Hi all,
I'm not in the US, but I'm interested in the development of chapters, and have had some level of involvement in the three existing ones (French, German, Italian) and a few of the ones that are planned for this year (especially UK and Netherlands).
Recommended reading: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Local_chapter_FAQ http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/WMF_and_local_chapters http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Membership_FAQ
Please note the Membership FAQ is very out of date. The Foundation does not have any membership, which will likely be reflected in the next bylaws.
Who can advise us on legal issues?
Once you need legal advice, I would suggest one or two people involved join the Juriwiki mailing list (http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Juriwiki) where you can ask members of the legal department for help.
Angela.