New online tool helps civil society to 'get legal'

Choosing the correct legal structure for a social enterprise can often turn out to be a complex affair. Help is at hand however, as a new online tool has been launched to assist charities, social enterprises and co-ops in their decision.

via socialenterpriselive.com

An online tool to help charities, social enterprises and co-ops make informed decisions about their legal form launches today. (7/7/10).

Get Legal- www.getlegal.org.uk - was developed by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) with support from law firm Bates, Wells & Braithwaite.

The site aims to provide civil society organisations and their advisors with guidance on the most appropriate legal form and governance structure for delivering their goals.

It combines a reference section with a special decision making tool, case studies and glossary, as well as directing people to the paperwork they need to fill in to get going.

Supported by a range of partner organisations including the CIC Regulator, the Charity Commission, Acevo, Co-operatives UK and the Social Enterprise Coalition, Get Legal was created and designed by specialist communications agency Society Media, co-owners of Social Enterprise Magazine.

NCVO CEO Stuart Etherington said: 'Our hope at NCVO is that this important and exciting initiative will demystify legal forms for organisations across civil society- and help them to make more informed choices.

'For some time we have recognised that many organisations struggle to get the information they need when they are first established. Research has found that choosing the most appropriate legal and governance structures is complex, and many of the governance problems that organisations suffer later on are a direct result of not being able to access the support they needed at the outset.'

'NCVO believes that voluntary and community organisations, social enterprises and co-operative organisations are at the heart of an active and vibrant civil society. Get Legal is just one of the ways in which we support and champion these organisations and help them to play their essential role in civil society across the UK.'

Abbie Rumbold, partner at Bates, Wells & Braithwaite, said: 'We see this as a ground-breaking initiative which we hope will provide much needed clarity on legal structures for a wide range of organisations.'

'NCVO has led an exceptional partnership of sector leaders working with the Charity Commission and CIC Regulator to produce an invaluable resource. We hope that a wide range of organisations and advisors will benefit from being able to find the answers to their legal structure questions quickly and easily.'

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