Charities & social enterprises

Fiona Bruce Solicitors acts for a wide range of churches and charities, from the newly formed to those established charities operating locally nationally and internationally. We make a great effort, not just to advise you about the legal framework under which charities operate, but also to understand your organisation’s ethos and aspirations for the future.

Charity law services

We handle the legal aspects of setting up a charity and offer advice on the appointment of trustees and their duties. We work with you to find and adopt the best legal structure to achieve your charity’s goals and to balance your charitable objectives with the need to operate a sustainable organisation. We can advise you on the appropriate legal structures for new charities (e.g. companies limited by guarantee, charitable incorporated organisations, trusts and associations) as well as reviewing the legal structures for existing charities.

Our work includes tailoring trust deeds and constitutions to suit the specific needs of each charitable organisation we act for. On our clients’ behalf, we liaise with the Charity Commission to ensure compliance with their requirements where necessary. We specialise in charity land transactions including the sale, purchase, leasing and mortgaging of land owned or held in trust for charity clients.

We can advise on a range of charity law issues including:

• The formation and registration of new charities

• Governance matters for new and existing charities

• Constitutional and trust matters

• The incorporation of unincorporated charitable trusts and associations

• The duties and responsibilities of charity trustees

• Dealings with the Charity Commission

• Charity investment and property matters

• Charity land transactions

• Permanent endowment and special trust property

• The restructuring / reorganisation of charities

• Trustee / membership disputes within charities

In addition, we can provide cost-effective supplemental services to charities including training for charity trustees and those involved in social enterprises.

Charity law insights from our blog