We have been advising charities and their trustees for over 170 years. Our charity clients range from private family charities to charities operating internationally. Many remain unincorporated while others are companies incorporated under the Companies Acts, by Royal Charter or as statutory corporations.
Our clients’ activities cover a wide spectrum including religion, animal protection, the arts, education (including schools and further and higher education institutions), health and the relief of poverty.
Our charities team provides comprehensive specialist charity law advice and engages with other lawyers throughout the firm and, where appropriate, our colleagues in our international associations - Multilaw, Legus and State Law Resources, to ensure that our charity clients have access to quality advice for all of their legal requirements.
The charities team provides a full legal service to charities including:
- advising on appropriate structures for new charities;
- the creation of new charitable bodies;
- acting for charities involved in borrowing from banks and other third party funders;
- registration of new charities;
- advising on trustees’ duties and responsibilities;
- meeting the public benefit requirement;
- mergers and dissolutions;
- meeting the Charity Commission’s requirements;
- tax and other issues arising from trading by charities;
- the use of subsidiary companies for trading purposes and gift aid;
- conflicts of interest including the provisions of the Companies Act 2006;
- protection and exploitation of intellectual property;
- acquiring and disposing of land;
- fundraising;
- employment issues;
- dispute resolution;
- gift aid; and
- debt recovery.