Ann Novacheck represents established and emerging nonprofit and tax-exempt organizations, providing practical legal counsel to private foundations, operating foundations, public charities, trade associations, and health care providers. Ann leverages her deep experience to understand not only how to solve a client's problem, but also how to align the solution with both organizational goals and larger industry trends.
Ann has particular experience in matters involving questions of governance,federal and state compliance, public charity support calculations, private foundation tax issues, intermediate sanctions, joint ventures, conflicts of interest, unrelated business tax issues, property-tax exemption, and benefit corporations. She also provides tax-planning advice to individuals and businesses, and she defends taxpayers and tax-exempt organizations before federal and state taxing authorities, tax courts, and attorneys general.
Representative Matters
Nonprofit and Tax-Exempt Organizations
- Counseled clients on compliance issues, including applying for and maintaining tax exempt status, filing applicable tax returns, and meeting state registration requirements
- Prepared comprehensive plans for land use to qualify for a property tax exemption and prepared the related applications
- Assisted clients with developing and amending articles of incorporation and bylaws, board and employee policies, investment policies, management compensation, grant-making procedures, contracts, and annual meeting minutes
- Represented organizations responding to IRS and Attorney General inquiries, in federal and state audits, and administrative appeals
- Developed and implemented reorganization structures to enhance program operating strategies and compliance with applicable federal and state laws
- Counseled clients on sophisticated fund-raising programs, including naming-rights agreements, capital campaigns, and endowment-fund development
- Trained Boards of Directors, officers, and staff on nonprofit and tax-exempt issues and strategies
- Developed donor-advised and donor-directed fundraising programs
- Provided grantee and program partner due diligence
- Prepared legal opinion letters on a variety of legal issues in the nonprofit and tax-exempt areas
- Advised on charitable gambling
- Represented clients seeking private letter rulings
Tax Planning
- Counseled clients on partnership and corporate (subchapters C and S) tax issues, including choice of entity
- Structured taxable and tax-free acquisitions, mergers, divestitures, and spin-off transactions for public and private corporations
- Prepared tax opinions for transactions
- Advised owners of closely held businesses on matters related to operations and succession planning
- Represented taxpayers responding to IRS and state agency inquires and federal and state audits and appeals
- Advised clients with regard to state tax nexus and compliance
