[POSTPONED] Legal Fundamentals of Forming a Mission-Driven Organization

NOTICE: This program has been postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. Please contact Russell Paul with any questions.

Four Class Sessions
Wednesdays from March 18-April 8, 6:00-8:00 pm
Northeastern University Law School, 42 Dockser Hall
65 Forsyth Street, Boston, MA 

One Legal Consultation Session
Wednesday, April 29, 6:00-8:00 pm
Morgan Lewis & Bockius, 1 Federal St., Boston, MA 

Do you have BIG ideas? Maybe you want to create a project to help your community. Maybe you want to start a business that will do good and also make a profit. Have you started working on your idea, but have yet to formalize your organization? Turning these ideas into a reality is daunting; there are many factors to consider along the way, and many have legal implications.

Lawyers Clearinghouse, Lawyers for Civil Rights, Morgan Lewis, Northeastern University Law School, and TSNE MissionWorks are proud to offer a new seminar series: Legal Fundamentals of Forming and Operating a Mission-Driven Organization (MDO).

The series is designed for people who want to establish and run an organization to make the world a better place, whether locally or on a broader scale. We will provide an in-depth look at choosing the best type of MDO entity to suit your needs, setting it up, and tackling day-to-day legal mechanics and hurdles that commonly arise along the way.

We are now accepting applications for Part I, which will focus on entity formation. Part II, which we expect to offer during the fall, will focus on legal aspects of day-to-day operations.

Part I: Entity Formation
Sessions 1-4: Each Wednesday, March 18-April 8, 6:00-8:00 pm
Session 5: Wednesday, April 29, 6:00-8:00 pm

The focus of Part I is entity formation: the differences among types of legal entities, how to decide which type will work best for your project, and the basics of forming and maintaining each one. While we will mention the business ramifications of each legal entity, this class is not designed to teach business basics.

Part I will consist of four classroom sessions, followed by a fifth session in which participants have an opportunity to consult experienced attorneys about the legal questions facing their own organizations:

Session 1: Wednesday, March 18: Forming a mission-driven organization: legal basics
Session 2: Wednesday, March 25: Deciding which form to use
Session 3: Wednesday, April 1: Incorporation workshop: two versions (for-profit and non-profit)
Session 4: Wednesday, April 8: Policies and their functions
Session 5: Wednesday, April 29: Consultation workshop

Participants attending at least 80% of the sessions (four out of five) for a given Part will receive a certificate of completion for that Part.