTLA is not recognized as a public charity under federal tax laws, which means contributions to it are not tax deductible. Donors to JLTLA will not receive receipts from the Foundation for charitable tax deduction purposes.

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