Operations, Employment, and Business Transactions

Scholz Nonprofit Law works with a variety of nonprofits ranging from complex national to small community-based organizations, foundations, cooperatives and businesses to help build and maintain a thriving, well-run organization. We assist with such issues as:

Corporate and Cooperative Structures, including:

  • Incorporation and Governing Documents
    • Corporate bylaws
    • LLC operating agreements
    • Benefit corporations
    • Conflict of interest policies and authority guidelines
  • Mergers and Asset Transfers
  • Dissolutions
  • Affiliated Entities:
    • 501(c)(3)/501(c)(4) affiliations
    • For-profit affiliate of nonprofit
  • Cooperatives and Cooperative Conversions
    • Design, strategic planning, formation and scaling
    • Bylaws and membership agreements
    • Conversions, mergers, and asset transfers
    • Debt and equity structures, succession planning

General corporate, including:

  • Contracts and Other Types of Agreements
    • Collaboration MOUs
    • Partnership agreements
    • Grant agreements
    • Services agreements with contractors
    • Promissory notes
  • Risk Management, including liability waivers and insurance
  • Policies
  • Regulatory Compliance
  • Governance
    • Board training
    • Annual compliance and reporting

Employment

At Scholz Nonprofit Law, we offer representation on employment matters to nonprofit employers as well as mission-driven for-profit employers. Understanding and operating within the many laws and regulations relevant to Wisconsin employers can be complex. We serve as a resource on employment matters and help nonprofit leaders and small business owners devote more time to their mission, worry less, and minimize the risk of penalties. We can assist with such matters as:

  • Hiring, Employment Agreements, and Terminations
  • Workplace Policies and Employee Handbooks
  • Legal  Compliance with various federal, state and local laws

Financial Transactions

  • Debt and Investment Agreements
  • Tax Credit Transactions
  • Impact Investing

This list is not an exhaustive. See also Nonprofit Tax and Legal Compliance, Projects, or let us know if you have questions.

HIGHLIGHT:
Forward Community Investments

Scholz Nonprofit Law assists Forward Community Investments, a Community Development Financial Institution, with such matters as:

  • granting or receiving funding;
  • compliance as a CDFI and 501(c)(3) organization;
  • structuring of arrangements with investors and donors, including donor advised funds; and
  • board governance and other organizational policies

We also assist with real estate matters, such as the purchase of property to house One City Early Learning Center, preparation of a lease for One City, and the eventual sale of the property to One City.

HIGHLIGHT:
Collaborative Summer Library Program

Scholz Nonprofit Law serves as general counsel to the Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP), a national non-profit organization composed of volunteers who create, produce, and provide public libraries with high-quality summer reading materials for children, teens, and adults across the U.S. We assist this large, member-based organization with a range of legal and strategic issues, including: Board and membership policies, contracts with service providers, request-for-proposals for vendors, collaboration agreements with for-profit and non-profit partners, licensing arrangements, and compliance with 501(c)(3) requirements.