
Brenda Tausch Lapora
Practice Areas
- Nonprofit
- Business Transactions & Services
About Me
I work with community-based organizations and nonprofits – especially those led by and/or that center people most impacted by structural racism and oppression.
My practice focuses on nonprofit corporations, federal tax-exemption, and business transactions. I help with governance, incorporation, alternative leadership structures, federal tax-exemption, fiscal sponsorships, and contracts.
I balance my law practice with teaching for the University of Washington’s Communication Leadership graduate program, long-form writing, and parenting my 5-year-old and 9-year-old.
- Washington State Bar, 2007
- University of Washington School of Law, J.D., 2007
- JustLead Washington, 2017 Leadership Academy Fellow
- People’s Institute Northwest (PINW) Undoing Racism Training 2016; ongoing relationship building with European Dissent and PINW
- Fulbright Grant, Brazil, 2003-2004
- University of Washington, B.A. cultural anthropology, summa cum laude, 2002
- The Law and Ethics of Organizations (Instructor), University of Washington Communication Leadership graduate program (2014-current)
- Washington State Nonprofit Handbook (2022) (Advisory Committee), Communities Rise, WA Secretary of State, Nonprofit Association of Washington,
- Board Standards in Washington State (Co-Author), Communities Rise, WA Secretary of State, Nonprofit Association of Washington, July 2022
- Community Collaboration Agreement Toolkit (Co-Author), Communities Rise, Communities of Opportunity, March 2022
- Nonprofit Advocates Program (Founder, Lead and Curriculum Development), Communities Rise, 2015-2019
- “We are a 501c3! Now what? All You Need to Know about Nonprofit Compliance” (Trainer), Wayfind/Communities Rise, June 2019
- “Let’s Go Legal” (Trainer), Wayfind/Communities Rise, Nonprofit Association of Washington, Nonprofit Association of Washington, Apr. 2018, Apr. 2019, Dec. 2019
- “Conflicts of Interest Demystified” (Author), Jacobson Jarvis & Co, PLLC Newsletter, Aug. 2018
- Communication for Advocacy (Instructor), University of Washington Communication Leadership graduate program (2017-2018)
- “Nonprofit Legal Checklist” (Trainer), Nonprofit Leaders Conference (Ocean Shores), Oct. 2016
- “7 Tips for Social Media” (Author), Jacobson Jarvis & Co, PLLC Newsletter, Aug. 2016
- Served as Communities Rise’s Legal Director and General Counsel, nonprofit and small business capacity-building and legal services provider with 2-million-dollar budget; collaboratively led 5-person team with 3 people directly reporting; reviewed complex government, grant and partnership agreements; engaged in merger, strategic planning and alternative leadership processes; represented nonprofit and small business clients
- Prepared numerous successful applications for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status for organizations working for racial and social justice
- Over 15 years of experience working for and with nonprofit organizations
- Served on 6 nonprofit boards over a 12-year period, including founding boards and boards encountering financial and relationship challenges