Legal Information Sessions

We are pleased to announce four free seminars on key legal issues available to voluntary and community groups in Central London. Each 2 ½ hr session will cover one key issues for the VCS, including: contracts and trading, premises, employment and governance.

Each of the four 2 ½ hour sessions is led by a charity law expert from Russell Cooke solicitors and will cover key aspects of one important issue:

· Contracts and trading: key clauses in service delivery contracts, primary purpose trading or establishing a trading company

· Premises: Leasehold contracts – rights and obligations, implications of owning property

· Employment practice: contracts & terms and conditions and dealing with disciplinary and grievance

· Governance: compliance for trustees, dealing with conflict of interest issues and trustee benefits

Groups are welcome to attend one or more of the sessions. The session will be adapted to the needs of the group, so come along with any questions/issues you want to discuss. Further details of the sessions are below.

The sessions will run in September:

Contracts and trading – CLCVS Network legal seminar

Who it is for?
This is a detailed legal seminar for committee members, staff or volunteers from voluntary and community groups in Central London, run by Central London CVS Network  and led by a charity law expert from Russell Cooke solicitors.  This seminar is for all people who want to keep up to date with key legal issues around contracts and trading.  Content is flexible and a key aim is to cater for the needs of the group on the day.

What is it about?

If your organisation is planning to trade, or establish a separate trading company, or is going to be entering legal agreements like service delivery contracts there are key legal issues around these that need to be considered.  Participants will be taken through typical clauses and issues when charities provide services under contract with a legal expert who can then answer your questions around them.  The seminar will also cover what primary purpose trading is and when a separate trading company is needed and the issues to consider around this.  

Premises rights and obligations – CLCVS Network legal seminar

Who is it for?
This is a detailed legal seminar for committee members, staff or volunteers from voluntary and community groups in Central London, run by Central London CVS Network and led by a charity law expert from Russell Cooke solicitors.  Content is flexible and a key aim is to cater for the needs of the group on the day.

What is it about?
What are your rights and obligations in relation to leasehold contracts? What are the implications of owning property?  Answers to these questions and more will be covered in this legal session, which will cover managing lease obligations such as repairs and service charges and break clause rights.  You will also have an opportunity to pose your own questions around leasehold contracts and property ownership and guidance from a legal expert. 

Employment Practice – CLCVS Network Legal Seminar

Who is it for?
This is a detailed legal seminar for any one in a voluntary organisation who has responsibilities around employing staff, run by Central London CVS Network and led by a charity law expert from Russell Cooke solicitors   Content is flexible and a key aim is to cater for the needs of the group on the day.

What is it about?
This legal seminar will cover details around employment contracts terms and conditions, what to do when things go wrong, the role of the staff handbook, the rights of staff and employers; how to manage disciplinary and grievance processes and when to use them.

Governance- CLCVS Network Legal Seminar

Who is it for?
This is a detailed legal seminar for management committee members (trustees) and coordinators of voluntary and community organisations who would like to know more about compliance for trustees.  The seminar will be run by Central London CVS Network and led by a charity law expert from Russell Cooke solicitors.  Content is flexible and a key aim is to cater for the needs of the group on the day.

What is it about?
This legal seminar will cover compliance regarding company and charity law for trustees, particularly around legalities relating to trustee benefits and how best to deal with conflict of interest. Participants will learn about what an organisations needs to do and have in place in order to comply with the law; how to identify and manage conflicts of interest of staff, management and trustees and what benefits trustees can and can't claim for.