Power to dissolve a Committee

[Amna]

Hello,

 

Can someone please guide me to the relevant law or commentaries explaining whether a committee made by the Bar Council can be Dissolved? A few questions are inter-linked. Once a committee has been constituted, what powers can be exercised by the Bar Council if the committee is inefficient? Does the Bar Council have the power to dissolve the Committee? 

Or whether the committee has a certain security of tenure?

I feel that the general principle 'the power to create includes the power to remove' may apply.  If anyone can provide any law on this matter I will be grateful

Thanks

[Hieu H. Huynh]

Discussion of law is beyond the scope of this forum.

[Transpower]

See §36--"Discharge a Committee" in RONR (11th ed.), pp. 310-315.  If the Bar Council created the special committee, then it can disharge it.

 

[Richard Brown]

Agreeing with transport, I would add that if the committee is established in the bylaws or other governing document it may not be possible to dissolve it, but perhaps the members can be replaced.

We really need more information, especially as to how the committee was created and how it's members are selected, in order to advise you further.

If this is a public body or agency of some sort, our advice might be different. 

[Josh Martin]

10 hours ago, Amna said:

Can someone please guide me to the relevant law or commentaries explaining whether a committee made by the Bar Council can be Dissolved? A few questions are inter-linked. Once a committee has been constituted, what powers can be exercised by the Bar Council if the committee is inefficient? Does the Bar Council have the power to dissolve the Committee? 

Or whether the committee has a certain security of tenure?

I feel that the general principle 'the power to create includes the power to remove' may apply.  If anyone can provide any law on this matter I will be grateful

We can't answer questions of law here. As a parliamentary matter, I am inclined to agree that if the Bar Council created the committee, it has the power to dissolve it. What exactly is required to dissolve the committee, however, depends on how the committee was established. As to what other powers may be exercised, the Bar Council would have the authority to remove or replace any or all of the committee's members, and to instruct the committee as it sees fit, unless something in applicable law or the organization's rules provides otherwise.

3 hours ago, Richard Brown said:

Agreeing with transport, I would add that if the committee is established in the bylaws or other governing document it may not be possible to dissolve it, but perhaps the members can be replaced.

If the committee is established in the bylaws or other governing documents, the committee may be dissolved by amending those documents.

[Kim Goldsworthy]

15 hours ago, Amna said:

S1.) ... explaining whether a committee made by the Bar Council can be dissolved?

S2.) Once a committee has been constituted, what powers can be exercised by the Bar Council if the committee is inefficient?

S3.) Does the Bar Council have the power to dissolve the Committee? 

S4.) Or whether the committee has a certain security of tenure?

A1.) See the motion "Discharge a committee" in Robert's Rules of Order.

A2.) Choices are:

   (a.) take the task/project away from the committee (so that the committee has nothing to do).

   (b.) instruct the committee (again, or more thoroughly). (This is called "to charge a committee".)

   (c.) swap personnel of the committee. Remove some members of the committee, and appoint new blood.

   (d.) Eliminate the committee completely. See the motion "Discharge a committee" in Robert's Rules of Order.

A3.) The party who created a special committee is the party to discharge (or re-charge) the special committee.

   • If your Bar Council created the committee, then the Bar Council is free to do #a, #b, #c, #d, above.

A4.) The only committee which isn't automatically dissolved is a standing committee.

And you have said, ". . . a committee made by the Bar Council".

Unless the Bar Council created a standing committee (which I doubt), then the Bar Council is free to un-appoint any of the personnel of the committee.