Update April 2022: Communities Rise will be pausing Direct Legal Services to nonprofits and will not be accepting Startup, Existing or Legal Health Checkup applications. We look forward to connecting with you later this year! Feel free to contact us via our contact form with any questions.
Communities Rise supports nonprofits in Washington State so they can focus on their mission. We connect nonprofits with volunteer attorneys who help them with their legal needs.
We offer three types of legal services for nonprofits:
Nonprofit Legal Clinic
In partnership with the King County Bar Association, Communities Rise offers a monthly legal clinic. Nonprofits can make an appointment for a one-on-one with an attorney to answer legal questions about their nonprofit governance and business law needs.
See all upcoming Legal Clinics here.
Please note that all appointments are currently being held by Zoom or phone for public safety reasons. Reviewing lengthy documents or filling out paperwork is not possible during clinics.
The Nonprofit Legal Clinic is free. Priority is given to small, BIPOC led nonprofits with limited resources. To schedule a Nonprofit Legal Clinic appointment, please reach us via our contact form or call at 206-324-5850.
Direct Legal Services
Communities Rise matches an organization to a volunteer attorney to provide direct legal services on the nonprofit’s business legal needs. For example, the lawyer may draft the articles of incorporation and bylaws and file those documents with the Washington Secretary of State to incorporate the nonprofit.
Potential clients must submit an application and pay a nonrefundable $100 application fee. All legal services are free beyond the application fee. Click here to learn more and see application information.
Nonprofit Legal Health Check-Up
This is a two-hour consultation between a lawyer and client to review CR’s Nonprofit Legal Checklist. The nonprofit will come out of the Nonprofit Health Check-Up with a nonprofit governance and compliance “To Do List.”
Communities Rise charges a $50 fee for the Nonprofit Health Check-Up and the $50 can be used as a credit toward the $100 application fee if the nonprofit applies for direct legal services. For more information about a Nonprofit Health Check-Up appointment, please contact us via our contact form or call us at 206-324-5850.