2026 Nonprofit Law Essentials: Representing Nonprofits Responsibly

overview faculty related courses This program is eligible for 6 hours of CLE credit in 60-minute states. In 50-minute states, this program is eligible for 7.2 hours of CLE credit. Credit hours are estimated and are subject to each state’s approval and credit rounding rules. Overview When serving on a nonprofit board, or serving the legal needs of nonprofits, lawyers eager to assist can put organizations they serve at risk if they don’t have enough nonprofit law experience or proper training. Sometimes, it’s what lawyers don’t know (or don’t know to ask and issue spot) that leads nonprofits astray. Join nonprofit legal experts for a comprehensive day of substantive and ethics credits to avoid common and costly mistakes when serving Pennsylvania nonprofit organizations. Learn about ongoing compliance requirements, critical steps for risk mitigation, current trends in the sector, and best practices for looking out for and serving the legal needs of nonprofits. Whether you are brand new or brushing up, and whether you are sitting on a board or handling their legal matters on a paid or pro bono basis, you won’t want to miss this day of learning about nonprofit law essentials. Recorded in May 2026. Faculty Laura N. Solomon, Esq. Laura N. Solomon, Esq. Laura N. Solomon, Esq. is the founder of Laura Solomon & Associates – a law firm devoted to the representation of nonprofit, charitable, and other tax-exempt organizations and philanthropic individuals. Ms. Solomon and her associates serve as outside general counsel to hundreds of organizations, providing a full range of corporate and tax legal services that include representation for mergers, joint ventures, affiliations, and complex financings. LS&A clients include public charities and private, corporate, and community foundations; museums; hospitals; schools; religious groups; business, environmental, animal welfare, and sports organizations; social clubs, and political action committees. These organizations range in size from small start-up organizations to large social service providers and multi-national charities that conduct international grant-making. LS&A also works closely with individuals and families to implement their philanthropic goals using private foundations and donor-advised funds. Ms. Solomon is a member of the Charity Working Group of the U.S. Treasury Department, the Tax-Exempt Organizations Subcommittee of the American Bar Association, and the Charitable Organizations Committee of the Pennsylvania Bar Association. She has also served as a Planner and Faculty member of the Nonprofit Institute of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute. Under the Obama Administration, she served as a United States delegate to the Financial Action Task Force. She also served as a Board member, Secretary, and Chair of the Grants Committee of the Mayor’s Fund for Philadelphia. Ms. Solomon is a Wexner Heritage Program Fellow. She is quoted frequently in the media and lectures often nationally and internationally for lawyers, accountants, and other professional and community groups on issues impacting the charitable sector and philanthropic individuals. Ms. Solomon teaches Golub Nonprofit Board Fellows at the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business, and Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business. She also lectures at the LaSalle University Nonprofit Center, and Villanova, Drexel, and Temple Universities. Prior to starting her firm, Ms. Solomon was associated with Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP. She is a member of the Bar Associations of New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. She received her B.A., magna cum laude, from Tufts University and her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. You can find more information about her practice along with links to helpful information on nonprofits at her website: www.LauraSolomonEsq.com. Morgen Cheshire, Esq. Morgen Cheshire, Esq. Morgen was named the 2024 Outstanding Nonprofit Lawyer of the Year by the American Bar Association and is a systemic thinker, dedicated to serving the legal needs of nonprofit organizations and revolutionizing how nonprofits access legal supports. She is the founder and managing attorney of the Cheshire Law Group, which was awarded the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Solo and Small Firm Section Award in 2024. Cheshire Law Group was launched in July 2011 to bring legal counsel within reach for nonprofit organizations, and in her daily practice, she exclusively serves as outside general counsel for nonprofits, helping them to manage their day-to-day and strategic legal needs effectively and affordably. Morgen is also the founder and managing editor of PAnonprofitlaw.com, a digital legal library launched in 2023 that offers resources that help make sense of legal complexities and accelerate and elevate the work of Pennsylvania’s nonprofit organizations and the professionals who serve them. PAnonprofitlaw.com includes tools that range from ready-to-use templates to informative guides to an annotated version of Pennsylvania’s Nonprofit Corporation Law (a 4th edition is coming in 2026!). Morgen also currently serves on the Public Policy Committee for the Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations (PANO) and is a member of the Pennsylvania Department of State Corporation Bureau Advisory Committee. Morgen earned her bachelor’s degree from Grinnell College, and her law degree from Temple University School of Law, cum laude, and spent her third year of law school at Columbia School of Law studying art law. She is admitted to practice law in Pennsylvania and New York. Beth Dougherty, Esq. Beth Dougherty, Esq. Beth Dougherty is the Director of Legal Education Initiatives at Cheshire Law Group in Philadelphia. Beth has advised a wide range of nonprofit organizations on all aspects of their activities, including formation and tax-exempt status, board governance, federal and state laws and regulatory compliance, mergers, affiliations, and fundraising compliance. She has also served on the boards of grassroots nonprofit organizations and worked directly in the nonprofit sector, supporting public education initiatives through the City of Philadelphia’s Community Schools Program and child health as a Project Coordinator at Children First. An active volunteer in her community, Beth has been involved with the East Passyunk Crossing Civic Association since 2008. She is a graduate of Temple University Beasley School of Law, J.D., and New York University, B.A. Thomas A. Tupitza, Esq. Thomas A. Tupitza, Esq. Mr. Tupitza is a shareholder in the Erie-based law firm of Knox McLaughlin Gornall & Sennett, P.C, having served as President of the firm, which also has offices in Pittsburgh and Jamestown, New York, from 2007 to 2026. He has advised nonprofits, private businesses, and public entities on governance, finance, and real estate matters for over 40 years, and is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania and New York. A past president of the Pennsylvania Association of Bond Lawyers, he is active as bond counsel in tax-exempt financing transactions.He is currently listed in The Best Lawyers in America® in four disciplines, having been named “Lawyer of the Year” in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area three times for Public Finance Law.He is a graduate of Westminster College and Harvard Law School, where he served as Executive Editor of the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review. An elected member of the American Law Institute, he participated in its Members Consultative Group for the Restatement of the Law, Charitable Nonprofit Organizations.He is a licensed consultant on the Standards for Excellence®: An Ethics and Accountability Code for the Nonprofit Sector, and was an incorporator and long-time board member of The Nonprofit Partnership in Erie.He currently serves on the boards of The Erie Community Foundation (Chair), Westminster College (Past Chair), the Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations, and The Jefferson Educational Society of Erie. He received the 2022 Tocqueville Award from United Way of Erie County. Karl Emerson, Esq. Karl Emerson, Esq. Karl E. Emerson provides legal counsel and advice to nonprofit organizations, including advising charitable organizations and their fundraisers on compliance with state charitable solicitation statutes, conducting charitable organization compliance assessments, and conducting internal investigations for charitable and other tax-exempt organizations. Karl represents more than 100 charitable organizations and educational institutions that he registers each year to solicit contributions nationally in all states where required. He also represents charitable organizations when they are investigated by various state and federal agencies. Prior to joining Montgomery McCracken, Karl served as director of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Charitable Organizations where he was responsible for administering and enforcing Pennsylvania’s charitable solicitation law. Under his direction, the number of registered organizations increased from approximately 3,700 to more than 9,800. He streamlined and eliminated cumbersome registration procedures and policies, implemented the first electronic registration system in the country and set up a Special Investigation and Audit Unit that pursues fraud and other abuses in the nonprofit sector. He worked closely with state and federal law enforcement agencies as well as foreign law enforcement agencies on several terrorist financing cases. Previously, Karl held a variety of executive level positions in the Pennsylvania Office of Inspector General where he supervised and directed complex fraud, waste and abuse investigations. These investigations resulted in major monetary recoveries and savings for the Commonwealth, hundreds of employee disciplinary actions, several grand jury investigations, and numerous criminal prosecutions and civil and administrative actions. He worked closely with state and federal law enforcement agencies during his 10 years at the Office of Inspector General. John R. Owen, Esq. John R. Owen, Esq. Mr. Owen is Counsel in the Pittsburgh law firm of Sherrard, German & Kelly, P.C. He has represented a broad range of nonprofit clients, including health care providers, social welfare organizations, universities, churches, other public charities, business associations, social clubs, pension plans, private foundations, public entities and individuals in nonprofit, tax, employee benefit and business transaction matters. Mr. Owen’s practice focuses on the establishment of many different types of charitable and other tax-exempt organizations with the Internal Revenue Service. He has advised on complete reorganizations of tax-exempt entities, including taxable and tax-exempt affiliates, and sales and conversions of nonprofit entities to for-profit entities, and vice versa. With respect to existing tax-exempt organizations, Mr. Owen has substantial experience with the Form 990 information return, the unrelated business income tax, intermediate sanctions, planned giving and other compliance areas. He also has extensive experience in designing executive compensation and employee benefit plans for nonprofit organizations. Mr. Owen received his law degree from the University of Akron School of Law, where he was a member of the Akron Law Review. He received an undergraduate degree in history cum laude from Grove City College and a master’s degree in law and taxation from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law, College of William and Mary, where he graduated first in the day division. Mr. Owen has passed the certified public accountant examination in Connecticut. He is a member of the Allegheny County Bar Association where he serves as a member of the Nonprofit Organizations Committee, Probate and Trust Law Section, and Tax Section.He is currently a member of the Standards for Excellence Committee of the Pennsylvania Association of Nonprofit Organizations, Chairman of the board of directors of the St. Barnabas Nursing Home, and Chairman of the Legislative Affairs Committee of the Pittsburgh Planned Giving Council. Mr. Owen has lectured extensively and authored a number of articles on tax-exempt, nonprofit and business law matters. He is admitted to practice law in Pennsylvania and Ohio. In 2005, he was awarded the Allied Professional of the Year by the Pittsburgh Planned Giving Council. Martha F. Reilly, Esq. Martha F. Reilly, Esq. Martha “Frannie” Reilly is an attorney at McNees Wallace & Nurick who advises nonprofits, schools, and public sector organizations throughout southeastern Pennsylvania from the firm’s Radnor office. Her practice focuses on public finance, corporate and tax matters, nonprofit governance, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) strategies. She advises clients on a range of legal and strategic issues, including bond structuring, tax-exempt status, and municipal securities law. Her work helps mission-driven and public-serving organizations navigate financing, compliance, governance, and long-term planning with a practical, solutions-focused approach. With experience advising nonprofits, schools, and public sector entities, Frannie brings a valuable perspective to conversations about nonprofit sustainability and the development of social enterprise strategies that support both mission and financial strength. She works closely with clients to address evolving legal and operational challenges while helping them build strong foundations for future impact. Frannie is co-chair of the firm’s Public Finance and Government Services Group and chair of its Charitable and Non-Profit and ESG Groups. She is also a member of the Corporate and Tax Group. Christie B. Tillapaugh, Esq. Christie B. Tillapaugh, Esq. Christie Brown Tillapaugh is the President and CEO of Dentons Cohen & Grigsby, where she is a Shareholder and serves as Chair of the firm’s Nonprofit and Tax-Exempt Organizations Group. She has over two decades of experience serving as outside general counsel and providing corporate governance and strategic transaction-related counseling for numerous organizations, including both tax-exempt and for-profit companies. Having guided multiple organizations through transformative projects and transactions that have shaped the nonprofit landscape, Christie is recognized as a leading corporate lawyer in the region’s nonprofit space. Her expertise lies in providing comprehensive counsel to senior management and boards of directors on various corporate, transactional, and governance-related matters. Christie’s deep understanding of the nonprofit sector, combined with her extensive deal experience, enables her to navigate clients through complex strategic decisions and structure intricate combinations to achieve their missions effectively. Whether it’s mergers and acquisitions, strategic collaborations, divestitures, or restructuring nonprofit entities, Christie provides a full suite of services tailored to the unique needs of tax-exempt and for-profit organizations. She earned her J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law, Pennsylvania State University, her B.A. from the Pennsylvania State University, and is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania. Need help navigating your CLE requirements? You have a lot on your plate. 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