TRUSTED ADVISORS TO NONPROFITS

Wagenmaker & Oberly provides legal counsel to NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS across the nation with offices in Chicago and Charleston.

WE VALUE

your mission, community, and time.

WE DELIVER

trusted legal services to your nonprofit.

The Blues Brothers and Property Tax Exemption: On a Mission from God, or Should They Have Checked the Law Instead?

April 26, 2018

The iconic Blues Brothers movie’s plot premise is that Jake and Elwood must help raise money for Sister Mary, who runs the orphanage in which they grew up, to pay its delinquent property taxes.  The music is legendary, and the Chicago-area scenes are memorable – with high speed car chases and government building crashes.  But wait: did they really need to pay the property taxes, or could they have just done some legal research and applied for property exemption instead?

READ MORE
Property

NONPROFIT LAW NEWSFEED

House Passes Bill to Require E-Filing of Nonprofit Tax Forms

04/19/2018

Philanthropy News Digest  The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that would require nonprofit organizations to electronically file their tax returns and make those forms available to the public in machine-readable format.

READ MORE

U. of C. seeks to dismiss lawsuit over $100M gift, files counterclaim against benefactor

04/11/2018

Chicago Tribune  The court dispute between the University of Chicago and one of its largest donors is escalating as the university fired back against a lawsuit aiming to negate a $100 million donation to the South Side school.

READ MORE

NGO Leaders Sign Pledge to Show Commitment for Change

04/06/2018

Nonprofit Quarterly  More than a hundred CEOs of NGOs from across the nation are promising to improve how they address and prevent sexual abuse and harassment by and among their staff. Their public pledge was signed last week by members of InterAction, an alliance of 185 American NGOs working to combat poverty across the globe.

READ MORE

Charities Get Cease And Desist From California AG

03/23/2018

The NonProfit Times  California Attorney General Xavier Becerra issued cease-and-desist orders against three charities that officials said were deceptive in fundraising solicitations. It is alleged the organizations portrayed program spending percentages as inaccurately high as a result of including noncash contributions. A fourth charity filed to dissolve a day after receiving notice from the state’s highest law enforcement office.

READ MORE

Donor-Disclosure Requirement Upheld By Court

03/20/2018

The Nonprofit Times  An appeals court has upheld the dismissal of a legal challenge to New York’s requirement that charities disclose their major donors as part of registration requirements to solicit contributions in the state.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit handed down its decision on Thursday in Citizens United and Citizens United Foundation v. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

READ MORE

Three Million? No Thank You! A Restricted Gift is Declined

03/16/2018

Nonprofit Quarterly  Some large gifts are philanthropic versions of Trojan horses, and the wise nonprofit measures this possibility carefully. This story reflects one organization’s consideration and ultimate rejection of what would have been a course-changing offer.

READ MORE

Pearson Family Members Foundation sues University of Chicago, aiming to revoke $100M gift

03/13/2018

Chicago Tribune  The donation to the University of Chicago in 2015 was as generous as it was ambitious: the Pearson Family Members Foundation pledged an eye-popping $100 million to establish a center devoted to finding new ways to resolve global conflicts. Nearly three years later, that donation is in disarray.

READ MORE

The New Nonprofit Economy: A Nonprofit-Backed Social Enterprise Grows

03/09/2018

Earlier this week, NPQ reported on a social enterprise startup attached to a community mental health center. At the time, we advised caution in such endeavors, urging social services organizations with tight financial margins to carefully consider the risks of startup businesses to their parent organizations. This story shows an enterprise that has, at least on the surface, been more successful.

READ MORE

6th Circ. Revives EEOC's Funeral Home Trans Bias Suit

03/08/2018

Law360 (March 7, 2018) --   The Sixth Circuit issued a published decision Wednesday reviving a US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit accusing a Michigan funeral home operator of vi

READ MORE

Anti-Gay Discrimination Is Sex Discrimination, 2nd Circ. Says

02/27/2018

Law360  - Discrimination based on sexual orientation is covered by Title VII’s ban on gender bias, the Second Circuit ruled Monday, siding with the estate of a deceased skydiving instructor

READ MORE

House Passes Bill to Require E-Filing of Nonprofit Tax Forms

04/19/2018

Philanthropy News Digest  The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that would require nonprofit organizations to electronically file their tax returns and make those forms available to the public in machine-readable format.

READ MORE

U. of C. seeks to dismiss lawsuit over $100M gift, files counterclaim against benefactor

04/11/2018

Chicago Tribune  The court dispute between the University of Chicago and one of its largest donors is escalating as the university fired back against a lawsuit aiming to negate a $100 million donation to the South Side school.

READ MORE