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Bristows’ Charities and Not-for-Profit practice provides a wide range of legal services to UK and international charities, foundations, universities and other not-for-profit organisations. We are particularly well-known for our expertise in advising some of the UK’s pre-eminent professional institutions and learned societies established by Royal Charter.

Our clients operate in areas as diverse as science, technology & engineering, medical research, the arts & heritage, health & safety, youth wellbeing, education, relief of poverty, animal welfare, and responsible investment.

We have  one of the UK’s longest established charity and not-for-profit legal practices. It originated, many decades ago, from acting for some of the UK’s pre-eminent professional institutions and learned societies, typically incorporated by Royal Charter. Today, we continue to act for many of such charities established to advance science, technology, engineering and the arts & culture. Our expertise in advising Royal Charter bodies is second-to-none in the legal market; it’s what we’re best known for. But today we also act for a host of other national and international charities and not-for-profit organisations, including those established as companies or charitable incorporated organisations (CIOs) or trusts, as well as overseas not-for-profit/tax exempt organisations whose activities extend to the UK. Indeed, there is increasingly a cross-border element to our work.

Areas of expertise

Experience

Advising two of the UK’s pre-eminent professional institutions on major governance disputes

Advising numerous charities and not-for-profit organisations, including a household name healthcare charity, on data compliance matters

Advising one of the UK’s pre-eminent professional charitable institutions on a wide range of matters including investment and real estate transactions and the modernisation of its Royal Charter and By-laws

Establishing Remembered, a charity to commemorate the centenary of the end of World War One and raise funds to help today’s victims of conflict

Establishing Secondary1st, a new charity focused on finding therapies for secondary breast cancer

Advising the United Nations-backed PRI Association, ‘the world’s leading proponent of responsible investment’ on an overhaul of its international corporate governance structure

Advising University College London for 25 years on the commercialisation of its biomedical research

Advising men’s health charity Movember Europe on a wide range of operational legal matters

Advising leading consumer safety charity Electrical Safety First on its joint venture - Certsure LLP - with the Electrical Contractors

Latest articles

What others say

“The whole team is impressive.”

Legal 500 2021

“There is a remarkable sense of joint commitment and determination to give a Rolls-Royce service.”

Legal 500 2021

“It has a particular specialism in advising charities in the fields of science, technology and engineering.”

Legal 500 2021

“The ‘brilliant’ Mark Hawes shows ‘forensic attention to detail and to strategy’ and Miranda Cass is recommended for her specialism in advising charities on the various taxation issues that they face.”

Legal 500 2019

“The ‘outstanding’ team at Bristows LLP is known for its particular expertise in advising charities operating principally in the science, engineering and technology sector as well as in the arts and culture arena. It has particular strength in advising charities on all the legal aspects relating to medical research.”

Legal 500 2019

Recent rankings and awards

Corporate Tax - Tier 6

Data Protection, Privacy and Cybersecurity - Tier 1

Key contacts