Joseph Fedorowsky – Legal Blog

A trust is one of the oldest and most respected legal agreements. In theory, a trust is fairly simple. Essentially, one person holds and manages assets for the benefit of another.

As in any legal form, certain elements are required. In the United States, five different elements are required: a trustor, trustee, beneficiary, trust property (sometimes referred to as the res) and a trust agreement. The trustor is also referred to as a settlor, grantor or donor.

In other countries, a sixth element may also be required, that of a protector.

These elements are simple enough. The complexity and fun really begins when you must address the who, what, when, where and why’s of setting up, operating and dissolving the trust.

Joseph Fedorowsky / Legal Blog

A copyright is a type of intellectual property right which is the basis on which your writings may be protected from use by others without your permission. You automatically have a common law copyright to original materials that you pen and publish, but there are advantages to statutory registration.

A copyright legally protects the unique expression of an author. Protection, however, does not extend to mere ideas. There are alternative ways to handle your original and unique ideas and concepts, however, most of which involve marketing dynamics and positioning.

Once you’ve got your seat belt fastened, take a look at the U.S. Copyright Act 17 U.S.C. §§ 101-810, which is Federal legislation enacted by Congress to protect an author’s intellectual property. This area of law is considered by many practitioners as one of the most complex.

Joseph Fedorowsky / Legal Blog

A top ten misunderstanding: nonprofit corporations are not necessarily nonprofit. The word nonprofit is somewhat of a misnomer. If the operation of any organization (not including the government, of course) results in no profit, it would likely go out of business!

Nonprofits are, essentially, preferred tax organizations, such that certain taxes are not levied on exempt activities. Taxes are levied, however, on non exempt activities (unrelated business income).

While I’m at it, here’s another top ten misunderstanding: not all nonprofits apply for or receive official 501(c)3 status. Many churches fit in this category. There are, however, benefits of being a federally recognized nonprofit . . . more on that later.

Joseph Fedorowsky / Legal Blog