The Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) is lining up a series of changes to its structure, including setting up a commercial subsidiary, as it awaits the impact of forthcoming far-reaching legislation on charities.

The CEDR board, led by chief executive Karl Mackie, is looking at a wide range of proposals, which include setting up an arm to engage in commercial activity and raise funds on its behalf.

In a separate measure, it is also looking into ways to extend its international footprint through affiliations overseas without breaching guidelines that restrict links with private bodies.

The proposals are on the table as CEDR awaits guidelines under the Charities Bill, which will put the onus on charities to prove that their activities are in the public interest.

As a charity which charges high fees, CEDR is likely to be one of the first bodies to come under scrutiny.

Mackie told Legal Week that CEDR was optimistic it would pass the public benefit test.

"We are using [the Bill] as an opportunity for the board to look at how best we should be structured to fit our purpose," he said.

Julian Blake, a partner in the charity and social enterprise department at leading charity firm Bates Wells & Braithwaite, told Legal Week: "A subsidiary is a classic way for a charity to indirectly generate income, through the subsidiary engaging in activities that the charity itself cannot."

The CEDR move comes as mediation and arbitration services group ACI has teamed up with fellow provider In Place of Strife (IPOS) in a move that seems set to step up competition in the alternative dispute resolution sector.

The merger combines ACI's international mediation and arbitration capabilities with IPOS' specialist commercial mediation panels.

Meanwhile, the College of Law, which is also likely to come under scrutiny for charging high fees, has announced that it will donate a total of £1.25m over the next five years to assist students from less privileged backgrounds.

College of Law chief executive Nigel Savage denied that the move was connected to the forthcoming Bill.