Ellis Carter – Carter Law Group, P.C.

When considering whether to include voting members in a nonprofit corporation, it is important to understand that voting members of a nonprofit corporation are generally analogous to shareholders of a business corporation…more

Trustee compensation is a sensitive topic in the philanthropic world. Many people believe that board members should serve out of a sense of giving back to their community. However, the philanthropic world is diverse and there…more

Proxy voting is legal mechanism for a member of a voting body to delegate his or her voting right to another member of the voting body. In the context of nonprofit corporations, voting bodies include the board of directors as…more

Generally, a commercial co-venturer is a person regularly and primarily engaged in commerce (other than in connection with raising funds for charities) who conducts a “charitable sales promotion.” Co-venturers are typically…more

The Pension Protection Act of 2006 (“Act”) offered the first definition of a donor-advised fund. According to the Act, a fund must have three characteristics to be a donor-advised fund, and if any of the characteristics is…more

Tax-exempt Organizations engaging in social enterprise or other active business pursuits often worry that a growing stream of unrelated business income could threaten their tax-exempt status. This concern is related to the…more

A nonprofit organization needs to be cognizant of the fact that it can be held liable for the wrongdoing of an employee or volunteer. Under the doctrine of “respondeat superior,” an employer is responsible for torts committed by…more

Dissolution is something no nonprofit board member or CEO wants to face, however, it does not have to mean failure of the nonprofit’s mission. With the right strategic partner and a will to collaborate, there is nearly always a…more

Successful nonprofits looking for ways to make their programs more widely available often look to grow by creating chapters and affiliates in other geographic areas. Nonprofit organizations that are organized geographically into…more

In the nonprofit legal community, many lawyers use legal jargon terms that seem to exist for the sole purpose of confusing the lay person. One such example of confusing legal jargon is the difference between nonprofit and…more

Many charities wish to conduct raffles as a way to gain public support. While this can be an excellent way for a charity to increase public recognition and awareness as well as donations, a large number of charitable…more

There is much confusion over the operation of a nonprofit organization. Who owns the organization, who runs it, who gets to elect Board members and so on. This article clarifies ownership of nonprofit organizations and offers…more

Policy to help ensure fundraising activities are appropriately supervised and controlled by charitable organization and that all campaigns and paid consultants comply with the law…more

I receive several calls a week from people who want to start a new non-profit. Looking back on my legal career, I realize that many of the tax-exempt organizations I helped to create early on never got off the ground. Today, I…more

This article includes 10 practices that, if followed, will help the boards of tax-exempt organizations such as hospitals, colleges, large foundations, and other charities that require highly compensated executive talent, to…more