Legal & Contracts Library
Learn how to start agreements from the Template Library, move them through attorney and board review in the Legal Hub, and sign them electronically.
The Legal Templates & Contracts Library
Maintaining standard legal agreements is key for protecting the cooperative. The Template Library provides starting-point templates written for cooperatives, and the Legal Hub takes each agreement from draft to signature.
1. Document Templates
Browse templates by category (Formation, Membership, Financial, Governance, Capital), open one as a draft in the Legal Hub, or download it as a text file. Examples include:
- Membership: Worker-Member Agreement and Independent Contractor Services agreement.
- Governance & Capital: Corporate Board Resolution, Mutual NDA, Intellectual Property Assignment, and Share Subscription Agreement.
- Financial & Formation: Patronage Allocation Policy, Member Capital Redemption Policy, LLC Operating Agreement, Employee Ownership Trust Agreement, and scaffolds for some state and IRS filings.
Templates are starting points, not legal advice. Have a cooperative attorney review each agreement before you rely on it.
2. Review & Electronic Signatures
Drafts move through review stages in the Legal Hub: attorney review, then a board resolution where needed. Articles, bylaws, operating agreements, and trust agreements must be attorney-approved and board-approved before they can be signed. When a document is signed, OwnFold's built-in electronic signature appends a certificate with the signer's typed name, timestamp, and a verification ID, seals the document against further edits (start a new version to make changes), stores a SHA-256 hash of the final text, and records the signing in the audit log. Executed documents appear in the Document Vault, and each can be printed or saved as a PDF.