The Council's Legal Resources team provides trainings, publications, and resources to help you stay up to date on foundation operations and legal compliance. Our staff includes attorneys with experience in nonprofit and tax law who understand the unique legal and compliance issues facing community foundations. Our staff counsel are here to help you by advising on matters related to your organizational structure and governance, compliance, fundraising, self-dealing, and other legal matters.

There are community foundation specific legal resources available on our website, including answers to the most frequently asked member questions on donor-advised funds, endowments, global and domestic grantmaking, fundraising, scholarships, impact investing, planned gifts, and IRA distributions. In addition, we offer sample templates for the most common legal needs, such fund agreements and gift acceptance policies. Our attorneys may review Council member fund agreements and may offer edits and feedback. We also publish legal guidance and offer webinars and analysis on developing legislation relevant to the philanthropic sector.

Legal Disclaimer

All information on this website, and all publications, articles, email correspondence, and telephone consultations provided by Council attorneys and legal staff are intended for informational purposes only and not as part of an attorney-client relationship. Council attorneys are not licensed in every state and cannot provide legal representation. This information is not a substitute for expert legal, tax, or other professional advice tailored to your specific circumstances and may not be relied upon for the purpose of avoiding any penalties that may be imposed under the Internal Revenue Code. Council members may email legal@cof.org with inquiries and for more information.

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Sample Documents

Sample Documents and Templates

Donor Advised Funds

Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs)

Scholarship Funds

Scholarship Funds and PPA Compliance

Legal FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

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Council members get unlimited access to legal services and free access to our longer publications, like the Compendium of Legal Resources. Members also have access to the Philanthropy Exchange, our online community where members can pose questions to peers.

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New York City community baseball

Legal Matters for Community Foundations

The Council offers Legal Matters workshops to address the broad legal and practical questions faced by community foundations. These sessions cover topics such as administering funds, grants, and community foundation activities. They are designed to be interactive, allowing participants to engage in discussions and deep dives into specific legal complexities.

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Warren County Iowa

An Overview of the Law Governing Community Foundations

This chapter of Mastering Foundation Law provides a comprehensive legal guide for community foundations. It covers federal tax laws, state-specific regulations, and the common legal characteristics of community foundations. This resource is essential for understanding the legal framework that governs community foundations.

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Louisville KY

Accepting Cryptocurrency as Charitable Contributions

This publication will help community foundations navigate questions and concerns around receiving cryptocurrency as charitable contributions. Get comprehensive, state-by-state information on how your foundation can process any of the 6,000-and-growing cryptocurrencies that may be gifted.

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Legal Question of the Month
Holding an Endowment to Benefit a 501(c)(7) or Other Non-Charity

Question
We have a 501(c)(7) sportsmen's club that is selling land to a forest conservancy. We have been asked to manage a portion of the proceeds as an endowment. I would like to know what the IRS's outlook would be on this arrangement. Obviously, we would need to make sure that no money that we distribute would be used to benefit individual members or to be used for any lobbying activities in which they might engage. 

Answer from Staff Counsel, Remy Barnwell
There’s no legal reason you couldn’t hold an endowment to benefit a 501(c)(7), or any other non-charity for that matter, but you’re correct that you’d need to take additional steps to ensure that all distributions from the endowment would further exclusively charitable activities carried out by the organization rather than supporting its general operations.

This documentation could involve requiring the organization to submit funding proposals each time they request a distribution that would outline how they intend to use the funds to further specific charitable projects or activities, and then requiring follow up reporting detailing how funds were expended. And of course, you’d also need to stipulate that funds can’t be used to benefit members’ private interests or engage in lobbying and political activities, as you’ve noted.

Council members are encouraged to send any legal inquiries to legal@cof.org.

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