ROSENTHAL BOOK ON MEETING THE LEGAL NEEDS OF NONPROFITS SHOWS
THE WAY TO 50 HOURS OF FULFILLING PRO BONO WORK
LINCOLN CENTER’S GENERAL COUNSEL MAPS OUT MEANINGFUL PROJECTS IN 10 WORKPLANS ON A WIDE SELECTION OF TOPICS
Wiley - New York State’s Chief Judge increased to 50 hours from 20 hours
per year the amount of pro bono legal services to which New York lawyers
should aspire. Lawyers are now required to report biennially the amount
of unpaid legal services and voluntary contributions made to
organizations assisting the underserved and the poor. New York’s move
followed seven other states requiring lawyers to report pro bono hours,
including Illinois and Florida. As emphasized by Chief Judge Lippman, "I
have every confidence that the steps we take today will help increase
pro bono service and narrow the enormous access to justice gap in our
state.”
With her book Good Counsel: Meeting the Legal Needs of Nonprofits (John
Wiley & Sons 2012), Lesley Rosenthal, the General Counsel of Lincoln
Center for the Performing Arts, maps out ready-made and meaningful pro
bono projects for attorneys interested in serving the legal needs of
charities.
Released in 2012 in anticipation of an upsurge in lawyers’ interest in
providing pro bono service to charities, particularly among corporate or
transactional lawyers who have not yet found their way to pro bono work,
Good Counsel provides 10 work plans and companion text for lawyers to
help nonprofits in areas such as corporate law, governance, contracts,
copyright law, trademarks, fundraising, trusts & estates, investments,
labor and employment, social media, litigation, regulatory matters, real
estate and investigations, and lobbying/government relations. Using Good
Counsel, attorneys can immediately get to work tackling common legal,
governance and compliance issues facing charities.
Using Good Counsel as their playbook, attorneys in New York and
nationwide are shaping actionable projects in fulfillment of pro bono
requirements, better service to underserved populations by
organizations, and the greater good.
What lawyers, students, academics and nonprofit leaders are saying about
Good Counsel:
“Good Counsel is brilliant counsel. Some books make a difference. Others
make a great difference. Very few become standards. This work by Lesley
Rosenthal will become a standard of the nonprofit world.”
Peter S. Britell, Universityof MiamiLaw News, Feb. 2013. (link for
reference: http://www.law.miami.edu/news/2013/february/img/pdf-2490a.pdf)
New York Bar Journal: “A remarkable, up-to-date and virtually
all-inclusive practice treatment...An impressive array of guidelines and
how-to suggestions and materials intended to train incoming counsel and
those on both sides of the attorney-client relationship."
Robert L. Ostertag, Past President, NYSBA. July-Aug. 2012.
Philanthropy Front and Center: “Good (and understandable) Counsel.
Useful tool...practical, readable! Many will want a personal copy for
staff, trustees and (if they have one) for their own attorneys."
Patricia Pasqual, Director, Foundation Center, May 3, 2012.
Amlawdaily: “Rosenthal gives us the scoop on how lawyers can parlay
their firm experience into a job in the nonprofit sector.”
Vivia Chen, The Careerist, April 2012
New York Law Journal: "A true must-read for nonprofit lawyers,
executives, board members and even law students....If you interact with
nonprofits, this is the book."
Stephen P. Younger, Past President, NYSBA, Feb 21, 2012.
About.com: “There is no doubt that once you have this book in your
hands, you’ll be grateful, whether you’re a development director, the
ED, or a ‘member of the board’. Add Good Counsel to your nonprofit
management bookshelf and make sure that your entire management team
knows about it.”
Joanne Fritz, Nonprofit Charitable Orgs Guide, Feb. 2012.
Does Your Nonprofit Need Legal Counsel About Using Social Media?: “Great
resource... Her writing style is less lawyerly, and well, human. The
book is filled with stories, practical resources, and tools.”
Beth Kanter, How Networked Nonprofits Leverage Networks and Data for
Social Change, Jan. 17, 2012.
Good Counsel: Meeting the Legal Needs of Nonprofits is available for
purchase at www.wiley.com/buy/9781118084045.
It is also available at Amazon.com and BN.com in hard cover and e-book
editions.
About the Book
Good Counsel: Meeting the Legal Needs of Nonprofits (Wiley, ISBN:
978-1-1180-8404-5; Hardcover / 352 pages / $80.00) is the
first-of-its-kind guidebook written by the sitting General Counsel of a
major nonprofit. It takes a department-by-department look at legal
topics relevant to programs, fundraising, finance, communications, human
resources, operations, contracts, government relations, and more.
Workplans accompanying each chapter are designed to launch productive
relationships between counsel or supervised law students and nonprofits
in need of legal advice. The book imparts confidence, demystifies
issues, and leverages legal resources to help organizations do the
public good. With illustrative examples from human services, higher
education, cultural, and other organizations, Good Counsel also contains
focus questions, practice pointers, case studies, sample documents and
other explanatory materials for educators, practitioners and students.
Used along with its companion website, the book shows readers how to:
Energize the boardroom with role clarity and trustee engagement
Boost fundraising activities
Negotiate contracts that serve the organization’s best interests
Support a committed workforce with sound employment policies
Strengthen the organization’s name and protect its good works
Understand the business model and applicable regulations
Find the sweet spot for entrepreneurial initiatives
Start up or step up a network of legal supporters
The book also reveals how good governance ties to mission and
fundraising; how to protect the organization’s name and monetize its
original works; potent phrases that can turn gift pledges into
enforceable contracts; and one thing NOT to say in a hire letter or
employee handbook. It also provides useful guidance on finding a coveted
law job at a nonprofit.
About Lesley Rosenthal
Lesley Rosenthal leads the legal, governance, and compliance functions
of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Inc. Since 2005, she has
fashioned the legal context for the renowned arts center’s world-class
cultural and educational offerings, its entrepreneurial initiatives in
media, fashion, and international consulting, and the $1.2 billion
redevelopment of its iconic physical complex. Rosenthal has served in
many roles throughout the nonprofit sector, including leading Charity
Corps: Lawyers Helping Nonprofits, a joint initiative of the New York
State Bar Association and the State Attorney General’s Office. For 13
years, she was in private practice as a business, litigation, and
technology lawyer at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in New
York City. Rosenthal graduated from Harvard College and Harvard Law
School. The National Organization for Women (NOW-nyc) has named her a
“Woman of Power and Influence” and the Association of Media &
Entertainment Counsel has named her “Counsel of the Year” for excellence
in arts law. Follow her on Twitter @GoodCounselBook or find her on
Facebook at Facebook.com/GoodCounselBook.
