Contact: Ramona Logan, 214-882-2451

MEDIA ADVISORY, Sept. 11 /Christian Newswire/ -- While the spending habits of some large churches are under the scrutiny of a congressional committee, a small church grapples with legal dilemmas. As one pastor and congregation tries to heal after a tragic church shooting, another church attempts to understand the contracts and processes necessary to build beyond their current facilities.

It is those tough topics and more that Faith & Philanthropy Institute (FPI) in collaboration with CPA firm, Ratliff and Sommerville, P.C. and legal firm, Weycer, Kaplan, Pulaski & Zuber, P.C., will address during its 2nd Annual "Ultimate Financial and Legal Conference," October 27-28, 2008 at the Hilton Hotel in Arlington, TX. "A passion for ministry is fundamentally important for carrying out our God-given missions: but the passion must be coupled with an understanding of how to effectively do the work of ministry," said Sherrye Willis, founder and president of FPI. "This conference is designed to strengthen organizations and provide the latest information on ministry finance, legal, human resource and risk management concerns."

The conference will use the resources of national and local experts as presenters. Mary Forsythe, a former Dallas businesswoman who is now founder and president of Kingdom Living Ministries will be speaking about "Leading in the Marketplace: Kingdom Principles at Work." She will help attendees understand how they can advance God's Kingdom as they align with His vision in their sphere of influence.

Ron Smedley, president of Synergistic Resource Associates in Placentia, California will share reasons why faith-based organizations need to consider going beyond meeting the basic legal and ethical requirements for treating employees. Smedley shares, "God has called employers at all times to treat their people with dignity, respect, compassion and integrity."

Frank Sommerville, an Arlington, Texas based CPA and tax attorney will help participants understand the tax and legal minefields that face nonprofits today. "Faith-based organizations need to develop organizational policies and procedures to prevent them from getting into tax trouble, sex scandals, or legal liabilities."

In 2007, the inaugural year of this conference, participants came to the DFW metroplex from all over the United States--from Washington State on the west coast to Washington, D. C. on the east coast.

For more information on this conference, call 817-835-0271 or log on to www.fpiweb.org.