Legal Fundraisers

What people raise for here

Legal trouble arrives with a number attached, whether that's a retainer, a filing fee, a second round of representation, or an appeal. The fundraisers in this category cover custody and divorce fights, wrongful charges, civil disputes between neighbors or family, wrongful termination, immigration matters, and criminal defense.

Most are started by someone standing next to the person the money is for, usually a spouse, a sibling, or a longtime friend writing plainly about what happened and what the money pays for. You don't need a dramatic story to start one, because the facts you already have are the ones that do the work: what the matter is, what stage it's at, and what the money covers.

Legal defense is welcome here

GiveSendGo welcomes many fundraisers that other platforms turn away, including legal defense fundraisers, as long as they follow our Terms of Service. Being part of a difficult or controversial situation doesn't disqualify someone from asking for help.

The limits are the same for everyone, and the rules for legal fundraisers are simple: no fundraiser can promote or glorify violence, none can raise money for illegal activity, and every one of them has to be transparent about how the funds will be used.

One rule applies to legal cases specifically, and you should know about it before you start. If the case involves violent or weapons-related charges (assault, reckless endangerment, weapons or firearm charges, domestic violence, homicide), the funds can't go to the creator or the defendant directly. A licensed US attorney or law firm actively on the case has to be named as the recipient. If no licensed attorney is willing to take that role, GiveSendGo can't release the funds, so have that conversation early.

How to raise money for legal fees

You don't need a nonprofit, an EIN, or a lawyer already on retainer to set one up. A few of the decisions stick once you publish, though, so read these first.

• Pick the recipient's country first, because it's locked once the fundraiser is created, and getting it wrong means starting over with a new one.
• State the matter, the stage it's at, and what the money covers. A realistic goal, a specific breakdown, and a clear story with a direct ask are what the help desk names as the difference between a fundraiser that works and one that stalls.
• Name who receives the money, either yourself or someone else, as long as that person is 18 or older, lives in the fundraiser's country, and has a bank account there.
• Send the link to the people who already know the situation, then keep sending it. Our help desk puts consistent sharing and regular updates ahead of a single announcement.

Start a GiveSendGo

What it costs, and when the money moves

GiveSendGo doesn't take a cut. There's no platform fee. What's deducted is the payment processor's fee: 2.7% + 30¢ per gift for US fundraisers, 3.5% + 30¢ outside the US. On a $100 gift to a US fundraiser, $97 reaches you. A $250 gift lands at $242.95, and outside the US that $100 gift lands at $96.20.

We can charge nothing because of the optional tip at checkout: every giver sees a suggested tip to GiveSendGo, adjustable to any amount including $0, and that's what funds our operating costs. One separate setting to know about: an optional percentage to GiveSendGo set while creating the fundraiser is added on top of each gift and shown to the people giving at checkout, and it's editable anytime from your fundraiser's Settings.

Your first gift becomes available 5 days after it's received. Every gift after that becomes available on a rolling 3-day basis. Once you request a transfer, it typically lands in your bank within 2 to 3 business days. Non-USD transfers can take longer. You can request one yourself from the Transfers tab whenever funds are available, or set transfers to go out weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly.

• Verification comes first, and nobody is exempt, because it runs through the payment partner as a standard financial-industry requirement and finishes 1 to 2 business days after the recipient's ID and the first gift are both in.
• In the US, connect a checking account, since transfers are sent as checking transactions and a savings account may be rejected by the bank.

Start a GiveSendGo

What private does, and what still shows

You can set your fundraiser to private: it stays out of GiveSendGo search results and category listings, so only people you send the link to will find it. Your name still shows to anyone who opens it.

Private controls who can find the page. It does not hide who you are. Creator and recipient names always display on a GiveSendGo fundraiser, and a fully anonymous fundraiser isn't possible.

If your case is active and you're weighing what a public fundraiser could mean for it, that's a conversation for your attorney. GiveSendGo can tell you exactly how the platform works. It can't tell you how a fundraiser interacts with your case.

If you came here to give

Plenty of people come here to give rather than to raise. You came to help someone through a legal fight, and every fundraiser listed above has been published at least 5 days and has taken $100 or more in online gifts, which is what it takes to be listed here. When you give, you can leave a comment, and it stays on the page beside your gift.

Support a legal fundraiser on this page