The Cooperative Professionals Guild is a national member-led organization dedicated to the professional development and education of legal and accounting professionals serving cooperatives.

The Cooperative Professionals Guild was a fiscally sponsored project of the Sustainable Economies Law Center from 2019 through 2022. The Law Center is pleased to have supported the Guild’s organizational growth and development and congratulates the Guild on becoming an independent nonprofit organization at the end of 2022. The Guild is now a member-managed organization that invites all members to actively participate in governance and programming initiatives. We encourage all attorneys and accountants interested in supporting cooperatives to join the Guild. Find out more about the Guild at its association website where you can also register for events and apply for membership.

The Guild especially desires to support professionals from Black, Indigenous, and historically marginalized groups who specialize in helping communities to build a non-exploitative and regenerative U.S. economic system.

The Guild aspires to a world where cooperatives contribute to shared prosperity among all peoples - particularly marginalized communities - consistent with their economic needs, social and cultural values, and geographic realities, unhampered by oppression. A world in which people, land, and water are respected and cared for.

The Guild produces a highly regarded monthly webinar series for CLE credit and plans to expand its programming for accountants beginning in 2023. The Guild also produces an annual conference, a members listserv and directory, an association website and other educational and networking opportunities.

Find out more about the Guild at its association website where you can also register for events and apply for membership. The Guild also plans to offer additional resources at its legacy website professionals.coop.

What are HALOs?

SELC created this Help-Another-Lawyer-Out (HALO) “currency” to generate a flow of learning, sharing, and mentorship within the legal profession, especially among legal professionals working to create sharing and resilient communities. Communities everywhere need lawyers specializing in cooperatives, community currencies, social enterprise, shared housing, and other projects that build local economic stability. There is so much to learn about these emerging practice areas! Any lawyer, legal professional, law student, or legal apprentice is welcome to download and print these HALOs. A HALO can then be "put into circulation" when one legal professional shares time and knowledge with another legal professional by, for example:

• Helping to brainstorm about a case, legal topic, or problem,
• Talking through an ethical issue,
• Sharing document templates,
• Allowing the learner to shadow and observe her/his work,
• Reviewing a document, such as a leases, 1023 forms, and bylaws, or
• Giving feedback on practice bar exam essays.

The legal professional who receives this help can then print a HALO, cut along the dotted line, fill out the names of the giver and recipient, give the HALO to the person who shared time and knowledge, and keep the reminder stub. A HALO has no defined value, nor does it create a contractual right to receive anything or an obligation to give anything. To the giver of a HALO, it is a reminder to "pay-it-forward" by sharing knowledge and teaching others. To the recipient of a HALO, it is, at the very least, a token of gratitude. However, the HALOs will grow in value if people are willing to accept them in situations where they might normally charge dollars. For example, SELC may soon accept HALOs as payment for webinars and workshops. We hope that other organizations will do the same.  If SELC accepts HALOs, we could then turn around and "spend" them by asking a lawyer to review and edit content on our legal resource websites. If the HALOs begin to flow from one person to another, it's a sign that we are creating a rich learning current in the legal profession. Each HALO will always bear the names of the people who first put that HALO into circulation. It's a nice reminder that any person can create currency - meaning that any of us can set into motion a current of giving, sharing, and learning in our communities. 

FAQ About HALOs

How do I print HALOs? Click here to print out a HALO. HALOs are intended to be double sided, so set your printer to duplex. We recommend that you use card stock. Alternatively, if you come to a SELC event, we often have printed HALOs on hand.

How much work should merit a HALO? It's hard to measure the value of the time and knowledge that people share. We recommend that you use 30 minutes as a rough guideline for giving a HALO. In other words, if someone spends at least 30 minutes of their time helping you, give them a HALO.

How can I receive HALOs?  Tell your legal professional friends that you are part of a community of lawyers who are expanding their skills in order to serve the legal needs of resilient communities. Give them a link to this website, and let them know that you are happy to share your knowledge in exchange for HALOs. This will create a welcoming open door for your friends to come to you seeking assistance. You can also reach out to law students and apprentices to offer your assistance with their studies, or organize a workshop and accept HALOs as payment!  Soon, SELC will be launching an online network of community resilience lawyers, and this will provide another forum in which to offer your assistance to other lawyers.

Printing HALOs seems inconvenient. Can we send them electronically? We suppose that you could send a HALO to someone via email, but there is something more personal about writing something by hand and sending it by mail. You can even add additional notes or drawings on the HALO to thank the recipient. Printing and writing on HALOs also feels more authentic. Other than our consciences, there's nothing to prevent people from forging HALOs or printing out. This is a trust based currency. Furthermore, the giver of a HALO will keep the stub to remind them to "pay-it-forward," and printed stubs will likely serve as a much better reminder than files saved on a computer.

How can I help SELC create a nicer design for the HALOs or give any other feedback?  We know that the graphic design of HALOs is a a little ho-hum. Do you have an idea for a more charming or compelling design? Or do you have any other feedback on the HALOs?  If so, please, email Janelle [at] theselc.org. Thank you!

Stay tuned for details about our upcoming webinars on sharing economy law practice!

Past Workshops:

Last fall, SELC offered 11 workshops for attorneys and legal professionals seeking to build skills and knowledge to meet the legal needs of the sharing economy. Unless otherwise noted, each workshop was led by Janelle Orsi. All proceeds from workshops benefit the Sustainable Economies Law Center.

 
Thursday, September 12, 3:30-5:30pm, Downtown Berkeley

Introduction to Practicing Law in the Sharing Economy / Navigating the Legal Grey Areas

A new economy is blossoming in our communities, and innumerable attorneys are needed to meet the legal needs of new worker cooperatives, community-supported enterprise, urban farms, food cooperatives, land trusts, cohousing communities, social enterprise, cottage-scale enterprise, community currencies, and other clients laying the groundwork for community resilience. The sharing economy is initiating a new age of innovation in the law, and lawyers entering this field will inevitably be leaders in the development of new types of contracts, new organizational structures, creative arrangements for financing, risk management, real estate ownership, and much more. This workshop - the first in an 11-part series - will provide an overview of the basic skills and knowledge attorneys should cultivate to serve the legal needs of the sharing economy, including an introduction to common puzzles and legal grey areas. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 
Click here for more information and to register.
Happy Hour to follow.

Thursday, September 19, 4:00-6:00pm, Downtown Berkeley
Starting and Managing a Sharing Economy Law Practice

Starting a law practice is a powerful way for lawyers to create their own livelihoods and meet the needs of the sharing economy. This workshop will provide tips and tools for starting and managing a private law practice, selecting areas of specialty, and collaborating with other lawyers. Attendees will be encouraged to share their experiences and ideas with one another. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 
Click here for more information and to register.

Tuesday, September 24, 4:00-6:00pm, Downtown Berkeley
Entity Choice for Social Enterprise and Introduction to Cooperatives

This workshop will examine key considerations in helping a client choose and structure an entity. We will use case studies that represent common clients in the sharing economy. Approximately half of this workshop will focus on legal structures for cooperatives. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 
Click here for more information and to register.

Monday, September 30, 4:00-6:00pm, Downtown Berkeley
Cooperative Bylaws Under a Microscope

This workshop will closely examine bylaws for two worker-owned cooperatives, including a collectively managed LLC and a California Consumer Cooperative Corporation. We will discuss provisions of the California Corporations Code and IRC Subchapter T, which partially dictate the content of bylaws. We will also discuss ways that general cooperative principles can manifest in bylaws. You will also get a quick "Elinor Ostrom For Lawyers" lesson as Janelle shows you how SELC has begun to incorporate Ostrom's design principles for common pool resource management into co-op bylaws. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 
Click here for more information and to register.

Monday, October 7, 4:00-6:00pm, Downtown Berkeley
Nonprofit Legal Structures and Tax Exemption for Unique Organizations

This workshop will examine nonprofit structure and tax exemption for some of the more unique organizations emerging in the sharing economy. Many organizations will not fit squarely within 501(c)(3), often due to inclusion of commercial activities or mutual aid practices within the organization. This requires that lawyers begin exploring the outer realms of the 501(c) options. We'll discuss (c)(4), (c)(6), (c)(7), (c)(8) and beyond! We'll look at mutual benefit nonprofit structures and the potential for going without tax exemption. We'll also discuss "fiscal sponsorship," and will examine a sample fiscal sponsorship agreement. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 
Click here for more information and to register.

Thursday, October 24th, 4:00-8:00pm, Downtown Berkeley
Legal Issues Related to Creating Economically Sustainable Housing and Land

This workshop will examine legal considerations related to unique models of ownership, management, financing, and sharing of housing and land. We will walk through form of title and choice of entity considerations for a handful of shared housing and land ownership scenarios, consider tools for preserving ecosystems and affordability, and discuss a broad range of legal issues that arise in connection with real estate. Hot tip: There is a noticeable shortage of real estate attorneys focused on serving the sharing economy, particularly in the Bay Area. Co-ownership is exploding and we need attorneys to specialize in this area! This activity has been approved for 4 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 
Click here for more information and to register.

Wednesday, October 30, 4:00-6:00pm, Downtown Berkeley
Employment Law Puzzles in the Sharing Economy

Employment law is a hot topic in the sharing economy, and it may present one of the greatest barriers standing in the way of more cooperative economies. Employment law comes up as an issue for an enormous number of sharing economy initiatives, and this workshop will prepare attorneys to spot and analyze employment law issues for their clients. Both for-profit and nonprofit social enterprises often violate employment laws when they host volunteers. Farms often violate employment laws when they host interns. Food and housing cooperatives often inadvertently create employment relationships with their members. Worker cooperatives also struggle to determine the employment relationships within their companies. In short, it comes up a lot.  This workshop will prepare you to spot issues and will provide tools for helping clients come into compliance with the law. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 
Click here for more information and to register.

Monday, November 4, 6:00-8:15pm, SOMA neighborhood of San Francisco
Elimination of Bias in the Legal Profession and Substance Abuse Prevention
Taught by attorneys Rafael Pacquing and Emily Bolt, 2 units of MCLE Specialty Credit pending

This two hour workshop will offer attorneys one hour of training in Elimination of Bias in the Legal Profession, and one hour of training in Prevention of Substance Abuse, as required by the State Bar of California. Attorney Rafael Pacquing will lead a workshop on class bias in the legal profession. Attorney Emily Bolt will lead a workshop examining attorney stress and use of mindfulness techniques in the prevention of substance abuse. Additional details coming soon. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California, including one unit of credit for Prevention of Substance Abuse, and one unit of credit for Elimination of Bias in the Legal Profession. 

SELC would like to thank the attorneys at Wilson Sonsini who invited SELC to offer this workshop, and who are providing the workshop space.
Click here for more information and to register.

Monday, November 18, 6:00-9:00pm, SOMA neighborhood of San Francisco
Professional Ethics for Attorneys in the New Economy
3 units of MCLE Specialty Credit pending

This workshop will examine common ethical issues that arise for attorneys serving the sharing economy, social enterprise, cooperatives, and other unique projects aimed and creating more sustainable economies. We will discuss the role of attorneys in the context of social change movements, considerations in the structure of a law practice, working with interns and apprentices, assisting clients operating within legal grey areas, common conflicts of interest, multiple representation, lawyers who serve as mediators, giving advice in legal clinics, fee structures, and handful of other ethical considerations. This activity has been approved for 3 units of MCLE ethics credit by the State Bar of California. 

SELC would like to thank the attorneys at Wilson Sonsini who invited SELC to offer this workshop, and who are providing the workshop space.
Click here for more information and to register.

CANCELLED: Thursday, December 5, 4:00-6:00pm, Downtown Berkeley
Contracts and Risk Management in the Sharing Economy

This workshop will examine common types of contracts in the sharing economy, along with common liability concerns and risk management tools. In particular, we may look at or discuss contracts for carsharing, community-supported enterprise, housing co-ownership, community garden leasing, and liability waivers. We will discuss best practices for contract drafting, ways of collaborating with clients in the drafting process, and tips for making contracts both readable and enforceable. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 
Click here for more information and to register.

Thursday, December 12, 3:30-5:30pm, Downtown Berkeley
Legal Issues Related to Alternative Forms of Currency and Capital Raising

Sharing economy attorneys must be prepared for clients to blow our minds with creative ideas for micro-lending, crowdfunding, community-based capital raising, community currencies, barter networks, and more. This workshop will walk through basic options for clients seeking to raise capital creatively, with particular attention to securities exemptions that are simple to use. We will also provide an overview of legal issues that arise in connection with alternative currencies and barter arrangements, including tax requirements, currency laws, money transmitter laws, wage and hour laws, and more. In addition, we will briefly discuss legal issues that arise in connection with lending circles, often known as tandas. This activity has been approved for 2 units of MCLE credit by the State Bar of California. 

SELC will be hosting a happy hour event Oakland or Berkeley immediately following this workshop. Watch our event page for details.
Click here for more information and to register.
Happy Hour to follow. See our Events page for details.