General Enquiries:office@whlaw.com.au
Perth:+61 8 9481 2040
Geraldton:+61 8 9921 2344
Non-Profits, Charities and DGR's
Commercial Law & Contracts
Make an Enquiry
At Williams + Hughes we have more than 35 years of experience advising a range of charities and not-for-profit organisations. Many of our Principals have experience as Board members of charities. We understand the distinct commercial and legislative requirements of this sector and are well placed to deliver advice on practical solutions for charitable and not for profit organisations. On some matters we offer reduced fees or act pro-bono.
Our focus is on assisting charities, and so we do not provide pro-bono services to individuals making general enquiries to our firm. Any pro-bono work we agree to do for individuals comes to us via charities we work with.
The services we provide in this sector typically include:
- Advising Boards on corporate governance and compliance;
- Structuring, establishing and transitioning for not-for-profits and charities;
- Registering with the Australian Charities and Not for Profits Commission (ACNC);
- Securing charitable status (Designated Gift Recipient (DGR) status) and tax concessions for charities;
- Negotiating settlements on behalf of charities and private clients in relation to disputed estates;
- Applying for probate for charities and not-for-profit organisations; and
- Establishing school scholarship funds and obtaining DGR status.
Our work as pro bono lawyers in Perth and Western Australia has included in the past :
- Acting for two leading Perth private schools in:
1. Establishing Scholarship and Bursary Funds and obtaining DGR status for those funds
2. Advising the Schools and their Foundations on their Constitutions and governance matters - Acting for a school in regional Western Australia in establishing a school Foundation
- Completing the re-structure of a leading Western Australian heath related charity from an association to a company limited by guarantee and obtaining DGR status as a public ancillary fund
- Assisting charities in re-structuring including changing from an association to a company limited by guarantee
- Advising religious orders
- Undertaking the Western Australian element of a national restructure of a religious order and its property holdings and obtaining exemption from stamp duty
- Advising well known national and local charities on estates and disputes concerning estates and applying for letters of administration with the will annexed on behalf of charities where the executor does not wish to act
- Acting as pro bono lawyers for the Dogs Refuge Home (WA) Inc, one of Perth’s oldest animal charities.
Click to view
Greg Mohen joins Williams + Hughes
Williams + Hughes are delighted to announce that Greg Mohen has joined our commercial law team. G...
Williams + Hughes Earns Recertification in Meritas, the Leading Global Alliance of Independent Business Law Firms
Williams + Hughes is pleased to announce that it has been awarded recertification in Meritas, a...
Meritas Welcomes DMAW Lawyers, Adelaide, to the Membership
Leading Adelaide commercial Firm, DMAW Lawyers has been selected to be South Australia’s repre...
Privacy policies and procedures: Australian businesses may have to comply with European GDPR laws
On Friday 25 May 2018 the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect, giving...
COVID-19: Temporary relief for financially distressed individuals, companies and directors
The Australian Federal Government has announced temporary amendments to insolvency and bankruptcy la...
Covid 19- an overview of the JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme
The core component of the Federal Government’s business support package in response to the Cov...
Need a new will ? Witnessing wills during Covid-19 in Western Australia
In Western Australia for a Will to be valid: the Will must be in writing the person mak...
Covid-19 relief for commercial tenants in Western Australia
The State and Commonwealth Governments are in the process of enacting legislation to provide relief ...
What tax risks do I take on when I become a company director? (updated)
This is a question often asked of lawyers. There are many risks a person is exposed to when the...
Clarifying the ability of trustees to expand their powers: the decision in Re Application of Country Road Services Pty Ltd
In this article (published in the December 2019 edition of the Law Society Brief magazine) Jonathan ...
Handshake deals and transfer duty: you can’t avoid paying duty by not documenting the deal
Sometimes two parties to a deal are tempted to use a "handshake agreement" to try avoid pa...
Superannuation guarantee amnesty: one last chance to pay compulsory superannuation for non-complying employers who employ "contractors"
Employee versus contractor? Are you sure? Over the past decade many Australian companies hav...
Disclose the full upfront price or risk breaking the law: new upfront pricing laws apply
It is not uncommon for businesses to advertise a headline price for goods and services to their...
Modern slavery legislation: the clock is ticking for Australian companies to prepare their first Modern Slavery Statement
Modern slavery legislation has been enacted in Australia. Many larger companies are now legally obli...
Minutes of Board Meetings: more than just a "box ticking" exercise
The importance of minute taking at Board meetings was recently highlighted by the Financial Services...
Board Spills - Getting the notice right
The interaction between section 249D and section 203D of the Corporations Act 2001. There ...
THE ACCC CONTINUES ITS CRACK DOWN ON THE USE OF UNFAIR CONTRACT TERMS
Uber Eats agreed this week to amend its contracts with restaurants following an investigation by the...
Franchising: Federal Court freezes assets of franchisor to protect franchisees who claim they were misled
Background Jump Swim is an Australian-based franchisor that sells franchises to franchisees wishi...
Employment law changes from 1 July 2019 - take note !
Employers should take note of changes to the employment landscape that take effect on 1 July 20...
Keeping your financials “off the record”: from 1 July 2019 fewer companies need to lodge their financial accounts with ASIC
Recent changes to the Corporations Act 2001 remove the need for many companies to lodge annual finan...
Minimum wage increase to apply in Australia from 1 July 2019
All employers should be aware of the Fair Work Commission's (FWC's) decision regarding the 2...
The ACCC is targeting the Australian Wine Sector- winemakers must update their supply contracts with growers
On 3 June 2019 the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (the ACCC), Australia's co...
New laws imposing mandatory requirements for businesses that supply services: your T&C’s and website must be updated by 9 June 2019
Recent amendments to the Competition and Consumer Regulations 2010 impose new mandatory wo...
Are you at legal risk? Changes to the Privacy Act: 22 February 2018
From 22 February 2018 your business has a statutory obligation to report a data breach involving per...
