Private Vs. Public Benefit

This cheat sheet was adapted and edited from Andrew Dana. It explains the core concepts of private inurement and private benefit and tests to check for them.

This resource outlines the key elements of private inurement and impermissible private benefit and provides examples in the conservation context.

Questions_to_assist_in_private_benefit_analysis.docx This is a handy set of questions to ask when reviewing a transaction or activity for private benefit, adapted from a document by the accredited Nature Conservancy.

Land Trust Standards and Practices, Practice 2C. Federal Tax Exemption, includes one element with four sub-elements. This module addresses Practice 2C1b: Do not knowingly engage in prohibited activities, such as private inurement or impermissible private benefit.

1990 EO CPE Text

This reference delves into triage of risks, identify where flexibility exists and illustrate application with a series of case studies. Common issues include service delivery to landowners, transfer of development rights, program facilitation fees and conservation easement violations to name a few.

Recreational use statutes offer valuable liability protection for land trusts that allow public access and encourage landowners to open their land to the public free of charge. Unfortunately, some lawyers like to challenge these statutes for people claiming injuries.