Nonprofit Institutions & Tax-Exempt Organizations

Nonprofit institutions and tax-exempt organizations have unique needs and legal challenges. Amundsen Davis's team represents a range of tax-exempt organizations including public charities, private foundations, arts and cultural organizations, trade associations and educational institutions.

Our attorneys regularly represent nonprofit industry clients in matters such as navigating changes in tax law and regulatory compliance, qualifying for and preserving exempt status, increased scrutiny of boards of directors, employment and labor disputes, issues related to hiring and retaining talent, and concerns about governance and regulatory matters. 

Our nonprofit team provides the following services: 

Governance & Operations

• Operations of Board of Directors and Trustees
• Anti-trust, conflict of interest and ethics policies
• Document retention policies
• Marketing and affinity programs
• Articles of incorporation and bylaws
• Membership criteria and dues structuring
• Codes of ethics/codes of conduct

Organization General Counsel

• Serve as board counsel
• Meeting monitoring/attendance
• Review draft agendas, documents and proposals 

Governance/Board Training

• Develop and conduct Board training on governance pieces (anti-trust, conflict of interest and bylaws)
• Develop and conduct Board training on the role of the Board and Executive Director
• Develop and conduct harassment, anti-bullying and discrimination training

Federal and State Tax for Not-for-Profit Institutions/Trade Associations

• Formation, structure and exemption issues
• Tax exempt bonds
• Form 990’s and compliance requirements
• Representation in IRS and State audits
• Counseling on unrelated business income

Labor & Employment

• Counseling on volunteer and employee issues – (hiring through termination)
• Drafting employee handbooks, policies and procedures
• ADA, FMLA, VESSA etc. counseling
• Labor negotiations and grievance/ULP defense
• Employment litigation defense
• OSHA audits and defense 

Workers’ Compensation Litigation and/or Claim Counseling

• Workers’ compensation consultation
• Workers’ compensation assessments audits
• Workers’ compensation/claim defense and monitoring

Insurance Coverage/Defense

• Consultation regarding coverage policy issues
• Defense of minor and catastrophic claims

Real Estate/Banking

• Property acquisitions/leasing
• Contract review
• Bank financing and arrangements regarding lines of credit

Public Finance

• We represent government issuers and 63-20 entities in the issues of general obligation bonds and revenue bonds as bond counsel and disclosure counsel. We also represent underwriters in municipal bond transactions.

Intellectual Property

• Copyright, trademark, and trade secret protection including state and federal registration
• Resolution of intellectual property rights disputes (enforcement and defense) through amicable settlement, federal or state court litigation, or administrative proceedings in the United States Patent & Trademark Office
• Intellectual property transactions including license, cloud services and transfer agreements