OUR EXPERIENCE
We serve nonprofits of all types and sizes, offering creative legal advice grounded in over 20 years of specialized experience in nonprofit law.
In addition to serving a wide variety of nonprofit organizations, our clients also include donors making significant or complex gifts, businesses forming foundations for cause-marketing campaigns, and nonprofit founders considering the best philanthropic vehicle to meet their needs.
RESOURCES
Free Guides for your Nonprofit Organization
How to Start a Nonprofit
State Registration
Nonprofit Legal Checklist
Taking minutes of nonprofit board meetings
How To Set the Compensation of Nonprofit Executives
How to Start a Nonprofit
Before you form a legal entity and apply for tax-exempt status, you need a strong, well-researched plan for your organization. Download our free guide to learn about the many elements needed to run a successful nonprofit organization, as well as how to avoid common pitfalls and mistakes.
State Registration
Most states require you to register your organization if you solicit donations from their residents. Many states also require registration if your organization collects substantial or ongoing donations from their residents, even if you aren’t specifically targeting donors in that state. Download our comprehensive list of each state’s requirements.
Nonprofit Legal Checklist
There are many legal issues specific to nonprofit organizations that can be easily prevented by taking certain steps early on in the life of the organization. For more established nonprofits, it’s a good idea to conduct a periodic review of your compliance documents, tax filings, and record keeping. We created this checklist to help you understand the items that a lawyer will assess when reviewing the overall legal health of your nonprofit organization.
Taking minutes of nonprofit board meetings
Meeting minutes are a necessary form of record-keeping for all nonprofit organizations, regardless of size. These records can be used as legal evidence by the courts, IRS, and other regulators, so it’s important to ensure minutes are properly completed and stored. But where do you start?
How To Set the Compensation of Nonprofit Executives
Executives from tax-exempt organizations can only be paid “reasonable compensation” for their services.
To avoid excise taxes, nonprofits should strongly consider increasing the time and attention they devote to investigating, deliberating, documenting, and reporting executive compensation.
CharityLawyer Blog offers plain language explanations of complex nonprofit law concepts, discussions of current events and links to valuable resources for nonprofits.
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FEATURED BLOG POSTS
- 501(c)(7) Social Clubs: Formation, Nonmember Income, and the Investment Income Trap
Arizona has no shortage of golf clubs, country clubs, yacht clubs, and athletic and dining clubs organized as tax-exempt social clubs under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(7). Unlike a 501(c)(3) charity, a social club exists to serve its members, not the public, and it is funded by dues rather than donations. That difference changes the
- Multi-State Charitable Solicitation Registration Traps for Arizona Nonprofits
Arizona is one of only a handful of states that does not require charitable organizations to register before soliciting contributions. Governor Brewer signed HB 2457 in 2013, and since September of that year, most Arizona charities have not had to file a Charitable Organization Registration with the Arizona Secretary of State. That repeal is good
- Form 990 Transparency Overhaul: What Nonprofits Need to Know
On April 23, 2026, the Treasury Department announced that the IRS intends to revise Form 990 to shed more light on how tax-exempt organizations handle government grants, government contracts, and fiscal sponsorship arrangements. Treasury and the IRS say the goal is to make it easier to track how money moves in and out of exempt