Key Legal & Ethical Risks Facing Non-Profit Leaders and Boards

Mr. Wright is currently a member of the Diaz & Wright firm and works in the areas of federal and state litigation. In addition, Matthew is the Presiding Judge for the Rosebud Court of Record and the City of Lott Municipal Court.

Matthew Wright teaches Negotiations and Conflict Resolution at the Hankamer School of Business – Baylor University and is a coach for Texas A&M School of Law moot court program.

Matthew was recognized as the 2011 American Bar Association’s Outstanding Young Non-Profit Lawyer of the Year. Mr. Wright was inducted into The National Order of Barristers, the legal honor society. He is licensed as an attorney-at-law and counselor in the Texas Supreme Court, Missouri Supreme Court, and the Missouri Eastern Federal District. Mr. Wright was recently nominated and sworn into the Bar of the United States Supreme Court. He studied conflict resolution and negotiations at Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel, with Hamline University School of Law. He has attended the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Program on Leadership for Senior Executives.

Mr. Wright served as the Vice-President for Philanthropy and Operations for the Scott & White Healthcare Foundation and formerly served as the interim President & Chief Executive Officer for the Scott & White Healthcare Foundation, one of the families of foundations for Baylor Scott & White. In his capacity as Vice-President for Philanthropy & Operations for Scott & White Healthcare Foundation and oversees the development programs for Scott & White Memorial Hospital, Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center, McLane Children’s Hospital, system-wide annual giving and Corporate & Foundation Relations. Mr. Wright is responsible for raising and supervising annual fundraising efforts to obtain $15,000,000 – $20,000,000. In addition, Mr. Wright oversees the finance and operations of the Foundation to include $130 million in assets. Mr. Wright joined the team in 2006 as a grant writer.

Mr. Wright has been in non-profit management and fundraising since 1998. He has written and supervised the submission of over 600 grants and has raised over $65,000,000 in grants and individual donations. In addition, he has worked as a team member, led, been an executive for, or collaborated in the raising of over $150,000,000. Funds raised have renovated and built a domestic violence shelter, private school, hospitals, specialty clinics, and non-profit offices as well as provided operational support for research, education, military mental health support, disaster preparedness and clinical care.

Matthew earned the rank of Eagle with Gold Palm in the Boy Scouts of America and is a Vigil Member of the Order of the Arrow.

Jeremy advises nonprofit organizations, family foundations, corporations, educational institutions, and individuals on a wide range of matters including tax, contracts, employment, and governance. He counsels on the use of virtual currency and its related technologies in business transactions. Jeremy advises on compliance with state and federal regulations related to the use of innovative software payment solutions, such as the transfer of gift cards and frequent flyer miles, for donations to nonprofits.

Jeremy earned his JD at the New York University School of Law.

Dan Ebner is a partner at Prather Ebner LLP where he focuses his practice on representing trustees, beneficiaries, not-for-profit entities, and shareholders in closely-held businesses in litigation involving wills, trusts, and breach of fiduciary duty. He also represents fiduciaries in uncontested trust administrations, probate proceedings, and guardianships.

Dan represents clients in sensitive disputes, often involving family members and trusted advisors. When possible, his advice is focused on helping clients resolve their problems while preserving important relationships. When necessary, he represents clients in contentious litigation. Dan’s experience reflects his dual roles helping clients amicably settle disputes or stand up for their rights in court.

During law school, Dan became a licensed mediator in Massachusetts helping litigants amicably settle disputes. As a research assistant to Professor Elizabeth Warren, he researched the role the legal system plays in creating and resolving financial challenges facing families.

Following law school, Dan worked as a Federal District Court law clerk for the Honorable Samuel Hardy Mays in the Western District of Tennessee where he saw firsthand how judges approach a wide array of cases and how lawyers can affect their decisions. Following his clerkship, Dan practiced in the Chicago office of Kirkland & Ellis from 2005 to 2010 where he worked on all aspects of hard fought multi-million dollar commercial lawsuits. Dan’s time at Kirkland gave him extensive experience in using documentary evidence, lay witnesses, expert witnesses, discovery requests, and written motions to prepare a compelling case for trial.

Celeste E. Arduino represents community and family foundations, public charities, religious organizations, and other tax-exempt and charitable organizations in securing and retaining exempt status, advising on corporate governance issues, and counseling on general operational matters.

She is experienced in counseling a wide variety of clients, including individuals, hospitals, religious organizations, 501(c)(3) charitable organizations, 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations, 501(c)(6) business leagues, captive insurance companies, health maintenance organizations (HMOs), financial institutions, and family offices.

Ms. Arduino guides non-profit and philanthropic clients on matters that are unique to their sector, including unrelated business taxable income, advocacy and lobbying activities, charitable solicitations, grantmaking, and social investing.

In addition to her work with charitable and tax-exempt organizations, Ms. Arduino advises high net-worth clients on estate, gift, and income tax matters. She also helps them with estate plans and business planning, especially with closely-held companies that involve multiple family members.

Ms. Arduino is a participant in the Great Lakes Area Tax Exempt/ Governmental Entities (TE/GE) Council, whose membership consists of a select group of practitioners who represent taxpayers in the seven states covered by the Great Lakes Area of the Internal Revenue Service’s TE/GE Division. The purpose of the Council is to maintain an open line of communication between that TE/GE Division – which oversees employee benefit plans, exempt organizations, and government entities – and the practitioner community. It provides input to the IRS on procedural and systemic matters that can range from policies and procedures to specific tax issues.

She is co-chair of the Nonprofit Corporations Committee of the Business Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan, which reviews and updates the state’s laws relating to the organization of non-profit organizations in addition to reviewing legislation that regulate the solicitation of charitable contributions.

The American Bar Association has selected Ms. Arduino as its 2017 Outstanding Young Nonprofit Lawyer. She is listed as a Metro Detroit 2018 “Top Lawyer” by DBusiness Magazine in the area of Non-Profit/Charities Law, and she is listed in Michigan Rising Stars 2017 under Nonprofit Organizations.

She is a graduate of Leadership Detroit, Class XXXVII (2015-2016), an executive leadership program led by the Detroit Regional Chamber that aims to create awareness of major issues affecting the region and challenges these leaders to bring about positive change in the community through informed leadership.

Ms. Arduino serves on Bodman's Pro Bono Committee and Recruiting Committee. She is an advisor to the Board of Directors of Vista Maria, a non-profit that provides innovative care, support, treatment, and education to vulnerable youth.