Nonprofit Organizations

Lewis Roca represents numerous nonprofit organizations with local, national, and international operations. These nonprofits provide services in the charitable, educational, health care, social services, housing, public lands, and religious sectors.

We not only provide representation in the formation and organization of tax-exempt organizations, but we also regularly provide counsel on evolving governance standards and day-to-day operational issues. Our goal is to assist our nonprofit clients with all their legal issues so that they can focus on doing their good works in their communities and around the globe.

Our Services

• Attending board meetings and providing regular legal advice on governance, management, and structural questions
• Providing counsel on compliance with federal tax rules and regulations applying to tax-exempt organizations, including issues relating to the filing of annual information returns, oversight of group exemption status for larger affiliated charitable organizations, lobbying activities, and issues related to transactions involving possible private inurement or excess benefit
• Structuring, forming, and obtaining recognition of tax-exempt status for nonprofit organizations
• Evaluating joint ventures with exempt and nonexempt organizations
• Negotiating contracts for real estate acquisitions, construction, and financing
• Assisting with human resource training and advice, including employment and termination issues, and employee manuals
• Advising on the negotiation and implementation of service contracts, including management agreements
• Advising on compensation and benefit planning for executives and employees, including Section 457 deferred compensation plans
• Providing counsel to boards of directors in conducting performance evaluations of executives and staff
• Assisting in obtaining conventional and tax-exempt financing
• Assisting in the implementation of low- and moderate-income housing programs
• Providing counsel to entities serving quasi-governmental functions
• Creating planned giving programs for potential donors, including charitable giving of qualified retirement plans and securities along with the formation of charitable trusts
• Assisting in the formation, funding, and operation of private foundations in accordance with the special tax rules applicable to such organizations
• Trademark, copyright and intellectual property registrations, licensing, and protection
• Structuring international operations, contracting, and compliance
• Engaging in legislation advice and litigation when appropriate
  
  

Our tax lawyers provide advice on the tax issues directly affecting nonprofit organizations, including unrelated business taxable income, intermediate sanctions, excess private benefit, tax-exempt financing, and private foundation rules.

We also assist our nonprofit clients with legal risk management to help protect them from liability and unanticipated loss of revenues. Our lawyers conduct reviews of insurance coverage, including directors and officers, errors and omissions, general liability, premises liability, and automobile coverage.