What Every Nonprofit Needs to Understand About Contracts

What You’ll Learn

This presentation is designed to assist nonprofit organizations in navigating contracts. From the basics of offer, acceptance, and consideration to special contract provisions such as indemnification and termination, this training will provide an overview of contracts such as real estate leases, grant agreements and MOUs. Join us for this complimentary webinar provided by Pfizer and the National Network of Business Law Pro Bono Providers. This webinar is geared towards executive directors, human resources professionals and board members of nonprofits.

The training will focus on three specific items:

1. What is in a Contract and Why:
   • The basics of offer, acceptance and consideration
   • Oral and written contracts
   • Boiler plate provisions like merger clauses, choice of law and forum, force majeure, etc.
   • Special provisions – indemnification, termination
2. Real Estate Leases
   • The basics of leases that a nonprofit should consider when negotiating the lease, such as space needs, rent adjustment clauses, triple net leases, etc.
   • Commercial leases – why they are not like residential leases  (i.e., you sign it, you’re probably stuck with it.)
   • Understanding the covenants of a lease, such as maintaining insurance
   • Disclaimers of warranties – especially fitness for a particular purpose. (In DC, we have had clients sign leases and then find out that the zoning laws do not allow them to run the organization out of the building they just rented.)
   • What are your remedies if the landlord is not performing, or there are building condition issues?
   • Terminating or renegotiating a lease
3. Grant Agreements and MOUs
   • Yes, they are contracts too
   • Understanding common provisions in these agreements
   • Understanding common omissions in these agreements – such as who owns the intellectual property created under the grant or MOU.