On Thursday, June 14, 2018 at 10 am PDT / 1 pm EDT, I’ll be presenting Crowdfunding and Your Charity: Legal Traps and Tips from a Nonprofit Lawyer for Affinity Fundraising Registration. Here’s the description of the program from Affinity:

There’s little doubt that crowdfunding, or raising money for a cause by soliciting a large number of people through social media and online platforms, is impacting the way in which society supports charitable organizations. Crowdfunding reportedly generated more than $34 billion in worldwide transactions in 2015.

With such strong momentum and interest, many nonprofits are looking into how they may be able to successfully leverage crowdfunding to increase contributions, attract new donors, or even grow awareness and impact of their mission. While crowdfunding can certainly be a powerful tool for many nonprofits, it also raises a host of legal issues to be aware of, whether your organization is a crowdfunding pro or just considering testing it out.

Affinity Fundraising Registration welcomes Gene Takagi of NEO Law Group to share the ways he helps nonprofits navigate these legal waters. Affinity’s president, Marc Lee, will also weigh in with direct feedback Affinity has learned from regulators about how some of them view specific online fundraising activities.

This presentation will cover:

• State charitable solicitation laws and regulations that may apply
• Avoiding acting as a conduit for charitable funds to flow to others without appropriate oversight
• Management of any crowdfunding purportedly on behalf of a nonprofit by unauthorized individuals
• Providing transparency regarding any fees charged by a crowdfunding platform and the amounts of funds going to a nonprofit
• Donation substantiation requirements
• Maintaining realistic expectations and budgeting plans when launching a crowdfunding initiative
• And more