Jump to content
The Official RONR Q & A Forums

Club hasn't been using constitution mandated by higher organization


mjhmjh

Recommended Posts

I belong to a club that is part of a larger organization. Whenever a club of this type is chartered, it adopts the organization's standard club constitution. However, my club has been using its own custom constitution. I believe that our custom constitution is null and void, and that the standard constitution is and always has been in effect. How would you suggest I go about transitioning to the standard constitution? I am just a member in the club.

 

Our custom constitution:

http://ufrotaract.wixsite.com/service/constitution

The standard constitution:

https://my.rotary.org/en/document/rotaract-constitution-and-bylaws

By-Laws vary by club, but the aforementioned PDF with the standard constitution includes starter by-laws. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I suspect that a great deal more facts are needed.

Based solely upon what has been posted, it seems far more likely that your club may not be regarded as a chartered member of the larger organization to which you refer than that your club's constitution is null and void. If your club's constitution is null and void, it would appear that you have no club at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You should also dig into things such as whether or not your club was grandfathered when the standard club constitution was put into place, given an exemption, or whether the standard constitution is merely a helpful guideline and clubs are free to adopt another constitution.

It's also possible that your club has the standard constitution but is simply unaware of that fact.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Daniel H. Honemann said:

I suspect that a great deal more facts are needed.

Based solely upon what has been posted, it seems far more likely that your club may not be regarded as a chartered member of the larger organization to which you refer than that your club's constitution is null and void. If your club's constitution is null and void, it would appear that you have no club at all.

I've checked the larger organization's database and we're in there as a chartered member. The larger organization's policy is that every club adopts the standard constitution upon being chartered and that only the larger organization can amend the standard constitution. That's why I think the standard constitution is in effect, but we're just ignoring it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Alexis Hunt said:

You should also dig into things such as whether or not your club was grandfathered when the standard club constitution was put into place, given an exemption, or whether the standard constitution is merely a helpful guideline and clubs are free to adopt another constitution.

It's also possible that your club has the standard constitution but is simply unaware of that fact.

I've looked and no such grandfather clause exists for a club of our age. Every club must use the same standard constitution; it's a requirement, not a guideline.

 

I think you're right. The standard constitution is the one truly in effect, but at some point in the past someone ignored the part of the standard constitution that says only the larger organization can amend it. This led to our current custom constitution.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

8 hours ago, Daniel H. Honemann said:

I suspect that a great deal more facts are needed.

Based solely upon what has been posted, it seems far more likely that your club may not be regarded as a chartered member of the larger organization to which you refer than that your club's constitution is null and void. If your club's constitution is null and void, it would appear that you have no club at all.

Our custom constitution:

http://ufrotaract.wixsite.com/service/constitution

The standard constitution:

https://my.rotary.org/en/document/rotaract-constitution-and-bylaws

By-Laws vary by club, but the aforementioned PDF with the standard constitution includes starter by-laws. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Alexis Hunt said:

You should also dig into things such as whether or not your club was grandfathered when the standard club constitution was put into place, given an exemption, or whether the standard constitution is merely a helpful guideline and clubs are free to adopt another constitution.

It's also possible that your club has the standard constitution but is simply unaware of that fact.

Our custom constitution:

http://ufrotaract.wixsite.com/service/constitution

The standard constitution:

https://my.rotary.org/en/document/rotaract-constitution-and-bylaws

By-Laws vary by club, but the aforementioned PDF with the standard constitution includes starter by-laws. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, mjhmjh said:

I've checked the larger organization's database and we're in there as a chartered member. The larger organization's policy is that every club adopts the standard constitution upon being chartered and that only the larger organization can amend the standard constitution. That's why I think the standard constitution is in effect, but we're just ignoring it.

It would help if you would quote the EXACT language from the parent's organization's constitution, bylaws or other rule which states specifically that upon being chartered, an affiliate organization is deemed to have adopted the standard bylaws provided by the parent organization.  Also quote the language about the parent organization being the only body that can amend an affiliate's constitution or bylaws.

Edited to add:  I just read the "standard" constitution provided by Rotary International and also the "standard" bylaws.  The constitution does indeed say that it can be amended only by the parent body (I believe that is Rotary International).  The bylaws, on the other hand, can be amended by the local affiliate.   I'm still curious, though, as to what provision is in the parent organization's constitution and bylaws that states, in essence, that by applying ror and accepting a charter, the local affiliate is deemed to have adopted the standard constitution and also the standard bylaws.

Edited by Richard Brown
Added last paragraph
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, mjhmjh said:

I've checked the larger organization's database and we're in there as a chartered member. The larger organization's policy is that every club adopts the standard constitution upon being chartered and that only the larger organization can amend the standard constitution. That's why I think the standard constitution is in effect, but we're just ignoring it.

If the wording is exactly as you describe, then it's possible that the requirement only takes effect on newly chartered clubs and your club predates it, so it never applied to your club.

But we generally don't do interpretation of bylaws/constitutions on this forum, so I won't delve deeper.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Richard Brown said:

It would help if you would quote the EXACT language from the parent's organization's constitution, bylaws or other rule which states specifically that upon being chartered, an affiliate organization is deemed to have adopted the standard bylaws provided by the parent organization.  Also quote the language about the parent organization being the only body that can amend an affiliate's constitution or bylaws.

Edited to add:  I just read the "standard" constitution provided by Rotary International and also the "standard" bylaws.  The constitution does indeed say that it can be amended only by the parent body (I believe that is Rotary International).  The bylaws, on the other hand, can be amended by the local affiliate.   I'm still curious, though, as to what provision is in the parent organization's constitution and bylaws that states, in essence, that by applying ror and accepting a charter, the local affiliate is deemed to have adopted the standard constitution and also the standard bylaws.

Found in section 8 of this official document of Rotary International (the parent organization) policy https://my.rotary.org/en/document/rotaract-statement-policy

"There shall be a “Standard Rotaract Club Constitution” prescribed by Rotary International and subject to amendment only by the Board of Directors of Rotary International. As a prerequisite of its organization and certification, each Rotaract club shall adopt the "Standard Rotaract Club Constitution" and shall automatically adopt all amendments thereto subsequently made."

By-laws are definitely amendable by local affiliate. My issue is that our constitution doesn't line up with the standard constitution (our constitution can be found here http://ufrotaract.wixsite.com/service/constitution).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, mjhmjh said:

"There shall be a “Standard Rotaract Club Constitution” prescribed by Rotary International and subject to amendment only by the Board of Directors of Rotary International. As a prerequisite of its organization and certification, each Rotaract club shall adopt the "Standard Rotaract Club Constitution" and shall automatically adopt all amendments thereto subsequently made."

 

Yet it appears that your club was organized and certified without adopting any such thing.  It would seem that the parent organization screwed up in giving the charter without seeing that its requirements were met, but their act of giving that charter can't be deemed to have nullified or changed your Constitution.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...