Request Legal Assistance

The Pro Bono Partnership assists qualifying nonprofit organizations in Connecticut, New Jersey, and the lower Hudson Valley in New York with their business legal needs. To find out more about the types of legal issues we can address, please click here.  

Please note, the Partnership does not assist individuals or for-profit organizations.  

Below is our application for legal assistance.  This application and the required documents listed below will help the Pro Bono Partnership learn more about your organization and its legal needs.

Please note:  Any information that you submit via this form is not protected by the attorney-client privilege.  Submitting this form to the Pro Bono Partnership is not intended to create, and does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

This application is for new clients or former clients who have not received assistance from the Partnership within the past two years.  If your organization has received legal services from the Partnership in the past two years, please call your local Partnership office for help with new matters.

Instructions

Please complete the fields below and submit.  Then please email all required documents to information@probonopartner.org or fax or mail all required documents to your local Pro Bono Partnership office.   If you prefer, you can download a copy of the application here and either email it to information@probonopartner.org or fax or mail it to your local Partnership office with the required documents. 

Special Requirements for Assistance with Incorporation/Application for Tax-Exempt Status

Although the Partnership generally does not charge for its services, there is a $500.00 non-refundable processing fee for groups seeking assistance with incorporation and/or the application for tax-exempt status.   This fee is in addition to all state and federal filing fees, and is only required if your group is accepted as a client of the Partnership.   Your group is also required to attend our workshop “Starting a Nonprofit: Upsides, Downsides and Alternatives” before your Request for Pro Bono Legal Assistance will be processed.  If you have not attended this workshop previously, please visit the Workshop section of our website to see when the next workshop will be offered.  

 

 
1. Name of organization
Address:
 
City  State  Zip 
Phone number:
Fax number:
E-mail:
Website address:
 
2.  Name of contact person:
Title:
Work phone:
Home/cell phone:
 		   Home Cell
E-mail:  
3.  If the contact person is not the Executive Director/CEO, please also provide:
Name of Executive Director:
Work phone:
Home/cell phone:
 		   Home Cell
E-mail:  
4.  If the contact person is not the Board President, please also provide:
Name of Board President:
Work phone:
Home/cell phone:
 		   Home Cell
E-mail:  
5.  Please provide a one-sentence summary of your organization’s mission.
 		  
If you would like to describe the purpose and/or mission of your organization in greater detail, please do so here. If you prefer, you may email materials to information@probonopartner.org or fax or mail materials to your local Pro Bono Partnership office.  
6.  How long has your organization been in existence?
Is your organization incorporated? Yes  No
Tax exempt? Yes  No
7.  How many people are involved with your organization?
Board Members 
Employees
Volunteers
8. Approximately how many people does your organization serve?
 
9. Of the people you serve, please estimate what percentage are economically disadvantaged.
10.  What is your organization's annual or projected annual budget?
Is there a line item for legal fees? Yes  No
If yes, how much?
Are these funds restricted for a particular purpose? Yes  No
11.  Please describe the specific kinds of legal assistance you will need.
 
12. If you have spoken to a Partnership staff attorney about any of these matters, please tell us his/her name.
13.  Please provide the name, telephone number, and affiliation of any attorney that is now helping or has helped your organization, and briefly describe the services provided.
 
14. Please provide the name, telephone number, and affiliation of any attorney(s) that sit on the organization’s board of directors or board of trustees
 
15. Please tell us where you heard about the Pro Bono Partnership.
16. Groups seeking assistance with incorporation and/or the application for federal tax-exempt status: Have you attended our workshop “Starting a Nonprofit: Myths and Realities”? Yes No
If yes, when?

17. Please also send us the information/documents listed below. Your request WILL NOT be processed until we have received them.

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Required Documents

 

  1. Existing organizations, please provide the following:
    1. Certificate of Incorporation (sometimes referred to as Articles of Incorporation)
    1. IRS tax determination letter
    1. List of board members and officers, including titles and affiliations
    1. Bylaws
    1. Last Form 990, 990-EZ, or 990-N filed with the IRS
    1. Line item budget
    1. Any other organizational information that you think might be helpful to us (brochures, annual reports, program description, etc.) 
    1. Any documents you would like us to review (e.g., personnel policies, contracts, waiver forms)

If you can’t locate some of these documents, please submit the completed form with all of the documents you currently have.

 

  1. Groups seeking to incorporate and/or obtain 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status, please provide the following:

    2. 1.  A business plan or similar document. At a minimum, this should address the following:

    1. The mission of the organization
    2. A detailed description of the proposed activities that will accomplish the mission
    3. The target beneficiaries of the organization
    4. The communities where the activities will be conducted
    5. Identification of other groups that are addressing the same issues in these communities, and a description of how your organization differs
    6. Expected sources of financial support
    7. Specific fundraising plans
    8. Proposed three year budget
    9. Proposed staffing of the organization (employees and/or volunteers)
    10. List of prospective board members
    11. A description of your experience, if any, working with a charitable organization
    12. A summary of steps taken, if any, to partner with another organization to carry out your activities

    2.  Sample grant proposals (if any)

    3.  Brochures, fliers or similar materials (if any) that describe your organization

Again, please note that if the Partnership determines that we can help your group with incorporation and/or applying for tax exemption, there will be a non-refundable $500.00 fee for that service, in addition to all required state and federal filing fees. 



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