Guest Quorum Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:19 PM Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:19 PM A board has just enough members present to have a quorum. A member who has a personal financial interest in a matter leaves the room temporarily while the matter is discussed and voted upon. Is the quorum lost, or would this be treated like an abstention? Thanks for the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:22 PM Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:22 PM Is the quorum lost, or would this be treated like an abstention? Yes, the quorum is lost. Next time, the member with the "personal financial interest" should stay in the room. RONR suggests that a member with a direct personal or pecuniary interest should abstain from voting, but it does not suggest he should leave the room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Guest Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:43 PM Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:43 PM This is actually something that might happen at our next meeting; several members cannot attend. Once the member leaves, discussion is then out of order correct? So it's not as if the member could leave for discussion, come back when they are ready to vote, and then abstain? That would still be inappropriate? The member believes that his presence in the discussion would make the discussion less open, so he is volunteering to leave. Hopefully we have one more than the minimum for quorum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jstackpo Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:47 PM Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:47 PM Yeah... as soon as the "critical" topic comes up, the member could step out. Then when the vote is about to be taken, bring him/her back in. P. 349, line19 ff. describes exactly this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:49 PM Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:49 PM Yeah... as soon as the "critical" topic comes up, the member could step out. Then when the vote is about to be taken, bring him/her back in. P. 349, line19 ff. describes exactly this situation. Well, it says that debate on the question can continue as long as no one complains about it. That's hardly a ringing endorsement of the practice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Mervosh Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:58 PM Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 at 08:58 PM Well, it says that debate on the question can continue as long as no one complains about it. That's hardly a ringing endorsement of the practice. I don't think John's endorsing it either, and the member in question is voluntarily making the decision making process easier for the assembly, so it sounds like a win/win, as long as no one complains and he's back in the room when the vote is taken. Edit - Guest Quorum - the gentleman volunteering to leave has to be careful about his timing if he departure leads to the loss of a quorum. He should wait until after the motion is made, seconded, stated by the chair, and the maker of the motion is recognized to speak first and starts speaking. That will satisfy RONR's rule that "Debate on a question already pending can be allowed to continue at length after a quorum is no longer present, however, until a member raises the point." (p. 349) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Quorum Posted September 13, 2013 at 09:24 PM Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 at 09:24 PM This feels dirty. I sort of like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. J. Posted September 13, 2013 at 11:08 PM Report Share Posted September 13, 2013 at 11:08 PM This feels dirty. I sort of like it. You should be around when we suspend the rules. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest James Borders Posted September 15, 2013 at 12:17 PM Report Share Posted September 15, 2013 at 12:17 PM Can a quorum be defined or is it set by member count? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jstackpo Posted September 15, 2013 at 12:47 PM Report Share Posted September 15, 2013 at 12:47 PM Eh? A "quorum" is a number (either a fixed number or specific percentage of membership, or something more convoluted). So that number has to be defined somewhere, commonly in your organization's bylaws. Is that that you are asking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted September 15, 2013 at 05:29 PM Report Share Posted September 15, 2013 at 05:29 PM Can a quorum be defined or is it set by member count? It's best to define it in your organization's bylaws. The default is a majority of the membership, but that's too high for most organizations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lumiprec Posted September 18, 2013 at 12:02 AM Report Share Posted September 18, 2013 at 12:02 AM If there is no request for quorum in the bylaws but is stated in the constitution, can there be a motion to suspend quorum? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josh Martin Posted September 18, 2013 at 12:09 AM Report Share Posted September 18, 2013 at 12:09 AM If there is no request for quorum in the bylaws but is stated in the constitution, can there be a motion to suspend quorum? No. Additionally, for future reference, it's best to post a new question as a new topic, even if an existing topic seems similar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. J. Posted September 18, 2013 at 12:09 AM Report Share Posted September 18, 2013 at 12:09 AM If there is no request for quorum in the bylaws but is stated in the constitution, can there be a motion to suspend quorum? No, unless the constitution would specifically that the quorum be suspended. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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