After working as an associate for top-tier boutique D.C. law firms for 6 years, Benjamin Takis set out to establish his own law firm in 2012 with a singular focus: serving the nonprofit community through sophisticated legal representation at rates that are more accessible than larger firms. The firm represents nonprofit clients of all types and sizes on a wide variety of issues, including world-renowned public charities and private foundations, historic preservation organizations, nonprofit journalistic organizations, “friends of” organizations supporting international philanthropy, local volunteer fire departments, think tanks and advocacy groups on the front lines of today’s most critical social and political issues, and many more.
Notable Case
OverDrive v. The Open eBook Forum, 288 A.3d 305 (D.C. 2023). This is a D.C. Court of Appeals case on which Ben worked as co-counsel with litigation attorney David G. Ross (now with Garris Horn LLP) to successfully defend a trade association’s Board-approved and member-approved transaction against a challenge brought by a dissenting member organization. The case addressed the circumstances under which disputed Board actions are subject to court review under the D.C. Nonprofit Corporation Act. Ben structured and drafted the agreements for the transaction at issue and helped to devise the winning legal arguments for the litigation.
Benjamin Takis — Founding Attorney
Benjamin Takis is the founding attorney of Takis Nonprofit Law PLLC, a Washington D.C. law firm practicing in the fields of tax, corporate governance, employment law, and business transactions for nonprofit organizations. Ben is also the co-founder of Sustainability Education 4 Nonprofits, an education website for nonprofit organizations.
Prior to starting his own firm in 2012, Ben worked as an associate for 6 years at two leading Washington D.C. boutique firms: Bredhoff & Kaiser and Groom Law Group. Ben also served as Of Counsel to Weinberg, Jacobs & Tolani LLP from 2013 until Mark Weinberg’s retirement in 2015, after which Ben took on Mark Weinberg’s nonprofit law practice under his own firm.
Ben earned his Juris Doctor degree from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in 2006, where he graduated magna cum laude, with a concentration in taxation. As a law student, Ben was a recipient of the ABA-BNA Award for Excellence in the Study of Labor and Employment Law, and a winner of the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel Writing Competition.
Ben is a frequent speaker and writer on nonprofit law, tax, corporate governance, and business management for a variety of organizations and educational institutions, including the District of Columbia Bar and Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts. Ben’s writing on employee benefits matters has twice been featured in BNA publications, and his writing on tax-exempt organizations law has been featured in the Thomson Reuters publication Taxation of Exempts.
Education
Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, 2006, J.D., magna cum laude
George Washington University, 2001, B.A., summa cum laude
Bar Admissions
District of Columbia
Maryland
Testimonial from Mark Weinberg
“I worked with Ben since March 2013, when he joined my firm Weinberg, Jacobs & Tolani, LLP as Of Counsel (at the same time that I joined his firm as Of Counsel). Ben’s understanding of the organizational and tax law of nonprofit organizations, as well as his strong work ethic and absolute honesty, have inspired my admiration and respect. For these reasons, after a 44-year career, I was proud to recommend to my nonprofit clients that they continue with Ben when I retired from the practice of law in July 2015. I know that my clients are in good hands, and continue to refer work to Ben whenever I can.”
-Mark Weinberg, Weinberg, Jacobs & Tolani, LLP
