2026-06-30T15:11:52-06:00 2025-12-31 474306215 Mullins PC 7625 Wisconsin Avenue Bethesda MD 20814 990 2025-01-01 043289466 Nonhuman Rights Project Inc % Gail Price-Wise NONH 8882552612 611 Pennsylvania Avenue SE STE 345 Washington DC 20003 GAIL PRICE-WISE President & Treasurer 8882552612 2026-06-30 true JOHN MULLINS P01429307 2027706371 2026-06-30 2025 2025-03-06 01:10:19Z Gail PriceWise 611 Pennsylvania Avenue SE Ste 345 Washington DC 20003 2138053 false X www.nonhumanrights.org X 1995 MA The Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) is the only civil rights organization in The United States dedicated solely to securing fundamental rights for nonhuman animals. 5 4 13 10 0 0 2015918 1992890 0 137171 139829 3340 5334 2156429 2138053 0 0 1125837 1387939 0 260599 457640 705007 1583477 2092946 572952 45107 4134562 4258441 72584 94725 4061978 4163716 The Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) is the only civil rights organization in The United States dedicated solely to securing fundamental rights for nonhuman animals. false false 867265 Education & Public Relations: See Schedule O. 794038 Litigation: See Schedule O. 27676 Advocacy: See Schedule O. 1688979 true true false true false false false false false false true false false false false true true false false false false false false false false false false false false true false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false false true 28 0 true 13 true false false false false false false false false false false false false X 5 4 false false false false false false false true false false false true true true true true true true true false AK AL AR CA CO CT DC FL GA HI IL KS KY MA MD ME MI MN MS NC ND NH NJ NV NY OH OK OR PA RI SC TN UT VA WA WI WV X X The Organization 8882552612 611 Pennsylvania Avenue SE 345 Washington DC 20003 Christopher Berry Executive Director 40.00 0.00 X 188931 0 12722 Margaret Cusack Managing Director & Board Secretary 40.00 0.00 X 164790 0 12363 Jacob Davis Senior Staff Attorney 40.00 0.00 X 113359 0 8727 Spencer Lo Senior Staff Attorney 40.00 0.00 X 115458 0 5524 Lauren Choplin Communications Director 40.00 0.00 X 106173 0 8322 Courtney Fern Director of Campaigns 40.00 0.00 X 102977 0 8561 Gail Price-Wise President & Treasurer 10.00 15.00 X X 41029 0 4763 Jane Berkey Director 0.10 0.00 X 0 0 0 Justin Marceau Director 0.10 0.00 X 0 0 0 Raffael Fasel Director 0.10 0.00 X 0 0 0 Jeff Fraser Director 0.10 0.00 X 0 0 0 832717 0 60982 6 false true false 1992890 1992890 139829 139829 109 109 0 Clothing 900099 3281 3281 Other Income 900099 1944 1944 5225 2138053 5225 0 139938 205819 170206 4813 30800 996437 824024 23300 149113 25312 20932 592 3788 67011 55416 1567 10028 93360 77206 2183 13971 936 936 51296 51296 1466 1466 98504 92293 6211 34033 20576 11446 2011 13480 13054 225 201 11846 11846 8003 8003 Litigation Program Expenses 74592 74000 490 102 Education & Public Relations 361023 310131 307 50585 Grassroots Advocacy 30919 30919 Bank & Merchant Fees 18909 222 18687 2092946 1688979 143368 260599 335640 693265 269582 112925 536 20086 23095 65147 42339 34654 22808 3474064 3406348 4134562 4258441 72584 94725 72584 94725 X 4061978 4163716 4061978 4163716 4134562 4258441 45107 56631 0 X false true X true false X 1637371 1567772 1273291 2015918 1992890 8487242 1637371 1567772 1273291 2015918 1992890 8487242 3022652 5464590 45441 37461 75907 137171 139938 435918 2703 1550 3281 7534 11227 490 1790 1944 15451 8946145 0.61080 0.62230 X RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED 2575 1788 4363 2088583 2092946 254647 63662 158130 182908 229174 254647 824859 1237289 11955 2834 4996 4363 24148 39533 45727 57294 63662 206216 309324 3369 180 3848 2575 9972 65147 42339 22808 22808 X 2754243 56631 561025 617656 2136587 1466 1466 2138053 2652505 561025 561025 2091480 1466 1466 2092946 Part X, Line 2-Text in footnote regarding FIN 48 (ASC 740) The Organization follows the Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification, which provides guidance on accounting for uncertainty in income taxes recognized in The Organizations financial statements, if any. At year end, The Organization had no unrecognized tax benefits related to uncertain tax positions in its information return that would qualify for either recognition or disclosure in its financial statements. The Organizations policy would be to recognize interest and penalties on tax positions related to its unrecognized tax benefits in income tax expense in the financial statements. Through year end, there have been no matters that would have resulted in an accrual for interest and/or penalties. Generally, the tax years before 2021 are no longer subject to examination by federal, state, or local taxing authorities. X false false false false false false false false false MARGARET CUSACK Managing Director Board Secretary 164790 4354 8009 177153 CHRISTOPHER BERRY Executive Director 188931 5988 6734 201653 Committee meeting documentation Part VI line 8b There are no committees with authority to act on behalf of The Board. Form 990 governing body review Part VI line 11 Nonhuman Rights Project Inc, has its form 990 prepared by an outside accounting firm and has established the following review process to ensure that the information reported is complete and accurate. When the form 990 has been prepared, it is electronically sent to the in-house bookkeeper and two members of The Board for review. Any comments are then grouped, summarized and provided to the outside accountants. Each issue is documented and addressed until the return is finalized and approved for filing. Conflict of interest policy compliance Part VI line 12c Annually all Board members and officers of The Organization must fill out a conflict of interest disclosure. In connection with any actual or possible conflict of interest, an interested person must disclose the existence of the financial interest and be given the opportunity to disclose all material facts to the directors and members of committees with governing Board delegated powers considering the proposed transaction or arrangement. After disclosure of the financial interest and all material facts, and after any discussion with the interested person, he/she shall leave the governing Board or committee meeting while the determination of a conflict of interest is discussed and voted upon. The remaining Board or committee members shall decide if a conflict of interest exists. CEO executive director top management comp Part VI line 15a The Organization periodically reviews compensation for officers and key employees to ensure that compensation remains reasonable and consistent with market practices. At least every three years, the Board engages an independent compensation consultant to conduct a compensation study using peer organization data, market salary surveys, and other relevant compensation benchmarks. The findings and recommendations are reviewed by the Board in determining compensation. The most recent study was completed in 2025 Other officer or key employee compensation Part VI line 15b The Organization utilizes the same independent compensation study for all employee compensation reviews. For employees other than officers and key employees, the Executive Director reviews compensation using the consultants analysis of peer organizations, market salary data, and other relevant benchmarks to help ensure compensation remains reasonable and competitive. The most recent study was completed in 2025. Governing documents etc available to public Part VI line 19 The Organizations governing documents, conflict of interest policy, and financial statements are available upon request. General explanation attachment Program Service Accomplishments: The Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) is the only civil rights organization in the United States dedicated solely to securing legal rights for nonhuman animals. The NhRPs work is informed in part by the playbooks of other civil rights movements that transformed the legal system through high-profile litigation and data-driven public engagement. . Litigation Program: The NhRPs groundbreaking work to date has focused on bringing habeas corpus petitions to challenge the wrongful confinement of nonhuman animals in places like laboratories and zoos. Science tells us that the biological and social needs of many species simply cannot be met in captivity: their instincts and natural behaviors are inseparably tied to an appropriate habitat and the freedom to make their own decisions. Science also tells us that many species have some comprehension of the past and the future, and that, like humans, members of these species suffer immensely in captivity because they can anticipate that their confinement may be never-ending. The writ of habeas corpus has existed for centuries and is meant to protect anyone unjustly imprisoned. NhRP petitionswhich have resulted in the worlds first-ever habeas corpus hearings on behalf of nonhuman animalsargue that common law courts must recognize our nonhuman animal clients as legal persons with the fundamental right to liberty protected by the writ of habeas corpus, and then order their release to a sanctuary, where this right will be respected. . NhRP cases have provided nonhuman animals with access to our justice system that they wouldnt otherwise have had. The NhRP made history and headlines in 2022 when the New York Court of Appealsone of the most influential state courts in the USagreed to hear the NhRPs case on behalf of Happy, an elephant living in solitary confinement at the Bronx Zoo. This marked the first time the highest court of any English-speaking jurisdiction heard a habeas corpus case brought on behalf of a nonhuman being. . In 2024, the NhRP presented oral arguments before the Colorado Supreme Court on behalf of five elephants at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, only the second U.S. state high court to take up the question of the right to liberty for nonhuman animals. In 2025, the Michigan Court of Appeals heard and rendered a decision in our case on behalf of the chimpanzees held captive at the DeYoung Family Zoo, a case supported by world-renowned primatologists including the late Jane Goodall. We also filed new habeas corpus petitions in Los Angeles and Pennsylvania, bringing the question of elephant liberty before courts in both states for the first time. In Pennsylvania, those filings led to hearings and, in early 2026, the third habeas corpus order for a nonhuman animal in U.S. history. The NhRPs persistence and bold approach are changing the legal status quo and have catalyzed a global conversation about how our legal systems view and treat nonhuman animals. As a result, courts and legislatures around the world are beginning to recognize the systemic problem of animals rightlessness, the suffering it has caused, and the ways it undermines the values and principles of justice on which our own human rights depend. . Public Engagement: In 2024, the NhRP launched a public opinion research initiative designed to strengthen its work inside the courtroom by informing how its legal arguments are understood and received outside of it. In 2025, the NhRP completed both quantitative and qualitative polling and applied the results to inform its litigation, communications, and broader strategic approach. . This work generated data on public attitudes toward legal rights for nonhuman animals and identified the narratives, comparisons, and terminology that are most effective across political, demographic, and value-based segments. Through qualitative research with legal professionals, the NhRP learned which arguments are viewed as most persuasive and legally viable, while also identifying language that may alienate or confuse key audiences. The NhRP uses these results to guide its litigation strategy and refine its public messaging. Using current data as benchmark metrics, the NhRP can also track how its work impacts attitudes over time, particularly within the legal community. Legal Community Education and Engagement: To expand opportunities for success in its rights-based litigation, the NhRP works to normalize the concept of legal rights for nonhuman animals within the legal community. This includes targeted engagement in jurisdictions where the NhRP has active or anticipated litigation, with the goal of increasing familiarity with and consideration of the legal, social, historical, scientific, and justice-based foundations of its arguments. The NhRPs 2025 polling data helped to refine its outreach to these audiences. . The NhRP also directly engages the judicial system beyond its own cases by proactively identifying and pursuing opportunities to file amicus curiae briefs in cases where, even if no explicit question of nonhuman animal rights is presented, some aspect of the legal status of nonhuman animals is at issue. For example, in 2025, the NhRP filed an amicus brief in a California case involving the use of the necessity defense in the context of animal rescue, asking a court to recognize that animal cruelty qualifies as a significant evil that may justify emergency intervention. . Engagement of this kind creates opportunities to build common ground with judges, attorneys, and legal scholars who may recognize shortcomings in the legal systems treatment of nonhuman animals, even where they have not yet considered the recognition of legal rights. Broader Community Education and Engagement: Engaging with the broader public on legal rights for nonhuman animals is also a key part of the NhRPs strategy, since judges and other decision-makers reflect the societal beliefs and values of their communities. The NhRP focuses this engagement in communities with active NhRP litigation, using earned and paid media, online organizing, and events to educate more people about the importance of These efforts will also be boosted in 2025 through analysis of data collected during the ongoing polling project. Public response to NhRP efforts has been vibrant and visible in part because of the novelty of NhRPs work. As an example, when supporters in NY noticed in 2024 that NhRP client Happy the elephant was no longer visible, the NhRP publicly called on the Bronx Zoo to explain why Happy was being denied access outdoors. Over a multi-week campaign, the NhRP sponsored a series of actions that generated global media coverage about Happys situation, providing a platform for the NhRP to talk very loudly about nonhuman animal cognition, the mental and physical suffering autonomous nonhuman animals endure through exploitation, and the importance of rights.