Non-profit contract

[pdxguy91]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Oregon


I have a contract for grant writing with a non-profit for one year. Here is the gist contract;

Scope of Services:
Contractor agrees to provide the following services for Client:
1. Develop master grant narrative document, of which, ownership will be the Client.
2. Conduct prospect research to identify prospective funders for specific programs.
3. Write and edit proposals to prospective grantors.
4. Attend meetings in person and/or by telephone necessary to accomplish the required work.
Client agrees to provide the following for the Contractor:
1. Any and all research previously completed to determine prospective funders.
2. Complete organizational budget.
3. Provide any additional information required.

III. Compensation:
The Client agrees to compensate contractor at the rate of $20 per hour. In addition to hourly rate
successful grants will pay a commission fee of 1 percent. Contractor will keep careful track of hours
spent on client business and submit an itemized invoice on a monthly basis. Payment of invoice must
be made within 15 days of receipt. Billable hours will include all activities mentioned in Section II, as
well as telephone consultations and information exchanges via phone and email, communication with
prospective funding agencies to clarify guidelines/instructions or to request information, and travel time
to/from meetings and to deliver proposals if necessary. Time will be rounded to the nearest quarter
hour. There is a minimum charge of two hours per letter of inquiry and five hours per proposal.
Contractor shall be responsible for providing the cost of postage, copying, and other standard expenses
incurred in the course of providing said services.

Independent Contractor:
Contractor acknowledges that the services rendered under this Agreement shall be solely as an
independent contractor. It is expressly understood that this undertaking is not a joint venture.
Contractor is responsible for the payment of all federal, state and local income taxes.

IV. Confidentiality:
Both parties agree to adhere to strict confidentiality practices and to provide each other with their best
efforts in the fulfillment of this contract.

IV. Guarantees:
Contractor shall use all resources at contractor’s disposal to perform duties as assigned and agreed to
by both parties and shall submit same in good faith. However, no guarantee of receipt of funding by the
client is implied or promised by contractor. Payment is due even if client does not submit proposal or
receive a grant. In addition, contractor and client recognize that performance of tasks in Section II
necessitates communication and information exchange between the parties and with funders, and that
delay in completing the tasks may occur if there are delays with information exchange. Client also
recognizes that if grants are received, Client is responsible for any acknowledgments and reports to
funders.

This agreement shall constitute the entire agreement between the parties and shall remain in effect for twelve
months, with extension or amendment by written agreement between both parties. This agreement may be
terminated or renegotiated by either party with 14 (fourteen) days’ written notice (by email or postal mail) to the
other party.

Little Background;
In November (month 5 of the contract, during the process of writing a grant, it was determined the organization has virtually zero documentation, program outlines, strategic plan or program budgets. Which basically makes my work impossible. I wrote them a 2nd proposal to write a strategic plan under a 2nd contract. In addition, before that proposal was approved or denied, I volunteered to run for their vice presidency seat on the board to help continue the work of building the organization on a volunteer basis (outside of my existing contracts of course). They have decided to table the 2nd (strategic plan) proposal until after the election because they are concerned of a conflict of interest. They currently have no conflict of interest statement in their bylaws. Ultimately I think that a portion of the board is sandbagging me because they feel threatened.

Question;
Neither party has provided written notice to terminate the original agreement. They have failed to provide Section 1 parts 1 & 3. What recourse do I have? Should I A: continue to write grants and bill them until they provide notice to terminate or should I file small claims for approximately what I will have lost by them failing to provide Section 1 parts 1 & 3?

Thanks in advance

 

[tranquility]

You have not "lost" anything but the expectation you might get a percentage of any grant awarded. That is so speculative, no court would award that in damages.

 

[samefron]

When you sign a contract, you are contractually obligated to perform certain duties and assume certain responsibilities. You are also granted certain rights and protections under the contract. In case of non-compliance with the terms of the contract, you can sue for damages.

 

[Dave1952]

You've signed a contract with a company. You provide a "gist" of this contract . You then ask a question which relates to parts 1 and 3 of section 1 of the contract. Your gist is not clearly divided up into parts or sections. Sorry, I can't figure out your question.