Alliance Defending Freedom is a non-profit group founded in 1994 by a coalition of conservative Christian lawyers who, under the leadership of Alan Sears, have tried to establish a legal defense for religious freedom. Sears is the current president of Alliance Defending Freedom. In 2016, ADF had $40 million in revenue and over $40 million in net assets. The organization does not make its annual reports available to the public.

ADF is dedicated to defending religious freedom for people of any faith, which includes protecting the rights of those who oppose same-sex marriage or abortion. It has included representing corporations like Christian baker Jack Phillips, whose business was sued by a same-sex couple for refusing to bake a cake for their wedding and advocating for laws protecting Christian school students from being punished for sharing their faith. ADF also filed a lawsuit on behalf of a Georgia police officer who was demoted for writing Bible verses on his personal Facebook page.

The organization has made protecting religious liberty part of its main mission. This emphasis is stated by Sears in the organization’s mission statement: “Alliance Defending Freedom exists to preserve and affirm free societies where all people can freely live, believe, and affirm their faith.” Its website states that it can do this through “litigation, policy work, and public education.”

ADF employs over 450 attorneys who are supported in their efforts by more than 2,000 allied attorneys. It has a long history of litigation against gun control measures and laws it believes infringe on religious freedoms. In 2011, the group represented a firearm dealer in Florida who refused to comply with a law banning sales of guns to convicted criminals. In 2010, ADF sued the state of Georgia when its officials removed an officer’s promotion after he shared Bible scriptures on his Facebook page.

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More about ADF on https://www.adfchurchalliance.org/