The CTA introduces new beneficial ownership reporting requirements for U.S. companies. Tax-exempt organizations are exempt from reporting.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Learn what donor gift restrictions and permissible and what nonprofits should watch for before accepting a gift.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Nonprofits considering dissolution are thinking creatively about nonprofit affiliations to survive tough times.| Charity Lawyer Blog
When considering whether to rely on MOUs versus contracts, a better practice is to use a non-binding MOU as a prelude to a binding contract.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Directors of nonprofit corporations have fiduciary duty of loyalty which includes the duty to keep board deliberations and materials confidential.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Many directors worry about nonprofit director liability when joining a board. Can nonprofit directors be held leable for an insolvent nonprofit's debts?| Charity Lawyer Blog
Sometimes no good deed goes unpunished. In this case, the board and staff of both nonprofits did a great job of putting their mission and beneficiaries first, only to be ambushed by their lack of stakeholder communication and buy-in.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Case study of successes, disappointments and lessons learned from a successful merger of two human service organizations.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The IRS issued an advance copy of Rev. Proc. 2014-11 (Procedure), allowing organizations whose tax-exempt status has been revoked to file annual returns.| Charity Lawyer Blog
A roadmap to properly dissolving a nonprofit corporation in Washington in a manner that protects the directors and officers.| Charity Lawyer Blog
A roadmap to properly dissolving a nonprofit corporation in Washington in a manner that protects the directors and officers.| Charity Lawyer Blog
What is the difference between a nonprofit asset purchase vs merger? This post disccusses that and breaks down the pros & cons.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Organizations typically consider a legal audit when new management takes over and wants to ensure they are starting with a clean slate or the in the wake of a costly mistake.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Make sure advisors are licensed to provide the type of assistance they are offering, have specific experience representing nonprofits, and are in fact representing you rather than helping you to commit malpractice on yourself.| Charity Lawyer Blog
One of the most essential functions of the Washington Attorney General ("AG") is investigating fraud and the misuse of charitable funds.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Explanation of charitable solicitation activities that trigger a duty for nonprofits to register before they raise funds in a state.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The new normal has nonprofits looking for virtual fundraising solutions which present many new opportunities as well as new responsibilities.| Charity Lawyer Blog
After COVID happened, starting an online fundraising campaign has been a more feasible option. Here are 4 tips to to make it a success.| Charity Lawyer Blog
As hundreds of pink products attest, cause marketing is big business in this country. However, nonprofit and for-profit firms looking to take advantage of multi-jurisdictional fundraising and charitable sales promotions need to know that 40 states have laws regulating charitable solicitations.| Charity Lawyer Blog
To ensure transparency, accountability, and sound decision-making, boards must establish and implement robust policies and procedures.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The Supreme Court, as recently as 2021, in NCAA v. Alston, has made clear that non-profit organizations are subject to antitrust laws.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Conflict can also ignite internally dividing members, directors, and staff into competing factions, so avoiding conflict is essential.| Charity Lawyer Blog
A plain language explanation of the advantages and disadvantages of imposing term limits on nonprofit board members' board terms.| Charity Lawyer Blog
We advise clients to leave Roberts Rules of Order out of their governing documents or, adopt them as a non-binding guideline.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Many nonprofits, especially older nonprofits, have voting members that retain the power to elect board members.| Charity Lawyer Blog
A discussion of some of the most common nonprofit legal risks and how nonprofits can avoid them.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Nonprofits are increasingly at risk for cyberattacks and must take steps to ensure the security of their data.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Explanation of how to determine if it is permissble to charge management expenses to donor restricted gifts and how to allocate expenses.| Charity Lawyer Blog
While donor-advised funds come with their advantages, donors should take steps to carefully vet and understand their chosen funds policies and practices.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Hard choices confront many nonprofits struggling to shore up flailing budgets in the wake of the pandemic.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Tucked into the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” (BBB), Section 70424 reinstates an above-the-line charitable deduction: $1,000 for individuals, $2,000 for couples.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The consequences for violating articles and bylaws include opening oneself up to derivative suits and loss of insurance coverage.| Charity Lawyer Blog
There are important legal differences between Directors of a nonprofit corporation and Trustees of a charitable trust.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Penalties for a late Form 990 can be steep - up to $10,000 for entities with revenues under $1 million and up to $50,000 for everyone else.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The IRS and courts distinguish sharply between lawful protest and illegal conduct, even if peaceful or principled.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Nonprofit organizations, like other taxpayers, are required to issue Form 1099-NEC to report nonemployee compensation.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Joint ventures between nonprofits and for-profits have traditionally been most common in the healthcare field.| Charity Lawyer Blog
How H.R. 9495 could threaten nonprofit organizations, free speech, and democracy by allowing the government to target tax-exempt groups it disagrees with.| Charity Lawyer Blog
To ensure a well-functioning organization, it is crucial for the Board of Directors and officers to understand their roles and how the positions complement each other.| Charity Lawyer Blog
IRS audits of tax-exempt entities focus on ensuring the tax advantages bestowed on charities are not exploited.| Charity Lawyer Blog
When setting nonprofit executive compensation, ensure executive compensation procedures are thorough, well-documented, and conflict-free.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Clarification of online fundraising registration duties for charities with a donate here button but no other fundraising activity in a state.| Charity Lawyer Blog
What many companies don't know is that cause related marketing triggers legal obligations for both the business and the charities that benefit.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Governance policies and procedures help nonprofits stay in compliance with the law and best practice and help directors satisfy their duty of care.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Clients are often concerned about liability protection for nonprofit directors and officers and limiting exposure to personal liability.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Conflicts inevitably arise. Nonprofits should adopt a Conflict of Interest Policy to navigate these situations.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Nonprofit bylaws are the regulations that govern how a nonprofit functions. This post discusses what areas to focus on to build better nonprofit bylaws.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Managing conflicts of interest for corporate directors and officers, nonprofit directors and officers, and Presidents.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Nonprofits need to know how to classify workers because mislabeling an employee as an independent contractor can be costly.| Charity Lawyer Blog
How nonprofit employers can effectively manage remote employees and teams during the covid pandemic and beyond.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Explanation of when nonprofits are permitted to use a reasonable portion of donor restricted funds to cover overhead and when they are not.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The cy pres doctrine permits the courts to modify the purpose of a charitable trust to a purpose that reasonably approximates the designated purpose.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Whether the term Articles or Charter is appropriate depends on state law. A Constitution, however, is not a legally mandated document.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Public inspection is permitted of an exempt organization's last three annual returns and its exemption application.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Congress will adjourn without reaching an agreement on transfer tax legislation culminating in a messy situation for those trying to plan their estates.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The federal government lacks the authority to unilaterally prohibit lawful DEIA efforts among private sector employers.| Charity Lawyer Blog
On January 31, 2020, the IRS announced that it has released a new online version of Form 1023, reformatted for electronic filing.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Nonprofit corporations need officers to ensure effective operations, governance, stakeholder engagement, and legal compliance.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Understanding the difference between the nonprofit directors and officers can help eliminate confusion and avoid conflicts of interest.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Every fiscal year, the IRS releases guidance on its compliance priorities for tax-exempt and government entities. It is important to be updated on these changes as they occur.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Is your board a working board, a strategic board or a fundraising board? This post explains the differences and highlights the key functions of a nonprofit board.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Strategies for setting nonprofit executive compensation that reduce risk for the executive, the board, and organization.| Charity Lawyer Blog
One of the fastest ways to destroy a nonprofit is for board members and the executive director to start confusing their roles.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Nonprofit directors and officers insurance protects the directors, officers, and often even the employees and volunteers from personal liability.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Plain language summary of the items that should be included in nonprofit Board meeting minutes and the items that should be left out.| Charity Lawyer Blog
How to draft legally compliant nonprofit bylaws for your nonprofit corporation's specific structure and governance needs.| Charity Lawyer Blog
What nonprofits need to understand about hiring independent contractors and the significant risk of misclassifying employees.| Charity Lawyer Blog
As we enter a new year, it's the perfect time for nonprofits to assess their legal and operational health by conducting a legal audit. A strong legal| Charity Lawyer Blog
The IRS has issued Notice 2021-56 outlining the requirements that LLCs seeking 501(c)(3) status must meet to be recognized by the IRS.| Charity Lawyer Blog
There are 29 different exemptions under Code Section 501, the most popular of which is Section 501(c)(3). If the corporation plans to qualify for tax-exemption under Section 501(c)(3), the articles must limit the corporation's activities to tax-exempt purposes. Tax exempt purposes include: religious, charitable, scientific, testing for public safety, literary, educational, to foster national or international amateur sports competition, or promote the arts, or for the prevention of cruelty to ...| Charity Lawyer Blog
A registered agent is required for nonprofit corporations in their state of domicile and each state where they are registered to do business.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Arizona's Transaction Privilege Tax offers no blanket exemption for nonprofits. Instead, exemptions apply based on the nonprofit’s activities.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The distinction between being nonprofit vs. tax-exempt is an important one based on the interplay between state and federal law.| Charity Lawyer Blog
This post explains the roles of a nonprofit board member and the CEO and how they work together to build a strong organizaiton.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Nonprofit board members must understand and fulfill their fiduciary duties or they expose the nonprofit they serve and themselves to risk.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Here, we'll look beyond the legal jargon to distill the legal and ethical responsibilities of board members to oversee the management of and ensure accountability to your nonprofit organization.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Successive board terms are those that all end at the same time, staggered terms are those that do not all end at the same time.| Charity Lawyer Blog
This article reviews the pros and cons of inviting non-board members to serve on board committees, including ideas to protect the nonprofit.| Charity Lawyer Blog
All nonprofits will encounter conflicts and all nonprofits must be effective at managing conflicts of interest.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Before you take another step toward forming a nonprofit organization, stop. Download our free guide to set your tax-exempt org up for success.| Caritas Law Group
The well-meaning have been advising exempt organizations to operate like a business for years. If the organization is a Section 501(c)(3) organization, operating too much like a business can cost it its tax-exempt status due to the Commerciality Doctrine. Practically, the issue of commerciality usually arises when a tax-exempt organization engages in any endeavor for which a clear for-profit counterpart exists in the marketplace. Typical examples include publishing, consulting and sales o...| Charity Lawyer Blog
In this post, we will answer several frequently asked questions regarding nonprofit organizations that we get from clients every day.| Charity Lawyer Blog
501(c)(3)s are limited in their ability to lobby. Federal tax law restricts a 501(c)(3)’s lobbying activities under either the substantial part test or| Charity Lawyer Blog
Can your nonprofit lobby without losing its tax-exempt status? In short, yes it can. However, you have to know under which perameters the IRS will allow it.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The exception is a powerful tool allowing 501(c)(3)s to contribute to informed public debate without running afoul of lobbying restrictions.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Effective non-profit board governance is critical to the success of any non-profit organization. This list was started as the inaugural post to CharityLawyer Blog. The post struck a nerve, was mentioned by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, the Nonprofit Quarterly, and numerous bloggers and Twitter users.| Charity Lawyer Blog
As you create your non-profit bylaws, consider these DOs and DON'Ts to make sure your bylaws provide needed support.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The Johnson Amendment prohibits exempt organizations from taking any action behalf of or in opposition to a candidate for public office.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Maintaining nonpartisanship is crucial for 501(c)(3) organizations during election seasons to comply with IRS regulations. By focusing on permissible activities like voter education and nonpartisan mobilization efforts, organizations can contribute to the democratic process without risking their tax-exempt status.| Charity Lawyer Blog
Due to each board member’s ability to influence the organization, board members are legally bound to certain ethical standards of conduct.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The new rule for classifying independent contractors largely reverses the “core factors” test put into place during the Trump Administration.| Charity Lawyer Blog
The determination letter is a notice sent by the IRS stating the nonprofit’s exempt status. Determination letters are proof of tax-exemption.| Charity Lawyer Blog