Legal Webinar: Nonprofit Mergers, Acquisitions and Dissolutions

Nonprofit Mergers, Acquisitions and Dissolutions
Wednesday, May 13 | 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM | Webinar

Presented by: Don Kramer, Esq. and Catherine Gillespie, Esq., Montgomery McCracken

Moderated by: Melissa Sines, Interim Standards for Excellence Director, PANO

Offered in Partnership with: Nonprofit Issues

*CPE & CLE credits are available for this program for accountants and lawyers; to receive credit you must register through Nonprofit Issues.

REGISTRATION DEADLINE: Tuesday, May 12, 11:59 PM

The nonprofit world has continued to change since we did our last webinar on mergers, acquisitions and dissolutions. What was optional thinking for nonprofits in 2024 has become mandatory thinking for many in 2026.

With serious cutbacks in federal funding, increased competition for the limited private resources available, and efforts to abolish the very essence of the work of others, many nonprofits are now concerned about their ability to survive. Now more than ever, considering whether and how to merge, affiliate or dissolve is critical.

This webinar will:

• Walk through the options, considering the advantages and disadvantages of merger, affiliation, bankruptcy, and dissolution for those who can’t afford bankruptcy.
• Discuss the various alternative legal relationships and the kind of “due diligence” investigation appropriate for considering a new structure for doing business.
• Review the types of procedures necessary to accomplish the goals, including the possible requirement for approval from the state Attorney General.
• Discuss the steps that many may be forced to take, if nothing else makes sense, to dissolve the organization while trying to keep the mission alive.

We will discuss these considerations in the context of real-life situations.  We will emphasize the need for advanced planning so that the options are actually viable, and are not imposed involuntarily when the organization has little or no capacity to affect the situation.

Here is what some of the participants in last year's webinar said in their evaluations:

• "Another great seminar.... Very clear presentations."
• "I appreciated how practical this was."
• "I came away realizing there is a more realistic way of accomplishing the intended goal."
• "I learned a third possible set up for 'acquiring' a not-for-profit."

More than 95% of the respondents to our survey for the last three webinars have said they learned something they would be able to use immediately in their work.

*CPE & CLE credits are available for this program for accountants and lawyers; to receive credit you must register through Nonprofit Issues.

Single Login Cost:
$45 per person for PANO Members | $100 per person for Not-Yet Members

Terms of Participation
Your purchase entitles you to a single login. Please do not share the login information with others, as it may interfere with your ability to join. If multiple individuals from your organization would like to view the webinar, please purchase separate tickets for each person or consider a group screening ticket (below).

Group Screening Cost (4-10 individuals):
$150 per group for PANO Members | $333 per group for Not-Yet Members

Terms of Participation
If you have 4-10 individuals interested in viewing the webinar, please have one person register selecting the group ticket. You can then enter the names and email addresses of up to 10 individuals to add to your group ticket.

This option makes the most sense when you have 4-10 individuals interested in viewing the webinar. For fewer than 4 attendees, a single login ticket for each person is the most cost-effective option. For more than 10 attendees, please email Christina at christina@pano.org to discuss options.

REGISTRATION DEADLINE: Tuesday, May 12, 11:59 PM

Materials & Login/Call-In Instructions:
Materials (PowerPoint and other handouts), along with instructions on how to login and call-in, will be emailed to attendees a few days prior to the date of the webinar. PANO uses Zoom as our webinar platform; you can familiarize yourself with Zoom and/or join a test meeting prior to these sessions.

Can’t attend? All webinar registrants will receive a recording of the webinar following the live session!

About the Facilitators

Donald W. Kramer serves as chair of Montgomery McCracken’s Nonprofit practice group.

Don has more than 45 years of experience dealing with the concerns of nonprofit organizations, not only as a lawyer, but also as a teacher, writer, publisher, and board member. He has worked with nonprofits of all types and sizes, helping structure startup situations and restructure multiorganizational health and educational systems. He counsels on a wide range of nonprofit corporate structure and governance, private and community foundations, continuing care retirement communities, exempt organization taxation, low-income housing tax credit transactions, real estate, charitable giving, and other nonprofit issues.

Don has provided legal services to The Philadelphia Foundation for more than 40 years.

Don serves as the editor and publisher of Don Kramer’s Nonprofit Issues®, a national newsletter of “Nonprofit Law You Need to Know,” which he founded in 1989.

Prior to joining Montgomery McCracken in 1972, Don served as deputy development coordinator and assistant to the mayor of Philadelphia.

Catherine H. Gillespie focuses on higher education law, health care, and corporate and tax law issues generally affecting nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations. Cathy’s work with colleges and universities includes advice on the interpretation and implementation of FERPA, the Clery Act, HIPAA and the Americans with Disabilities Act. She regularly advises colleges and universities on a wide-range of matters, including student-related matters; grievance procedures; drafting faculty policies and procedures; writing and reviewing contracts; compliance with federal and state regulations; real estate tax and other charitable exemption issues; drafting amendments to bylaws and articles of incorporation; and governance issues. Cathy is also involved with bond financings as the college or university’s counsel.

Due to her prior experience as a social worker in the health care field and her legal training, Cathy understands health care professions and organizations and regularly works with 501(c) health care entities to advise them on board governance and structure, state and federal regulatory compliance, licensure issues, contractual arrangements, and day-to-day business operations.