Guest Guest Mari Posted October 16, 2017 at 02:33 PM Report Share Posted October 16, 2017 at 02:33 PM There is general disagreement in our voting body as to what the term "ex officio" means and how that applies in a specific situation. Our bylaws specify that members of the board of elders as well as the offices of chairman and vice-chair are to be selected from the male voting assembly. All other offices and boards are to open to any member of the voting assembly. Several articles later, in describing the board of elders the secretary is listed as an ex officio member of that board. The contention of some members is that, because the secretary is ex officio, the position is open only to male members of the assembly. I don't think it ex officio works that way. Can anyone enlighten me? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Honemann Posted October 16, 2017 at 02:55 PM Report Share Posted October 16, 2017 at 02:55 PM 16 minutes ago, Guest Guest Mari said: There is general disagreement in our voting body as to what the term "ex officio" means and how that applies in a specific situation. Our bylaws specify that members of the board of elders as well as the offices of chairman and vice-chair are to be selected from the male voting assembly. All other offices and boards are to open to any member of the voting assembly. Several articles later, in describing the board of elders the secretary is listed as an ex officio member of that board. The contention of some members is that, because the secretary is ex officio, the position is open only to male members of the assembly. I don't think it ex officio works that way. Can anyone enlighten me? If you have accurately paraphrased your bylaws, I'm inclined to agree with you that nothing in your bylaws prevents a female from being elected secretary, and if she is elected, she will be, ex-officio, a member of the board of elders. But I haven't read your bylaws, so don't take my word for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Who's Coming to Dinner Posted October 16, 2017 at 04:49 PM Report Share Posted October 16, 2017 at 04:49 PM 2 hours ago, Guest Guest Mari said: I don't think it ex officio works that way. Can anyone enlighten me? Ex officio means "by virtue of office." The secretary is not elected or selected to serve on the Board of Elders. He or she holds a position on the board by virtue of being Secretary. If that person is qualified to hold the office of Secretary, then (s)he is automatically a member of the board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua Katz Posted October 16, 2017 at 05:20 PM Report Share Posted October 16, 2017 at 05:20 PM I'm not comfortable opining, personally, on whether or not the Secretary must be male based only on this paraphrase. I agree with Mr. Honemann that, based on what you've said, I don't see any such indication, but I'd want to know how exactly eligibility for the board is worded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Brown Posted October 16, 2017 at 06:54 PM Report Share Posted October 16, 2017 at 06:54 PM Agreeing with the previous responses, there might well be a bylaw provision which says that certain members of the board must be male and also a separate provision regarding the qualifications to be Secretary and a provision which ssys the Secretary shall ex officio be a member of the board. If that is the case, per RONR, the more specific provision of the bylaws prevails over the more general provision. In my opinion, the specific provisions regarding the Secretary are the more specific and would control. In other words, the Secretary might well be an exception to the otherwise "all male" requirement. Ultimately, though, it is up to your organization to interpret its own bylaws. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts