Have you ever served on the board of a nonprofit organization or had a client who was interested in making a gift to the same organization? Or been asked to donate your professional services to a nonprofit organization as part of a fundraiser?

What are your obligations in advising the charitably inclined clients and what are the ethics obligations of charitably inclined attorneys and other professional advisors?

In October, the Maine Community Foundation piloted a continuing legal education (CLE) program for attorneys designed to provide an overview of applicable Ethics rules, a discussion of ethical concerns for charitably-inclined attorneys and advisors and an interactive conversation on different real-life ethical scenarios.

Eileen M.L. Epstein, Partner, Epstein & O'Donovan and Jon S. Oxman, Managing Partner, Linnell, Choate and Weber were co-presenters and led the 19 attendees in a lively discussion of real ethical issues related to charitable giving faced on a regular basis by attorneys.

We are considering taking this Ethics CLE program to other parts of the state. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Jennifer Southard at jsouthard@mainecf.org or 761-2440.