Though RAROLC programs and presentations are made possible in large part by the volunteer efforts of legal professionals, the organization also relies on funding and support from a variety of public service organizations.

Currently, the three main types of funding for RAROLC partnership activities are:

United States Agency for International Development
Through a sub grant with the American Bar Association's Central and Eastern European Law Initiative, RAROLC has obtained core funding to support each of its current nine partnerships. USAID funding has also been received through the International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX) and the Foundation for Russian American and Economic Cooperation (FRAEC), winning three successful rounds of funding.


Open World Leadership Center
RAROLC has an ongoing contract with the Open World Program of the Library of Congress to sponsor visits by Russian and Ukranian judges, prosecutors, attorneys, and other court professionals to the United States.

To learn more about RAROLC’s relationship with the Open World program, click here.

Special Projects

Either directly through RAROLC or through separate organizations, RAROLC partners have obtained funding to work on various special projects. For example, in 2000, RAROLC partnerships provided training for new bailiffs (officers charged with the collection of court judgments) under a contract with the University of Maryland's IRIS program (Institutional Reform in the Informal Sector). In 2001, the Vermont / Karelia partnership completed a SPAN grant, which supported the operation of a civil legal assistance program for the indigent in Petrozavodsk. Two law schools that provide membership to RAROLC steering committees - the University of Vermont Law School and the Franklin Pierce Law School (N.H.) - have NISCUPP sister institution grants with Russian law schools; these grants are an outgrowth of legal community partnership activities.

Contact Information

For information about how to become a supporter of RAROLC, please contact:

Karin Bourassa - Executive Director, RAROLC
Harborside Professional Building, 85 Prim Road, Suite 202, Colchester VT 05446
Phone: 802.651.4327 : Fax: 802.651.9699
rusamlaw@icqmail.com