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Starting a nonprofit

Name Changes
Starting a nonprofit

How to Change the Name of a Nonprofit Organization (2026)

Exempt organizations that wish to change their name often secure a trade name or do businessÂť under a fictitious name. Presumably they opt to use a fictitious name rather than formally change their name because they believe a legal name change is too much trouble or they don’t know how to accomplish it. . . . A better approach is to change the organization’s legal name with both state and federal authorities to present a unified and cohesive brand to donors and supporters.

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October 29, 2015 No Comments
Group Exemption
Starting a nonprofit

What is a Group Exemption? (Updated 2026)

The group exemption permits a central or parent organization to certify that each subordinate qualifies for exemption and to include it under its umbrella for tax-exemption purposes. The process is designed to reduce paperwork for both taxpayers and the IRS where affiliated entities are similar in their purpose, structure and operations.

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April 14, 2015 No Comments
Businessman Stop Domino Effect. Risk Management and Insurance Concept
Starting a nonprofit

Top Five Nonprofit Legal Risks

Too often, we see nonprofits signing contracts that are presented to them by vendors without appropriate legal review. Many vendors use form contracts that are extremely one sided in the vendor’s favor on the theory that many clients will sign whatever is given to them without scrutinizing the terms.

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February 11, 2015 No Comments
Arizona Benefit Corporation
Starting a nonprofit

Here Comes the Arizona Benefit Corporation

Going into effect January 1, 2015, the Arizona benefit corporation statute will enable entrepreneurs to form a corporation unlike anything Arizona has seen before. Benefit corporations enable social entrepreneurs to create a corporate structure requiring the corporation to create a general public benefit. As with anything new, its details are untested and some confusion surrounds it. Below we dig into the statute and detail what you will and will not be able to do in 2015.

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December 3, 2014 No Comments
DIY Nonprofit Law
Starting a nonprofit

DIY Nonprofit Law – Top Five Mistakes

The state form does not include the tax provisions that the IRS requires tax-exempt organizations to have. Would be founders that file using the state’s form Articles of Incorporation without including an attachment with the appropriate tax provisions will end up with a taxable nonprofit – a result almost no one intends.

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June 27, 2014 No Comments
starting a nonprofit
Starting a nonprofit

When to Start a Nonprofit (Updated 2026)

We are used to hearing lots of folks – including yours truly – complain about the “nonprofit birth control” problem in this country. While it is true that too many nonprofits are formed for the wrong reasons – there are also many good reasons to form a new nonprofit. The trick is to learn to tell the difference.

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December 11, 2013 No Comments
naming rights
Starting a nonprofit

Negotiating and Documenting Nonprofit Naming Rights: Best Practices

For an increasing number of nonprofit organizations, the sale of naming rights have become a significant source of funding. The assets that can be named are limited only by a nonprofit’s imagination. Nonprofits commonly sell naming rights to programs, scholarship funds, endowed chairs, sections of a building, an entire facility, and even the name of the entity itself.

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October 23, 2013 No Comments
Fair Labor Standards Act
Starting a nonprofit

Are Unpaid Nonprofit Internships Legal? [2026]

Remember that unpaid internship you were so lucky to snag in college? Well, according to both a federal judge in Manhattan and the US Department of Labor (DOLÂť) that coffee-delivering-foot-in-the-door opportunity may have violated the Fair Labor Standards Act and entitle you to compensation. But what if you worked for a nonprofit?

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October 14, 2013 No Comments
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How to Start a Non-Profit Organization

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