Voting on conference call and in person meeting combo

[Guest georgia nielsen]

In a Board of 20 eligible voters some will be on tele-conference and some will be in person for an annual meeting where elections for officers will be held. One eligible voter will be in Paris and she wishes to call into the meeting specifically to cast her vote for the officers of her choice. Question: May a director call into a meeting for one specific agenda item and then depart? The logistics of the phoning in from another country onto a conference call can be accommodated at a high cost but before those decisions are made we need to know if it is correct to accommodate a voter for one specific part of a meeting.

[hmtcastle]

In a Board of 20 eligible voters some will be on tele-conference and some will be in person for an annual meeting where elections for officers will be held. One eligible voter will be in Paris and she wishes to call into the meeting specifically to cast her vote for the officers of her choice. Question: May a director call into a meeting for one specific agenda item and then depart? The logistics of the phoning in from another country onto a conference call can be accommodated at a high cost but before those decisions are made we need to know if it is correct to accommodate a voter for one specific part of a meeting.

All forms of absentee participation are prohibited by RONR unless specifically authorized by your bylaws or mandated by some applicable law.

On the other hand, nothing in RONR prevents a member from showing up at a meeting just to vote. Arrive late, vote, leave early. No problem.

[Guest georgia nielsen]

All forms of absentee participation are prohibited by RONR unless specifically authorized by your bylaws or mandated by some applicable law.

On the other hand, nothing in RONR prevents a member from showing up at a meeting just to vote. Arrive late, vote, leave early. No problem.

[Guest georgia nielsen]

If the Bylaws permit conferencing calls for voting what obligation does the Board of Directors have for accommodating calls from outside of countries and various regions of the world? If a director calls in from Paris to Denver must the Board use international conferencing or may the Board restrict conferencing voting when the Bylaws are silent on the issue?

[Trina]

If the Bylaws permit conferencing calls for voting what obligation does the Board of Directors have for accommodating calls from outside of countries and various regions of the world? If a director calls in from Paris to Denver must the Board use international conferencing or may the Board restrict conferencing voting when the Bylaws are silent on the issue?

If the bylaws permit conference calls for voting, the bylaws should specify details. If there are ambiguities, the proper interpretation of the bylaws is up to your organization (see RONR pp. 570-573 for some principles of interpretation).

If the bylaws just say that vote by conference call is allowed, I don't see that the board would have the authority to allow votes from some locations, and to disenfranchise voters who happen to be in other locations. Modifications to the bylaws are not the province of the board (at least not for most organizations encountered on this forum).

[hmtcastle]

If the Bylaws permit conferencing calls for voting what obligation does the Board of Directors have for accommodating calls from outside of countries and various regions of the world? If a director calls in from Paris to Denver must the Board use international conferencing or may the Board restrict conferencing voting when the Bylaws are silent on the issue?

Why not restrict calls from out of town? Or out of State? On what basis do you propose drawing the line at one border but not another? Canada and Mexico but not South America?

The whole point of permitting conference calls is to permit the participation of an absent member. it seems to me that the farther away he is, the more he needs a conference call. A guy phoning in from the bar next door should probably attend in person.

[Tim Wynn]

On what basis do you propose drawing the line at one border but not another?

C'mon, we all know France is a little foo-foo.

it seems to me that the farther away he is, the more he needs a conference call.

Well said.

A guy phoning in from the bar next door should probably attend in person.

What makes me think you're drawing this from personal experience, having placed a similar call?

[Kim Goldsworthy]

If the Bylaws permit conferencing calls for voting what obligation does the Board of Directors have for accommodating calls from outside of countries and various regions of the world? If a director calls in from Paris to Denver must the Board use international conferencing or may the Board restrict conferencing voting when the Bylaws are silent on the issue?

"Yeow!" - "Holy Law-of-the-Exluded-Middle, Batman!"

If the Bylaws permit conferencing calls for voting ...

Q. "If bylaws permit X, then what obligation does the Board have for accommodating X from [place #A or place #B]?"

Are you seriously asking a question whether a board must obey its bylaws on such a serious topic as the right to vote?

You really don't know the answer to this one?

Q. "May the board restrict [voting by teleconference] when the bylaws allow for [voting by teleconference]?"

Are you seriously asking a question whether a board must obey its bylaws on such a serious topic as the right to vote?

You really don't know the answer to this one?

Here is a generic answer:

"If the bylaws say that the board must allow X, then X is allowed."

I think that is safe to say.