The Charities Act 2006 is the legal framework for the charitable sector. It is overseen by the Office of the Third Sector which also monitors legislation and changes to existing legislation effecting charities and laws governing public charitable collections.
The Charity Commission enforces the Charities Act 2006, while the Charity Tribunal is an independent body which hears appeals against decisions of the Charity Commission.
Charities are also subject to other laws such as employment law, tax law and data protection laws.
The Social Value Bill has edged closer to becoming law, after passing its second reading in the House of Lords.
The Royal National Institute of Blind People has entered legal proceedings against airline bmibaby for failing to make its website accessible to blind and partially-sighted people.
Bill Gates has pledged a $750m vote of confidence in the Global Fund to fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria after it was announced its executive director would step down following the exposure of a "grave abuse of funds" in several countries the fund works in.
High Court judges are deciding whether to grant the appeal made by the government against last December’s ruling that cuts to its solar subsidy scheme were illegal.
A 69-year-old Lincolnshire man has been sent to prison for two years after being convicted of stealing more than £40,000 from an education charity.
The Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland has won £3.5m from the Lloyds Banking Group after successfully appealing against an earlier court judgment.
Demystyfing the Companies Act 2006
Christine Rigby explains what powers charites have under the Companies Act 2006.
Friends of the Earth has criticised the government’s decision to appeal a High Court ruling which found that the cut to solar panel subsidies was illegal.
Straying from governing documents
Philip Smith explains the process for resolving a situation where the trustees had not complied with requirements under its articles of association.
Fundraising volunteer on the take
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A fundraiser has been keeping goods donated as prizes for herself. Simon Morrison of the Institute of Fundraising advises the chairman what to do about it.
The Charity Commission has decided not to appeal against the Upper Tribunal’s decision on its public benefit guidance for schools and other charities that charge fees for their services.
The Charity Commission has published its updated public benefit guidance, removing the parts deemed flawed by the Upper Tribunal.
Music festivals should consider registering as charities, according to two of the sector’s top lawyers.
The Charity Tribunal has been asked to review a decision by the Charity Commission to allow two independent schools to merge.
The new law that consolidates all charity legislation for England and Wales received Royal Assent yesterday.
A report for the Legal Services Consumer Panel has found that small charities have little understanding of the legal issues they face, and warns that funding cuts and greater pressure on their services could see charities facing a wider variety of legal implications.
Nursing Homes Fees Agency, the now defunct subsidiary which triggered HSBC’s record £10.5m fine from the FSA this week for misleading elderly savers, had links to charities including Help the Aged and Counsel and Care.
The Upper Tribunal has ordered the Charity Commission to withdraw its existing guidance on public benefit of fee-charging charities while it writes its new guidance.
The Charity Commission and the Independent Schools Council recently returned to the Upper Tribunal after failing to agree how to amend the Commission’s public benefit guidance in the wake of the Tribunal’s initial judgment on the matter.
Former Charity Commission chief executive Andrew Hind offers his verdict on the recent public benefit Tribunal judgment.
The review of the Charities Act should re-examine the way that Attorney General’s references play out in the sector, according to Charity Tribunal president Alison McKenna.
The Charity Commission is considering a request by Charity Bank to change its governing documents to allow it to distribute profits to its charitable shareholders, a decision that could have wider implications for all charitable companies.
The Law Commission has indicated that it plans to examine charity legislation after Lord Hodgson has concluded his review of the Charities Act, and there may even be another draft charities bill produced in 2015.
Amendments proposed by Labour to the Public Services (Social Value) Bill, which include a requirement for direct consultation with the Charity Commission, Acevo, NCVO and others, could provide greater safeguards for not-for-profit involvement in the public service contracting process.
Age UK Hertfordshire is preparing to take Watford Borough Council to the local authorities ombudsman in a bid to protect its reputation after receiving a £500,000 dilapidations bill for two properties it occupied.
Remuneration of trustees and potential alternatives to the Charity Tribunal are just two areas that the NCVO’s Charity Law Advisory Group will examine as part of its review of the Charities Act 2006.
Rosie Chapman provides a whistle-stop tour of the terms of reference of the NCVO's review of the Charities Act 2006.
Stephen Lloyd has been appointed as the expert lawyer to advise Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts on the review of the Charities Act 2006.
The point of law that the Charity Tribunal is clarifying this week in a four-day hearing on benevolent funds, involving at least eight barristers and several more solicitors, is a hypothetical question, counsel for the Attorney General has admitted.
The Association of Charitable Organisations has criticised the Charity Commission for forcing its members to waste time and money on the Charity Tribunal case being heard in London this week.
