BryanSullo Posted October 25, 2011 at 03:46 PM Report Share Posted October 25, 2011 at 03:46 PM The bylaws of our church society stipulate the following:The Moderator shall conduct the meeting in the most convenient manner unless there is an objection from the floor, in which case "Robert's Rules of Order" shall be followed. There is no other mention of a Parliamentary Authority. This seems to me potentially dangerous.I can understand why the assembly, at some point in the past, might have been reluctant to enforce a particular set of rules (e.g. lack of members well-versed in parliamentary procedure, fear that things not done "by the book" might be invalid, fear that those well-versed in PP might use it to gain advantage over those who are not), but it seems like this wording could cause a lot of problems.I'd like to propose that we explicitly adopt RONR as our PA, but I'm not sure how to allay the fears listed above. Any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Hunt Posted October 25, 2011 at 04:33 PM Report Share Posted October 25, 2011 at 04:33 PM Page 251 has a list of the only rules you truly cannot break if RONR if your PA. So far as everyone is happy, you're free to ignore every other rule in the book. Look also at p.456, in particular the sentence "The president should never be technical or more strict than is necessary for the good of the meeting.", which is a rule I sometimes have trouble with myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Wynn Posted October 25, 2011 at 04:37 PM Report Share Posted October 25, 2011 at 04:37 PM Explain that RONR protects the rights of members, with the knowledge gained from centuries of actual practice, and it is designed to aid in the smooth transaction of business, not to hinder it. Also, point out that a rule requiring an objection before the chair has to follow any procedural rules makes no since to a certain parliamentarian in Florida (I mean me). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BryanSullo Posted October 25, 2011 at 05:02 PM Author Report Share Posted October 25, 2011 at 05:02 PM Page 251 has a list of the only rules you truly cannot break if RONR if your PA. So far as everyone is happy, you're free to ignore every other rule in the book.Thanks for the reference. I thought this was the case, but I didn't know where to find it. This seems to make the wording of the bylaws superfluous, in the sense that the meetings can always be conducted "in the most convenient manner" under RONR. Look also at p.456, in particular the sentence "The president should never be technical or more strict than is necessary for the good of the meeting.", which is a rule I sometimes have trouble with myself.I imagine most of the members of this message board might have that trouble as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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