Debates in Charity Law

John Picton is Lecturer in Law and Jennifer Sigafoos is Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of Liverpool. They are members of the Charity Law & Policy Unit.

Charitable organisations occupy a central place in society across much of the world, accounting for billions of pounds in revenue. As society changes, so does the law which regulates nonprofit organisations. From independent schools to foodbanks, they occupy a broad policy space. Not immune to scandals, sometimes nonprofits are in the news for all the wrong reasons and so, when they are in the public eye, regulators must respond to high profile cases.In this book, a team of internationally recognised charity law experts offers a modern take on a fast-changing policy field. Through the concept of policy debates it moves the field forward, providing an important reference point for developing scholarship in charity law and policy. Each chapter explores a policy debate, setting out the fault-lines in play, and often offering proposals for reform.Two important themes are explored in this edited collection. First, there is a policy tension in charity law between its largely conservative history and the need to keep up-to-date with social change. This pressure is felt acutely along key fault-lines, such as the extent to which a body of law which developed before the advent of legislated human rights is able to adapt to a rights-based world, and the extent to which independent schools - historically so closely linked with charity - might deserve their generous tax-breaks. The second theme explores the law from the perspective of a good-faith regulator, concerned to maximise the usefulness of charities. From the need to reform old organisations, to the need to ensure that charities enjoy the right amount of regulatory freedom in a world of payment-by-result contracts, the book critically charts the policy justifications for regulatory intervention, as well as the costs that such intervention might bring.Debates in Charity Law will be of interest to both academic researchers and students of the non-profit sector, looking to understand the links between law, social change and regulation. It will also help and guide nonprofit employees and volunteers, showing how their sector is shaped and moulded by the law.

Provides expert commentary on current policy debates and policy solutions, including independent schools, the regulation of commercial religious activity and social housing

1. Fault Lines in Charity LawJohn Picton and Jennifer Sigafoos2. Independence and Accountability in the Charity SectorMatthew Harding3. Debating the Extent of Party/State Control Over Overseas Nonprofit Organisations: Charity Law Debates in ChinaMark Sidel4. Regulating Egoism in PerpetuityJohn Picton5. Deploying Communitarianism Bankruptcy Theory to Rescue Insolvent Charities and Maintain Charitable PurposesJohn Tribe6. When Should Charities be Allowed to Discriminate? The Case of Single-Sex Services and Transgender PeopleJennifer Sigafoos7. Regulating Charitable Activities through the Requirement for Charitable Purposes: Square Peg Meets Round HoleAdam Parachin8. Redefining the Regulatory Space? Th e First Forays of the Irish Charities Regulatory AuthorityOonagh B Breen9. Independent Schools in Scotland: Should they be Charities?Patrick Ford10. Licking their Own Lollipops: What do Charities and the Public Think about the Regulation of Charitable Activities?Eddy Hogg11. Commissioning of Services by Charities in the Third Decade of the Contract Culture: Lessons Learned (or Not Yet)Debra Morris12. Regulating the Digital (Currency) Revolution: Unravelling the Technological Challenge Faced by CharitiesMatthew Robert Shillito13. Social Housing - Charities and Vulnerable GroupsWarren Barr14. Charity Law and Policy: Looking ForwardJennifer Sigafoos and John Picton