Industry
Nonprofit
Montgomery McCracken’s Nonprofit Industry Group has experience in representing nonprofits, foundations, public charities and educational organizations. Our active client base includes hundreds of organizations ranging in size from internationally known universities and medical research institutions with multi-million dollar programs, to volunteer community organizations with budgets of only a few thousand dollars.
In our education practice, we represent colleges and universities, private secondary schools, and specialized institutions for developmentally disabled persons. We counsel our education clients regarding:
- Issues of accreditation
- State approval of courses of study and University status
- Transfer of programs to other educational institutions
- Downsizing and elimination of departments
- Campus alcohol and academic disciplinary policies
- Athletic eligibility
- Faculty tenure
- Student rights
- Student loan and scholarship policies
capabilities include:
- Regularly counseling our corporate, tax, and charitable giving
- Reorganizing the corporate structure of educational institutions
- Structured community development corporation-sponsored Low Income Housing Tax Credit syndications
- Obtained court approval to sell trust real estate held for 75 years
- Dissolution of nonprofit membership organization
- Multi-beneficiary arrangements
- Acquisition of facilities through assuming control of board of directors of an organization in bankruptcy
- Antitrust defense
In addition to helping individuals form charitable organizations, obtain tax-exempt status from the IRS, and obtain answers to a whole host of other related legal issues, the firm’s Nonprofit Industry Group also helps organizations comply with the various state charitable solicitation registration statutes.
The statutes of 39 states and the District of Columbia generally require organizations that solicit contributions within the states to register with the states before they solicit contributions. Failure to comply with these statutes can result in formal legal actions, the imposition of significant fines and penalties, and negative publicity for any organization found to have violated them.
The 39 states and the District of Columbia generally require organizations that solicit contributions within the states to register with the states before they solicit contributions. Failure to comply with these statutes can result in formal legal actions, the imposition of significant fines and penalties, and negative publicity for any organization found to have violated them.
Complying with the requirements of all 39 states and the District of Columbia necessarily consumes significant amounts of a national charity’s time and money. Because of its experience in this area, Montgomery McCracken is able to register most organizations with the 39 states and the District of Columbia for a fixed legal fee, plus filing charges and costs, rather than having to charge its usual hourly rates. The firm also provides similar registration services for the for-profit professional fundraisers that charitable organizations often hire to assist them with their fundraising efforts.
Montgomery McCracken also performs comprehensive Compliance Assessments for charitable and other tax-exempt organizations. These Compliance Assessments help organizations determine whether they are in compliance with applicable state and federal laws and whether they have any actual or potential problems that could result in state or federal prosecutions and/or negative publicity. Montgomery McCracken can help discover potential problems and, equally important, advise our clients on how to most appropriately remedy them.
Our attorneys have extensive experience conducting internal investigations for charitable and other tax-exempt organizations that either know, or suspect, that one or more individuals in their organizations have engaged in inappropriate or illegal conduct. This extensive experience helps us to uncover improprieties efficiently and effectively and make appropriate recommendations for addressing irregularities.
Nonprofit Leadership
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