For Businesses

Nonprofit Organizations

For more than 25 years, Henningson & Snoxell is proud to have served the legal and business management consulting needs of many of Minnesota's most outstanding nonprofit organizations. We serve as outside general counsel to many nonprofit organizations, protecting their interests in everyday issues that may arise involving laws specific to nonprofits, contracts, financing, employment matters, intellectual property and disputes. By developing a thorough understanding of their business operations, objectives, and the nonprofit's unique needs, we are able to provide proactive advice and counsel to help them achieve their goals. We are privileged to have many long-term nonprofit organizations as clients and value their continued business.

Jim Snoxell and David Henningson have been named Super Lawyers by Minnesota Law & Politics magazine, a designation reserved for only 5 percent of the total lawyers in the State.

We represent a variety of nonprofit organizations, including:

Churches and other faith-based organizations
Radio ministries
Private schools
Social service agencies
Educational institutions
Health care
Foundations, public and private
Trade associations
Professional associations
Public charities

Organizing and Maintaining Nonprofit Entities. We represent nonprofits of all sizes and types, and help their entity organize and maintain their nonprofit organization. As outside general counsel for many nonprofits, we provide advice and counsel specific to nonprofits in:

Selection of type of legal entity
Structuring of tax-exempt foundations
Public-private partnerships and other types of collaborative relationships
Strategic planning issues
Joint ventures with for-profit organizations
Advising about actions needed to maintain the entity’s legal standing
Management
- Corporate maintenance, minutes and filings; mandatory public disclosure documents
- Codes of ethics and best practice standards
- Director fiduciary duty and liability
- Limits on lobbying and political activity
- Removing unwanted directors
- Excessive compensation issues
- Conflicts of interest
- Helping establish, and document, management's roles and responsibilities
Financing
- Advice on fundraising, development programs and other financial matters
- Major donor issues
- Grant making programs
Tax
- Tax issues/tax-exemption/UBIT/audits
- Tax planning - international, federal, state, local
- IRS applications for letter rulings on proposed transactions
Certification and accreditation
Membership issues
Risk management
Representation before regulatory agencies

Employment Law. We work with nonprofits to help them establish appropriate practices and procedures for hiring, working with, disciplining, and releasing employees and independent contractors, including:

Drafting and reviewing employee handbooks
Providing employment agreements, both for specific key employees and general agreements
Advising about noncompete, confidentiality, nondisclosure, nonuse, intellectual property rights, and nonsolicitation protective provisions
Advising about independent contractor relationships and contracts
Training and advising about proper employee hiring procedures, employee relations, discipline and termination, and other aspects of the employer-employee relationship
Defending employers in employee disputes

Contracts. Every nonprofit organization deals with contracts on almost a daily basis. Having proper and up-to-date contract forms in place, and having appropriate procedures for reviewing and responding to contracts proposed by others, is an extremely important aspect of business operations. Our work with clients on contract matters includes, among others:

Helping establish standard contracts for use with customers or clients, vendors, and service providers
Helping prepare and establish procedures for using purchase orders, invoices, packing slips, quotations, and other such statements of terms and conditions
Assisting with special contracts with distributors, licensees, manufacturers, sales representatives, and others you do business with
Addressing intellectual property and product ownership issues that are associated with most transactions
Advising about contract terms regarding copyrights and use of trademarks or service marks
Using warranty disclaimers and appropriate limitations on liability for claims and damages

Acquisitions, Mergers and Dissolutions. Henningson & Snoxell works with nonprofit clients that are looking to acquire or merge by providing services, such as:

Advice about potential acquisitions or mergers
Negotiating terms for such transactions
Preparing contracts for such transactions
Assisting with due diligence work associated with an acquisition or merger
Helping with post-acquisition or merger transitions
Dissolution procedures

Intellectual Property; Copyrights, Patents, Service Marks, Trademarks, and Trade Names. Intellectual property rights to business methods, concepts, designs, ideas, plans, and products have become extremely important to nonprofit organizations. We work with clients to identify, protect, and utilize their intellectual property in many ways, including:

Identifying potentially valuable intellectual property that should be protected
Using contracts, filings with government agencies, and reservation of rights documents to help preserve rights to business methods, concepts, designs, ideas, plans, and products
Protecting against unauthorized use of intellectual property
Advising clients about the importance of protecting their assumed names, business methods, concepts, designs, ideas, logos, trademarks, service marks, and trade names
Advising about potential common law rights to business practices, business names and logos, products, and other such intellectual property
Advising about preserving such common law rights
Protecting and filing copyrights
Registering and maintaining trademarks and service marks with the U.S. Patents and Trademark Office and state agencies
Filing, publishing, and using assumed names

Commercial Real Estate. Our nonprofit clients also benefit from the services of our commercial real estate attorneys who:

Provide advice concerning the purchase of commercial real estate
Review and provide advice regarding purchase agreements and related documents
Help with financing and loan agreements
Handle or assist with closings
Draft commercial leases and advise on issues associated with leases for both landlords and tenants
Provide advice concerning mechanic's liens, draft mechanic’s liens, mortgages, and other security interests that can be granted in real estate

Collections. Nonprofit organizations may also find the need to make use of our services to assist in collecting receivables. We assist clients in this area by:

Properly documenting obligations and providing appropriate security, including security interests under the Uniform Commercial Code
Collecting accounts and judgments, including enforcement of lien rights and security interests
Defending unwarranted claims
Helping with procedures and strategies to help prevent and minimize collection problems

Our nonprofit organization clients also benefit from our work in related areas, such as:

Serving the Business Needs of the Twin Cities and the Northwest Metro

For further information about business and corporate law, business organizations and entity formation, in Minnesota please contact us today.

Henningson & Snoxell is a firm of 13 attorneys in general practice representing clients throughout the Twin Cities and the Northwest Metro, including Minneapolis, St. Paul, Maple Grove, Albertville, Anoka, Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park, Buffalo, Champlin, Dayton, Medina, Minnetonka, Plymouth, Rogers, St. Cloud, St. Michael, Wayzata and other communities in the counties of Hennepin, Ramsey, Wright, Anoka, and Sherburne.