A “legal update” from lawyers MinterEllisonRuddWatts at the end of last year tackled the challenges facing advocacy organisations wishing to apply for charitable status. “The challenges faced by advocacy organisations seeking charitable status Better Public Media Trust v Attorney-General was a recent case before the Court of Appeal that grappled with Read more
Q. A member of our committee has suggested that we should take out D&O Insurance . We are a small charity with limited funds. Is such insurance worth it? A. Please note that we are not legal or financial experts but we would suggest that all insurance is a waste Read more
From a blog by LEAD CEO Sandy Thompson: Emerging technology changes are reshaping how NFPs operate, driven by advancements in AI, the increasing importance of cybersecurity, the integration of blockchain technology, the rise of remote work, and the growing focus on data-driven decision-making. These factors are not just trends; they Read more
From the Charities Services Newsletter June 2024 Good governance and the Charities Act The Charities Act changed in 2023 and now there is a new requirement related to the governance of your charity. Charities will now need to review their governance every three years. When you come to file your Read more
Updated 31 May 2024 Q: We are a church which is a Registered NZ Charity. Some members have suggested that we should, in addition to registration with DIA Charities Services, ‘Incorporate’ with the Companies Office (Registrar of Incorporated Societies). Is this step necessary or advisable? What are the pros and Read more
A blog on the Forbes Nonprofit Council website caught our eye. The article starts: “Nonprofit organizations can sometimes face the risk of failure, and staff and executives must be aware of the telltale signs. When it becomes apparent that a nonprofit is headed toward trouble, effective leadership can be the Read more
Updated: 11 May 2024 Q: What is the difference between a Charitable Trust and an Incorporated Society? Which is best for me? The differences are clearly explained on the Registrar of Incorporated Societies website and on this very helpful blog post on the DIA Charities website. The Community Net Aotearoa Read more
(Note: In this article, the term “rules” is used in a general sense to refer to an organisation’s governing document – ie its rules, constitution, bylaws, trust deed etc and the term ‘charity/ies’ denotes any form of incorporated/registered non-profit)) Q: Can you give us guidance on winding up a charity Read more
(Note: In this article, “rules” refers to an organisation’s governing document – ie its rules, constitution, bylaws, trust deed etc) We recently received an enquiry about whether a non-profit could temporarily place a clause in its rules in abeyance (ie operate outside of its rules). We are aware of some Read more
The Helen Stewart Royle Charitable Trust grants up to $50,000 per award to charitable organisations that aid women and the elderly. Applications are now open to organisations that can directly apply funds to specific projects that provide humanitarian aid (assistance and relief) to women or older people. Applying organisations must Read more
BoardWorks website recently published a review of ” A Board Member’s Handbook for Small (and Very Small) Nonprofits” by Erik Handberg The review starts: “Aotearoa New Zealand has around 28,000 charities and another 24,000 incorporated societies. Many fit into the small or very small category consistent with this book’s title. Read more
Many NFPs use ZOOM for team meetings. A potentially major security flaw was recently notified on the website securityaffairs. While the article is quite technical, it appears that you may need to uninstall the current version and install the latest to get the most up to date version, although NFP Read more