NEO Principal Attorney Erin Bradrick will be presenting a free webinar for the California Association of Nonprofits (CalNonprofits) on Wednesday, January 24, 2024 on the subject of maintaining good standing for nonprofit charitable organizations under state and federal tax-exemption laws. If you work with a charitable nonprofit operating in...
CALIFORNIA LAW
California Law: Removed Director of a Nonprofit and Standing to Sue
On August 3, 2023, the California Supreme Court unanimously held that a director of a nonprofit public benefit corporation who brings a lawsuit pursuant to Corporations Code sections 5142, 5233, and 5223 does not lose standing to continue litigating the suit if the director subsequently loses that position. Turner...
California Laws: Registry of Charitable Trusts
In California, the Attorney General regulates charities, the professional fundraisers who solicit on their behalf, and other persons and entities that hold charitable assets or operate charitable fundraising platforms. The information below (except for the headings and an additional hyperlink for our readers’ convenience to the Registry Verification Search...
Starting a Nonprofit: Designators and Board Member Selection
One of the first decisions a founder of a nonprofit corporation must make is who selects the board members. Initially, that’s usually the founder or the founding group. But what happens after the initial board has been selected? Self-Perpetuating Boards Most nonprofit boards are known as self-perpetuating boards. In...
California: Nonprofit Directors’ Rights of Inspection
As a board member (director) of a California nonprofit public benefit corporation, you have certain rights of inspection that allow you to access and review the corporation’s books, records, documents, and physical properties. Section 6334 of the Nonprofit Public Benefit Corporation Law and Section 8334 of the Nonprofit Mutual...
California Laws: Good Standing
You may sometimes hear the term “good standing” when asked about your nonprofit corporation and its status with one or more government agencies. What the term means varies depending on the context. And it’s received particular attention with AB 488, which went into effect on January 1, 2023. Here...
Online Fundraising: California Proposed Regulations – Article 1
In 2021, California passed a new set of laws (referred to as AB 488) regulating charitable crowdfunding that go into effect on January 1, 2023. The state’s Department of Justice (DOJ) initially proposed regulations implementing AB 488 in May 2022, but following comments and feedback at a public hearing in July,...
California’s New Law for Charitable Fundraising Platforms
In 2021, California passed a new set of laws (referred to as AB 488) regulating charitable crowdfunding that go into effect on January 1, 2023. While regulations to fully implement AB 488 have yet to be finalized, the Attorney General published a notice earlier today noting the key provisions that take...
CalNonprofits Policy Symposium 2022
CalNonprofits held its annual Policy Symposium on December 7, 2022. This year, the event was a half-day accelerated and virtual version featuring a keynote from CA Assembly Majority Leader Eloise Gómez Reyes. The theme this year was Our Moment for Action. California nonprofits are at a turning point. Over...
Is a Compensated Nonprofit Officer an Employee?
Nonprofits with compensated workers must respect applicable laws governing the distinction between employees and independent contractor. Getting it wrong can result in significant risk exposure to the organizations and even personal liability to board members. For example, nonprofits that misclassify workers as independent contractors may be responsible for unpaid...