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JayW

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Everything posted by JayW

  1. The results of a trial have at times been announced to the membership via a written (online) communication from the President. Our Bylaws do give the Board the authority over discipline; we have 800+ members and only meet once a year, so having the Board handle it is usually more efficient timely.
  2. Which is the issue here, because the Board convicted a member of something they (very easily proven) did not do. So there's no recourse for the member to clear their name, and no way for the membership to know the Board acted not in good faith.
  3. So the Board meets in executive session to hold a trial, and can then decide to make the contents of that executive session available to the Club, including the charges filed, evidence presented, discussion, vote, and disciplinary action taken, even if they find the accused not guilty. This would be considered an executive session of the Club (even if it occurred outside a meeting) so it could not be shared with any non-members. In that case, is the accused then free to discuss the matter with members of the Club?
  4. Even though in this case it wasn't the society that handled the discipline? If so, following that logic, the Board minutes for the executive session/trial should be available to the entire membership without a request?
  5. Thanks. It seems odd that a society can punish someone and that person can't ever speak on their own behalf about it, but I guess it is what it is. (I did read the section on page 655 but since it talked about libel, I wasn't sure it would apply to the accused, since you can't libel yourself.) In the event that the Board decided to inform the membership about a suspension, would that have to be done with the permission of the accused, as would be needed to hold the hearing in an open session? (Which I didn't actually see in the book, but it's been mentioned here.)
  6. Our Bylaws give the Board the authority to hear charges, conduct investigations and trials, and impose discipline of members up to a six-month suspension. They can recommend expulsion, which is voted on by the membership. I understand that investigations and actions leading up to a trial are considered to be held in executive session. Does that apply to the charges as well? Can the accused share with other people (not part of the Board, possibly not part of the society) the charges filed against them? After the trial, the Board only shares action taken if it's necessary to publicize. Obviously if they recommend expulsion, the membership must be informed of the fact so they can be prepared to vote. Should the membership be informed of a suspension, and the grounds on which it was imposed? Is the accused (now convicted) under a permanent gag order? Can they share with other people the fact that they were disciplined and why? Or does that open them up to new charges of violating executive session? (Obviously if they end up expelled there's nothing more the society can do to them, but in the case of a suspended member they are still subject to the rules of the society.) Does it matter if they mention they had a witness who testified on their behalf? (Does it matter further if the charges are a matter of public record?)
  7. I belong to a national organization that conducts Board of Director elections by mail, as outlined in our bylaws. The ballots must be sent between 40-55 days ahead of the annual meeting, and must arrive at the teller at least 10 days before the annual meeting. The bylaws state that the annual meeting will be held between May 1 and June 15, at a time and place determined by the Board. Our annual convention is held the first or second week in May (not dictated by the Bylaws) and the annual meeting occurs during that week. (It's the only time we could ever reach a quorum and our bylaws do not allow for other than in-person meetings.) Because of the current restrictions on gatherings that would affect our convention, it's been rescheduled to the end of June. Of course we want to move the annual meeting date to coincide with the new convention. I understand that we can't suspend that bylaw, but we could have a non-quorum meeting and fix a time to which to adjourn, which could then be during the convention. This year's ballots have already been sent out, due back to the teller by April 25. The concern is that with the lockdowns, postal service has been delayed significantly in many areas, and even ballots that are sent in a normally timely manner may not reach the teller by the due date, especially for our international members. My question, at last, is whether there's a way to extend the ballot due date to coincide with the adjourned meeting date. Would there technically be two annual meeting dates, the non-quorum one and the adjourned one? (In which case, the ballots were sent out in accordance with the former, but could the due date be extended to the latter?)
  8. I know that procedural rules of law take precedence over RONR and the bylaws; I'm not sure if the following is a procedural rule of law. Our bylaws state that the board can impose a penalty including a suspension "for not more than six (6) months from the date of the hearing". The board imposed a six-month suspension but stated that it began the day after the hearing, effectively imposing a suspension of six months and one day, citing "New York rules" which state "The day of the act or event from which the designated period of time begins to run shall not be included, but the last day of the period shall be included." Would this rule be considered procedural? (Actually as I've typed this I think maybe it doesn't matter. The bylaws say the board cannot impose a suspension longer than six months from the date of the hearing. If the state law does take precedence and the suspension begins the day after the hearing, that still doesn't mean the board can impose a suspension that lasts more than six months from the date of the hearing. It would mean the board can only impose a suspension of five months and 29 days.)
  9. I've read Interpretation 2006-13 and I just want to clarify if it applies in this situation. Our bylaws state that "General management of the club's affairs shall be entrusted to the Board of Directors" -- which is maybe different from saying the board has full power and authority over the affairs of the club between meetings of the membership, as is the case in the Interpretation. Our bylaws also give the Board the authority to entertain charges, carry out the hearing process, and impose penalties up to a six-month suspension from the club. (If the board feels a more severe penalty is warranted, they can recommend to the membership that the penalty be expulsion; the membership votes on the expulsion at the next annual meeting.) Can the membership vote to amend or rescind the board's suspension, assuming it is still in effect at the time the membership next meets? (Our bylaws do allow for special meetings but they're to be called by the President or the board. As well, it's a national club and members are scattered; obtaining a quorum is all but impossible except at the annual meeting.)
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