2013 PilchConnect Compliance Survey 

The PilchConnect compliance survey is back!

We want to know how easy (or difficult) you find it to understand and comply with Victorian laws and regulations for incorporated associations and fundraisers. What could be done to make things easier, simpler and better for Victorian community groups?

In 2012, we launched a survey designed to understand the compliance challenges faced by Victorian not-for-profit organisations. The responses we received were enlightening. We now know, for example, that the majority of survey participants found it hard to keep up to date with new developments in the law. 

Twelve months later, what's changed? We're keen to hear whether organisations are facing the same compliance challenges, and in particular whether there have been any challenges transitioning to the new legislative regime for incorporated associations. PilchConnect will analyse the survey data and share the results with the Victorian Government, for the purposes of identifying key compliance challenges and suggested improvements to relieve regulatory compliance burdens for the Victorian community sector.

It will only take a couple of minutes and everyone who completes the survey can go in a draw to win a free registration for the PilchConnect NFP Seminar of their choice (valid for 12 months - for terms and conditions, please see here). 

Please help us by completing the survey - simply click on the link below.

May Seminar - Fundraising for Victorian Community Organisations 

Raffles, gala dinner, direct appeals for donations - fundraising is an ongoing necessity for many community organisations, and an occasional task for others. The detailed legal and regulatory requirements surrounding fundraising are often not well understood by organisations. Help to make sure that your event is a success by ensuring that you comply with fundraising laws as a part of your preparation.

Details of the seminar are as follows:

Date: Thursday 30 May 2024
Time: 9.30 - 12.30 (registrations open 09:15am)
Venue: Gilbert + Tobin Lawyers Level 22, 101 Collins Street Melbourne

To register for this Seminar, please visit our website:

** Coming Soon - PilchConnect Rules Review Project ** 

PilchConnect is currently coordinating an exciting new project in 2013 that aims to assist Victorian incorporated associations to review their rules for consistency with the new legislative framework for incorporated associations.

In the coming days, we will be sending details of how your organisation can be involved in the Rules Review Project - which will include details of an upcoming Seminar, newly developed resources for incorporated associations, and information on how eligible organisations can have their rules reviewed by a lawyer for free.

If you would not like to receive this special ebulletin, please email  connect@pilch.org.au

ACNC Consultation on Annual Information Statement

The ACNC is currently seeking feedback from a wide range of charities and their representatives and advisors on the 2014 Annual Information Statement (AIS). The consultation paper is your opportunity to comment on the additional questions and financial information that the ACNC proposes to collect in the 2014 AIS.

The consultation period will close on 26 April 2013.

To access the consultation paper, please visit the ACNC website below.

ACNC Governance Standards

Last month, PilchConnect made a comprehensive submission to Treasury in response to draft governance standards for charities registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC).

Following the consultation period, the governance standards were amended slightly, and will be tabled in the next sitting week of Parliament. The ACNC governance standards are proposed to commence on 1 July 2013, subject to the special Parliamentary scrutiny provisions of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission Act 2012.

PilchConnect is continuing to liaise with policy makers on the governance standards, with a view to ensuring that they strike the appropriate balance between promoting good governance whilst minimizing the potential for regulatory duplication.

We will continue update readers of the ebulletin on the status of the governance standards, and what they mean for your organisation.

ACNC information and education sessions

This April, the ACNC is holding information and education sessions for charities in Melbourne and Geelong. The sessions will provide more detailed information about the ACNC, including:

• Why the ACNC was set up 
• How the ACNC affects your charity 
• Who needs to be registered with the ACNC 
• The benefits of registering your charity 
• The ongoing obligations of registered charities. 

PilchConnect is delighted to be joining the discussion for the Melbourne session.

Details, and how to register for the sessions, are available on the ACNC website:

New Intellectual Property Guide

This resource is designed to assist people involved in Victorian not-for-profit organisations to understand the basics of intellectual property laws, including who owns intellectual property, how to protect it, and how to sell or licence it.

It also covers what to do if you think your organisation's intellectual property rights have been infringed, and how to avoid infringing the rights of others.

Your organisation's intellectual property is important, valuable and worth protecting, and can include your

• name 
• logo
• the names or logos of any programs or services developed by your organisation
• publications
• training materials
• website design and content
• domain name
• computer applications, programs, or databases it has developed, and
• any ideas, innovations and inventions.

It is also important to understand about the intellectual property rights of others to avoid getting into trouble down the track, for example by having to change your name or website address. 

The guide can be accessed at: 

Quick Guides to holding meetings

As AGM season is approaching, we have developed three Quick Guides on meetings for incorporated associations. They cover the key issues to consider when planning and holding:

• annual general meetings
• special general meetings, and
• committee (or board) meetings.

The guides can be accessed at:

PilchConnect has been receiving lots of inquiries about the new statutory office holder's indemnity in the new Act for Victorian incorporated associations. We included a tip on this issue in December 2012. We have now received a specialist legal opinion on the interpretation and application of the indemnity, and have updated our tip.

What is the indemnity?

What is this 'indemnity', you ask? Under the new Act, the association must ‘indemnify' (pay back / reimburse) office holders for liabilities that they incur when carrying out their obligations as an officer holder (so long as the liability in incurred in good faith).

• TIP! The indemnity of office holders is not the same as indemnity insurance. 
• TIP! The new Act does not introduce a legal requirement for organisations to take out insurance.
• TIP! While this new law does not require your organisation to take out insurance, it is certainly worth considering insurance to cover the potential costs of the indemnity, as a part of your overall risk management strategy.
• TIP! "Office holders" includes committee members, and also senior employees or members of an association who have control or influence over the direction of the association.

What kinds of liabilities does the indemnity cover?

The indemnity is drafted broadly, so it is not completely clear what liabilities it covers. It is likely that office holders' liabilities to third parties (not the association) relating to breaches of office-holder's duties will be covered.

What if we already indemnify our officer holders or committee members?

Many organisations may already have an indemnity for office holders or committee members in their rules. This can be confusing, as there are now two sources of indemnity obligations for these organisations.  These organisations need to remember that regardless of the indemnity in their rules, the Act indemnity applies as well.

• TIP! Organisations that already have an indemnity should compare the indemnity they provide with the Act indemnity. The Act indemnity could be narrower or broader than your existing indemnity. 
• TIP! Organisations with a narrower indemnity than the Act indemnity should talk to their insurer about whether their insurance covers the Act indemnity as well as their rules indemnity.

Risk management

The money paid to an office holder under the Act indemnity comes out of the organisation's money. If an office holder has incurred a very large liability and the organisation can't afford to pay it, this can create serious financial difficulties for the organisation. It is for this reason that many organisations choose to take out insurance - to cover unexpected costs of indemnifying its office holders.

We will develop a more detailed resources on the indemnity in the coming months.

For more information on insurance, and risk management more generally, visit our website below.

It's an exciting and busy time the PilchConnect team! 

In staffing news, we bid a (temporary) farewell to our Director, Juanita Pope, who has commenced 12 months parental leave. Nathan MacDonald, PlchConnect's Manager of Advice will take on the role of Acting Director, in Juanita's absence. Charlotte Ahearne, from PILCH's referral team will step into Nathan's role for the next 12 months.

Tarni Perkal has commenced work at PilchConnect as a lawyer. Tarni previously worked with us a web coordinator and was recently admitted to legal practice. We welcome Hilary Taylor as our new web coordinator.

Finally, it is with sadness and heart-felt congratulations, that we farewell our Senior Training Lawyer, Stephanie Tonkin, who has accepted as position as Principal Solicitor at Brimbank Melton Community Legal Centre. We are currently recruiting to find a replacement for Steph - visit our website below for more information. 

National Access to Justice & Pro Bono Conference

Lawyers, advisers and organisations from around Australia gathered in Melbourne last week for the biennial National Access to Justice & Pro Bono Conference.

The conference theme was "communicating justice" and speakers from around the world discussed how lawyers, policy-makers, and academics communicate about access to justice.

PilchConnect's director, Juanita Pope, chaired a panel discussion on how pro bono can support not-for-profit organisations. The panel included the ACNC's Shirley Southgate, Catherine Brown from the Lord Mayor's Charitable Foundation, and Darren Fittler, a not-for-profit lawyer form Gilbert + Tobin.

Highlights for the PilchConnect team were sessions on using technology to improve access to legal information and legal problem solving tools, and hearing about the results of the Australia-wide survey on unmet legal need. The conference also provided opportunity to catch up with many lawyers who provide pro bono assistance to clients of PilchConnect.

You can check out PilchConnect's twitter account for our live tweets from the conference here. 

You can review the conference program here: 

PilchConnect is a specialist legal service which provides legal help to not-for-profit community organisations.

The service provides free and low cost legal information, training, advice and legal referrals for Victorian not-for-profit community organisations. We also undertake law reform and advocacy work about the wide range of legal issues that affect the not-for-profit sector.

To find out more about our legal services, visit our website below:

 PilchConnect - Legal help for community groups. 

View our staff profiles here. 

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