Lowenstein Sandler LLP is expanding its footprint in the evolving social innovation economy with the launch of a formal legal practice designed to serve mission-focused companies, investors, and organizations seeking to balance profitability with measurable social and environmental outcomes.
Based on the firm’s headquarters in Roseland and supported by attorneys across multiple offices nationwide, the new social impact practice brings together legal talent from corporate, fund formation, regulatory, tax, intellectual property, and governance disciplines. The goal is to provide integrated legal guidance to clients operating at the intersection of business growth, public benefit, and long-term community impact.
Firm leaders say the initiative reflects a broader shift in how businesses and investors are approaching value creation. As impact investing, benefit corporations, and hybrid organizational structures become more common, legal frameworks are growing increasingly complex. The practice is structured to help clients navigate those complexities while remaining compliant with evolving legal and regulatory expectations tied to accountability, transparency, and stakeholder responsibility.
Lowenstein’s new group will advise a wide range of participants in the social innovation ecosystem, including social enterprises organized as traditional corporations or public benefit entities, impact-focused fund managers, institutional and family office investors, foundations, operating nonprofits, and corporate venture capital groups with socially driven mandates. The firm’s attorneys will assist with entity formation, capital raises, governance design, regulatory compliance, and transaction structuring, all with an emphasis on aligning mission with sustainable business performance.
The launch also builds on Lowenstein’s long-standing commitment to public service and civic engagement. The firm has a deep history of pro bono advocacy and philanthropic involvement, and the social impact practice is positioned as an extension of that work into the commercial and investment arenas. By advising clients whose core missions include community development, equity, and environmental stewardship, the firm aims to support systemic change through private-sector innovation.
Chandra Shih, a partner in Lowenstein’s emerging companies and venture capital practice, said the demand for specialized legal counsel in this space has grown rapidly. She noted that founders and investors are increasingly seeking advisors who understand both the business imperatives and the nuanced legal considerations tied to social impact strategies. According to Shih, the firm’s collaborative model allows attorneys with diverse expertise to work seamlessly across disciplines, delivering practical solutions that support durable growth and meaningful outcomes.
The practice draws on attorneys from several of Lowenstein’s core areas and geographic hubs. Team members include public interest counsel, exempt organization and nonprofit specialists, tax and private wealth advisors, and venture capital partners from New Jersey, Washington, D.C., and California. This national footprint enables the group to support clients operating across jurisdictions and regulatory environments.
As New Jersey continues to position itself as a hub for innovation, investment, and socially responsible business, the firm’s expansion aligns with broader conversations around corporate accountability and the evolving relationship between law, commerce, and public good. Coverage of legal and regulatory developments shaping these sectors can be found in Explore New Jersey’s law and order section, where business, policy, and governance trends intersect.
With the creation of its social impact practice, Lowenstein Sandler is signaling a long-term commitment to supporting organizations that view purpose not as a side initiative, but as a core driver of strategy, investment, and growth.
