Legal Advice for Grant Making Charities and Philanthropists

Legal advice for grant making charities and philanthropists

Grant making charities and philanthropists have very different needs to those who are involved with service providing charities. As specialist legal advisors, we have the experience to ensure the right approach and the practical support you need.

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Expert legal advice for grant making charities

Whether you are a corporate foundation, a family trust, a philanthropist or an endowed charity, we will work with you to bring about the best outcomes. This can involve:

developing a giving or philanthropy strategy
reviewing a well-established grant making regime
merging or transferring charities' endowments
establishing joint ventures for particular projects
advising on the efficient administration of grant making

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Legal and administration services

Tax Efficient Giving for Individuals

Those who are in a position to make gifts to charities can do so in ways which are tax efficient for themselves as well as the recipient charities. Our Charities and Private Client teams provide a complete understanding of the issues involved so as to give you the best advice.

Different considerations apply to cash, property and other assets, and you may well need to think about both lifetime giving and your Will.

If you want to discuss the charity aspects of this, please contact us or see more on how we can help with inheritance tax planning.
Giving and Philanthropy Strategies for Individuals

Making substantial gifts for charitable purposes deserves careful thought. You might want to set up your own charity, but other options are available which may meet your needs more effectively. You may also want to involve successive generations of your family.

We can talk you through the options, liaise with a grant making fund holder, undertake due diligence as to potential charity recipients, and help you assess and monitor the impact of your giving.

Contact us to find out how we can help.
Setting Up a Charity

You need to get the best start when it comes to setting up a charity.

Our team has a lot of experience in setting up new charities across the whole spectrum of sub-sectors and in a range of legal forms. We can guide you through the start-up process, from helping you to analyse whether a charity is right for you, through deciding on the most suitable legal structure and establishing the charity, to completion of the registrations with the Charity Commission and with HMRC.

Contact us to find out how we can help.
Grant Administration

The privilege of making grants can wane if the administration becomes a burden. We can therefore provide a suite of templates and helpful practices to assist the process, including application forms, grant making policies, award letters and grant agreements, a decision matrix, and impact monitoring.

We provide a range of grant administration services to help trustees and clerks with the day-to-day business of receiving, assessing and deciding on applications. This ranges from providing advice and support as and when needed to providing clerking services and attending trustees' meetings.

Contact us to find out how we can help.
Commercial Grants, Non-Charities and Joint Ventures

Some projects with great impact may be commercial in character, involve collaboration with non-charities (in the public or commercial sectors) or take the form of a joint venture. Charities must enter into these arrangements with particular care in order to protect their investment in the project and to manage risks appropriately.

If you want to discuss the charity aspects of this, please contact us. To see how we can help on commercial aspects, have a look at our commercial contract services.
Data and Information Management

Information is a vital asset to many charities and managing it well is an obvious strategic aim, but it can also pose risks if it is not properly managed.

We help charities to understand the scope and extent of their legal and regulatory obligations in relation to the data and information they hold, as well as bespoke training to support our clients on the practicalities of information management. We also offer an audit service which can identify key areas of risk.

See more on how we can help with charity data protection.
Employees and Volunteers

We provide a comprehensive range of legal support for our charity clients in relation to their employees and volunteers. This includes a combination of policies, procedures and training for those involved in recruitment to help reduce the legal risks that may arise. Where there is an employment dispute, we can guide you through the process and be proactive in managing tribunal claims.

See more on how we can help with charity employees and volunteers.
Finance and Funding

Being able to source and secure funding is vital to the operations of a charity, but can be challenging. Whether you are a grant making charity making grants to further charitable aims, or a charity looking to undertake a capital project or support your cash-flow requirements, we can guide your trustees through the issues and legal duties to consider.

Find out how we can help with charity finance and funding.
Fundraising

Fundraising is a key topic for the third sector, with attention from regulators (Information Commissioner, Fundraising Regulator and Charity Commission) and the media being devoted to charity fundraising practices. With new legislation and regulatory requirements, it is more important than ever that you fully understand the new framework.

Contact us to find out how we can help.
Governance and Regulation

Effective charities depend upon good governance, and good governance is as essential to the success of the charity sector as it is to corporate UK.

We ensure that the impact of the regulatory regime to which a charity is subject informs all of the advice that we give, from day-to-day advice on employment and property issues through to major strategic decision about mergers and restructuring.

See more on how we can help you with charity governance and regulation.
Legacies, Trusts and Probate

Many charities benefit from bequests and for some, a large bequest can change the future of the charity. We help charities if they encounter issues during the administration of an estate, for example, due to poor drafting of the Will, the charity has merged since the date the Will was made, or as a result of challenges from others claiming an entitlement to the estate.

See more on legacy protection.
Mergers and Restructuring

We are experienced at guiding charities through strategic change and have a number of key guidance documents for all types of project. We will meet with you to help you plan the best route to your objectives and assess the critical path and key risks.

See more on charity mergers and restructuring.

For further information regarding the legal advice and administration services we provide to grant making charities and philanthropists, please contact Chris Knight on 07468 698 954 or make an enquiry below.

Get in touch

Are you looking for legal services? Please complete the form below to find out how our specialist lawyers can support you.

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Grant making & philanthropy

Chris Knight

Charity Law

Charity Law

How Can We Help?

Con Alexander

Paul Voller

Kathy Halliday

Legal advice for grant making charities and philanthropists

Expert legal advice for grant making charities

Added value

Legal and administration services

For further information regarding the legal advice and administration services we provide to grant making charities and philanthropists, please contact Chris Knight on 07468 698 954 or make an enquiry below.

Get in touch

Meet the team

News & Events

Grant making & philanthropy

Chris Knight

Charity Law

Charity Law

How Can We Help?

Con Alexander

Paul Voller

Kathy Halliday

Legal advice for grant making charities and philanthropists

Expert legal advice for grant making charities

Added value

Legal and administration services

For further information regarding the legal advice and administration services we provide to grant making charities and philanthropists, please contact Chris Knight on 07468 698 954 or make an enquiry below.

Get in touch

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Meet the team

News & Events