Restoring Public Trust in Charities – Reforming Governance and Enforcement
Project Summary:
The charitable sector is an essential part of the social fabric and economy in Australia. Public trust in the sector has been damaged by governance failures, exacerbated by the sector’s complex and incoherent governance system. As yet, there has been limited academic consideration or empirical analysis of the effectiveness of the governance and regulatory framework of the sector or concrete reform proposals. This project aims to undertake comparative analysis and empirical research of these aspects and to develop proposals for effective law and policy reform. This is expected to strengthen and maximize the sector’s capacity to contribute to the social and economic life in Australia.
The project has the following specific aims:
- To undertake comprehensive investigation of the reasons for the incoherence evident in the current duties of those who govern charitable entities, such as directors, trustees and members of management committees.
- To critically analyse wider incoherence in the law relating to directors’ duties in Australia and to recommend solutions for reform.
- To examine how charities are governed in other jurisdictions (specifically the United Kingdom and Germany) and to utilize these insights in critical analysis of governance of charities in Australia.
- To develop effective options for legislative and policy reform to solve the incoherence evident in the way that office bearers of charitable organisations are governed.
- To undertake empirical work to ascertain how charities deal with conflicts in a practical sense and to ascertain how those who govern charities understand their obligations.
- To critically evaluate the enforcement powers, enforcement approach and enforcement activity of the Australian Charities and Not-for-Profits Commission (ACNC).
- To develop options for legislative and policy reforms to improve the effectiveness of regulation and enforcement by the ACNC.
Project Publications:
- Final Recommendations (pages 12-24) - Article with Andrew Godwin in Australian Journal of Corporate Law.
- Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'Empowering and Enabling Charity Governors: Loyalty to Purpose'
- Langford, Rosemary Teele and Webster, Miranda, 'An Analysis of the ACNC's Approach to Compliance and Enforcement' (2023) 39(7) Company and Securities Law Journal 430
- Langford, Rosemary Teele and Webster, Miranda, 'The Australian Charitable Incorporated Organisation: A Reform Proposal' (2023) 39 Company and Securities Law Journal 347
- Webster, Miranda and Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'An Analysis of the ACNC's Approach to Compliance and Enforcement'
- Webster, Miranda and Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'Comparison of Enforcement Powers of the Charity Commission for England and Wales and the ACNC'
- Rosemary Teele Langford, 'Charities and the Fiduciary Paradigm' (2022) 16 Journal of Equity 146
- Rosemary Teele Langford ‘Purpose and Public Benefit’ in Matthew Harding and Dan Halliday (eds), Charity Law : Exploring the Purpose and Public Benefit, Routledge (2022), 279-285
- Langford, Rosemary Teele and Webster, Miranda, 'Misuse of Power in the Australian Charities Sector' (2022) 45 University of New South Wales Law Journal 70
- Murray, Ian and Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'The Best Interests Duty and Corporate Charities - The Pursuit of Purpose' (2021) 15 Journal of Equity 92
- Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'Statutory Duties and Ratification: Untangling the Maze' (2021) 15 Journal of Equity 126
- Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'Charitable Companies and Related Party Transactions' (2020) 38 Company and Securities Law Journal 91
- Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'Use of the Corporate Form for Public Benefit: Revitalisation of Australian Corporations Law'
- Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'Purpose-Based Governance: A New Paradigm'
- Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'Conflicts and Coherence in the Charities Sphere: Would a Conflict By Any Other Name Proscribe the Same?'
- Langford, Rosemary Teele, 'Insolvent Trading, Charitable Companies and COVID-19'
Empiricial Research
- Langford, Rosemary Teele and Anderson, Malcolm, Restoring Public Trust in Charities: Empirical Findings and Recommendations (2023) 46(2) UNSW Law Journal
- Langford, Rosemary Teele and Anderson, Malcolm, Charity Trustees: Governance Duties and Conflicts of Interest (2022) Trusts and Trustees
- Langford, Rosemary Teele and Anderson, Malcolm, Governance Duties and Conflicts of Interest in the Charities Sector: Australia and England & Wales Compares, (2022) 28 Third Sector Review
- Langford, Rosemary Teele and Anderson, Malcolm, Passing the Baton: Emerging Leadership Values, Governance and Responsibility in Australian Charities
- Anderson, Malcolm and Langford, Rosemary Teele, Restoring Public Trust in Charities - Detailed Tables and Regressions from a Survey of Australian Charity Leaders
Edited Collection
Rosemary Teele Langford (ed) Governance and Regulation of Charities: International and Comparative Perspectives (Edward Elgar, 2023)
For information about how to purchase Governance and Regulation of Charities: International and Comparative Perspectives at a discounted price, click here.
Related Publications
- McGregor-Lowndes, Myles and Frances, Hannah (2023) ACPNS Legal Case Reports Series, Grain Technology Australia Ltd v Rosewood Research Pty Ltd (No3) [2023] NSWSC 238
- McGregor-Lowndes, Myles & Frances, Hannah, (2020) ACPNS Legal Case Notes Series: 2020-94 Lehtimäki and others v Cooper. [Working Paper]
Statutory Governance Duties
- Statutory Provisions - Australia - Good Faith, Proper Purposes, Care
- Statutory Provisions - Australia - Conflicts and Profits
Events
- Governance and Regulation of Charities: International and Comparative Perspectives, 2-3 May 2022, Melbourne Law School and online.
- International and Comparative Perspectives on Governance and Regulation of Charities: Book Launch and Conversation, 11 December 2023, Melbourne Law School and online.
Presentations
- Contrast in Charities Systems in Australian and Islamic Law (with Professor Hossein Esmaeili)
- 'Restoring Public Trust in Charities: Final Recommendations', The Journey of Charity Law: The impact of past problems today and into the future, UQ Law School, September 2023
Professor Langford's presentation can be accessed at 44 minutes and runs until 63 minutes. You can download the presentation slides here. - Governance Duties and Conflicts of interest, 2023 CLAANZ Conference: Charities in a Time of Change
Professor Langford's presentation can be accessed at 8 minutes and 40 seconds.
Researchers
- Professor Rosemary Teele Langford
- Miranda Webster, Research Fellow
Project Details
Type of Grant
ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award
Duration
2019-2023
Funds Received
$401,980.00