Our Charities & Not-For-Profits team is well placed to deliver effective and appropriate legal support to charities and Not-For-Profits clients – our service history in this area dates back to 1859.

As a firm, we are at the forefront of legal and related issues pertinent to Not-For-Profits, churches, educational institutions and other community groups.  Our clients in the Not-For-Profit sector range from Government agencies to large national charities and from church institutions to local Not-For-Profit organisations run by individuals.

Please meet our key experts:

Chris Drayton – Partner

Chris‘ principal fields of practice are property and commercial law, with particular expertise in the more complex areas of commercial, industrial and retail property transactions and all aspects of leasing. He acts for a variety of church organisations, Charities and Not-For-Profits, listed and unlisted property trusts, private and public companies, statutory authorities, strata schemes, and private individuals.

Belinda Marsh – Partner 

Belinda is a Partner who works predominantly in the Not-For-Profit sector. She has successfully managed the conveyance of numerous properties for charitable organisations as well as for private clients.  She specialises in the conveyance of both residential and commercial properties. Belinda is also experienced in intellectual property law matters and advises in relation to legislative changes and requirements that affect different types of charities and Not-For-Profit organisations.

Alex Kohn – Partner 

Alex is Makinson d’Apice’s Chairman and a senior practitioner in dispute resolution and education . His main areas of practice are religious organisations, Charities and Not-For-Profits, schools and Government departments. More broadly, Alex has extensive general and commercial litigation experience and is a trusted advisor in risk management and dispute resolution techniques.

Bill d’Apice – Consultant

Bill is a principal legal advisor to the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference, various Catholic Archdioceses and Dioceses and many religious congregations. He advises many other Charities and Not-For-Profit organisations. He is immediate past Chairman of the Board of Directors of Catholic Church Insurances Ltd and serves on a number of boards of public companies, private companies and charities which allows him to bring practical experience to his advice. He is also a co-author of the Church Administration Handbook. Bill’s principal areas of legal practice are property law, commercial law and the law relating to charities and other Not-For-Profit groups. Bill also acts for many retirement villages and aged accommodation facilities and provides general advice to charities and Not-For-Profit organisations.  He has expertise in all aspects of commercial law with particular emphasis on corporate structuring, corporate governance and directors’ duties. Bill has been recognised in Chambers and Partners’ Asia Pacific 2021 edition as a ranked lawyer in the area of Charities, for the fourth consecutive year.