By NEO Law Group
Private foundations face particular legal issues and challenges that must be managed by their executives and boards. Informed leaders can maximize the impact of their foundations in advancing their charitable missions. But they must carefully manage those issues and challenges that can expose the foundation and its leaders to penalties and damage to their public reputation, especially if the foundation is engaged in arrangements and transactions that involve potential or actual conflicts of interests. Careful planning is critical to building a strong and sound infrastructure to ensure the foundation’s ongoing effectiveness and legal compliance.
In June 2017, Guidestar released A Guide to Good Practices in Foundation Operations. The practices outlined cover the following areas: transparency; due diligence; responsive communications; and diversity, equity, and inclusion. Transparency Although not a guarantee of effectiveness, we believe transparency in general correlates with excellence in foundations. Which makes sense—the...
The Council on Foundations 2017 Annual Conference (Leading Together) was held in Dallas on April 23-26. The Opening Plenary, Philanthropy’s Role in Vibrant Communities, kicked off with President George W. Bush discussing his recently published book, Portraits of Courage: A Commander in Chief’s Tribute to America’s Warriors, and the work of the George...
Philanthropy consultant, scholar, and thought-leader Lucy Bernholz‘s annual industry forecast, Philanthropy and the Social Economy: Blueprint 2017, was published last week on GrantCraft. The Blueprint provides an overview of the current landscape, points to major trends, and directs your attention to horizons where you can expect some important breakthroughs in the coming...
Inspired by recent news stories Fred D’Up inherited a sizable amount of money, which he used to grow a business empire filled with plenty of successes and failures (including multiple business bankruptcies). Regardless of whether his businesses were doing well or not, Fred felt compelled to develop his image as a...
The American Bar Association (ABA) Business Law Section is holding its 2016 Annual Meeting in Boston on September 8-10. I’m looking forward to meeting with my colleagues in the Nonprofit Organizations Committee, attending the various programs, and expressing my appreciation as one of the recipients of the Committee’s Outstanding Nonprofit Lawyer...
Program-related investments (PRIs) are investments (different from strictly donative grants) made by private foundations in which: The primary purpose is to accomplish one or more of the foundation’s 501(c)(3) exempt purposes (other than testing for public safety), Production of income or appreciation of property is not a significant purpose,...
The Council on Foundations 2016 Annual Conference (The Future of Community) was held in Washington DC on April 8-12. The Conference website identifies contemporary boundaries that make up community (identity, purpose, and place) and three focus areas that have a direct impact on the health and well-being of our global communities:...
Shortly after Mark Zuckerberg announced the social good goals of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and the joint pledge he made with his wife Priscilla Chan to contribute 99 percent of their Facebook shares (currently valued at about $45 billion) to the Initiative, which is structured as a limited liability...
Yesterday, Mark Zuckerberg published a touching letter written to his week-old daughter Max which announced the beginning of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. The Initiative’s mission focuses on two ideas: advancing human potential and promoting equality. And the statement that raised all the attention: We will give 99% of our Facebook shares...
On September 15, 2015, the IRS released Notice 2015-62, Investments Made for Charitable Purposes, which may provide comfort to private foundations about making mission-related investments with reasonable business care without violating the jeopardizing investments laws. It is hoped that this guidance will catalyze greater impact investing by foundations using their endowment assets....