Serving two consecutive terms

[Guest Award]

If the bylaws state a board member can only serve two consecutive 4 year terms, if that board member has only one year left on his second term,  can he  be elected for a different board seat that has its own 4 year term and then serve  just one year, (which would be his last remaining eight year), or is he prohibited from running for the new board seat with its own 4 year term?

[Hieu H. Huynh]

What is meant by "a different board seat"? I would think that a board member is a board member, no matter which "seat" that board member has.

[Edgar Guest]

RONR says that, when considering term limits, serving more than half a term counts as serving the full term.

 

So, assuming we're talking about identical positions, this person has already reached the limit^*. Simply switching seats won't cut it.

 

^*Edited to add: By saying he "already reached the limit" I don't mean to suggest that he can't continue to complete his current term in office. He just can't serve another term without a break.

[Richard Brown]

The answer to your question really depends on whether your board actually has separate seats that are identified as such, such as Seats A, B, C etc, or as I have seen on some boards, the different board members automatically serve as committee chairs, so there is, for example, the Membership Chairman, Networking Chairman, Fundraising Chairman, etc.   Those seats are considered separate seats and candidates run for the particular position they want.  In that case, if your bylaws prohibit serving more than two consecutive terms in the same position (or in the same seat), rather than saying no person shall serve more than two consecutive terms on the board, it seems to me the member could run for a different seat (position) and the two term limit clock would start all over again.

 

it depends on the exact wording of your bylaws re board members and term limits.