February 6, 2006 VIA OVERNIGHT CARRIER AND FAX Committee on Sections Re: Proposed AALS Section on Nonprofit Law and Philanthropy Dear Committee on Sections: Please find enclosed a petition and required materials for the creation of an AALS section on Nonprofit Law and Philanthropy. This new section will focus on issues of concern to law professors who teach and conduct research in the areas of nonprofit law and philanthropy law by organizing programs in conjunction with other AALS activities and serving as a resource for interested professors. As indicated by the more than 100 law professors from 60 different law schools who signed the enclosed petition supporting the new section, many professors are in favor of creation of the new section. I and others who support the creation of the new section believe that the phenomenal growth of the legal fields of nonprofit law and philanthropy in law schools over the past 10 years is a strong indication of the need for a section of the AALS devoted to this subject. In this packet you will find the following:
Importance of the New Section: The existing sections of the AALS rarely, if ever, have panels or presentations on subjects that directly involve nonprofit law or philanthropy. Although the National Center on Philanthropy and the Law holds breakfast meetings at many AALS annual meetings, that organization is not a section of the AALS. This provisional section will provide a forum for law professors who teach courses relating to nonprofit law and philanthropy, including (but not limited to): Nonprofit Law; Federal and State Taxation; Estate, Trust and Probate Law; Corporations Law; Charitable Solicitations Law; Healthcare Law; Elder Law; Poverty Law; Art law; Education Law; Religion Law; and any other courses which involve discussion of nonprofit law and philanthropy. The section will also provide a forum for law professors who teach in many of the nonprofit legal clinics throughout the country. The proponents of this new section could not find an instance within the past five years in which an AALS section has organized a panel or presentation on a subject directly involving significant discussion of nonprofit law or philanthropy issues. This is unfortunate given the rising importance of this area of law in legal practice and education. For example, three major law reform organizations (American Law Institute, American Bar Association and National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws) have on-going major projects that each concern aspects of state law regulation of nonprofit organizations, philanthropy and management of charitable funds. Additionally, the major book publishers (West, Lexis and Foundation) recently published several books that deal with the tax law aspects of nonprofit organizations and/or the corporate/trust law aspects of these organizations. Given this high level of activity within the legal academy in the field of nonprofit law and philanthropy, it seems appropriate that there would also be a high level of interest in a section on nonprofit law and philanthropy within the AALS. Support for the New Section: The effort to create this new section began in the fall of 2004 by professors interested in the lack of attention to nonprofit law and philanthropy issues at the AALS annual meeting programs. Since that time, support for the new section has grown significantly. This support is evident in many ways. For example, 116 law professors from 60 different law schools signed the petition in support of the section. (See attached petition.) Many law professors also joined a yahoo groups listserve in support of the new section. (See <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aalsnonprofphil/>) Finally, about 20 or so law professors attended an open programs session at the January 2006 AALS annual meeting. (See attached minutes of the open programs session). Overlap: As with many legal areas, the fields of nonprofit law and philanthropy involve the intersection of many different fields of law, including corporate law, taxation law, and others. Thus, it is inevitable that some of the focus of this provisional section may incidentally overlap with many existing sections of the AALS. Just a few of the existing AALS sections that exhibit potential for significant overlap include Business Associations; Art Law; Donative Transfers and Taxation. However, these existing sections do not regularly organize programs that specifically address issues of nonprofit law or philanthropy. In fact, each of these sections has explicitly agreed that it does not object to the creation of a new AALS section on Nonprofit Law and Philanthropy. (See enclosed letters from these sections.) Thank you for considering this request and petition to form a new AALS section on Nonprofit Law and Philanthropy. Please feel free to contact me or any of the proposed executive committee members of the section should you have any questions or require additional information. Sincerely,
David A. Brennen
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