So You Want to Start a Nonprofit? 2025

Nadia Adawi is an attorney with Cheshire Law Group, recipient of the 2024 Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Solo and Small Firm Section Award. A creative problem-solver, and a champion of startups, Nadia excels at helping founders shape and protect their visions. Nadia has years of experience as in-house counsel, where she handled a broad range of day-to-day legal issues that nonprofits commonly encounter, from intellectual property questions to employment challenges. She is a cum laude graduate of Drexel University’s Earle Mack School of Law. She also holds an MBA from Yale School of Management and a Bachelor’s of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Missouri. Before becoming a lawyer, Nadia operated a small renewable energy company and later founded a biofuels technology startup. Before that, she designed some of the first cellular networks, and helped to develop and commercialize advanced wireless phone technology. Nadia has served on numerous nonprofit boards including the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia and Red Paw Emergency Relief Team. She currently serves on the boards of the American Anti-Vivisection Society and its sister organization, the Alternatives Research & Development Foundation. Nadia is admitted to practice law in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia.

Susanne Wherry is an attorney with Cheshire Law Group. With decades of experience as a lawyer and a broad range of business skills and lived experiences, Susanne provides practical solutions to help nonprofit organizations comply with the law, adhere to best practices, and maximize the impact of their missions. She values long-term relationships and takes the time to understand each nonprofit she serves, developing solutions and optimal outcomes that are custom-made for their unique needs and organizational challenges. Susanne began her legal career in Atlanta where she served as a staff clerk for the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. After her clerkship, she worked for one of the largest domestic litigation firms in the Southeast before moving back to Philadelphia. Throughout her career, Susanne represented clients in a wide array of civil matters, including employment law and business disputes, and also previously served as in-house counsel for a nonprofit private school. With a passion for mission-oriented entities, Susanne joined Cheshire Law Group to focus her career entirely on the nonprofit sector. Susanne graduated from Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law where she received the Barrister’s Award for Outstanding Oral Advocacy. As a visiting law student at Georgia State University, she received an academic award for the highest semester average in the study of Consumer Protection. She is a member of the Pennsylvania and Georgia bars.