Two person meeting. Can we have non-voting chair

[chassv]

I'm seraching for advice on very small meetings. How does Robert's rules work with two people only?

This is for a duplex associtaion with only two members. 

I guess we could trade the chair back and forth.....or hire a chair, non-voting?

Thanks much

Edited September 12, 2018 at 02:07 AM by chassv

[Hieu H. Huynh]

"Common sense tells us that all they need to do is sit down in one room as people bent on working out where they want to go in a courteous spirit without wasting anyone's time." (RONR In Brief, page 3)

[Richard Brown]

RONR has no special rules for a two person board or association, but it does have what it calls the "Small Board Rules" where the chair participates pretty much just like the other members... and votes along with the other members.  However, if there are only two of you, I would think you would  be able to sit down and work things out and make decisions just like any other two or three or four people would  do.  I don't think formal rules should normally be necessary.

FWIW, Rich DeVos, one of the founders of Amway who just died, and Jay VanAndel, his partner and co-founder, used to take turns serving as president and as chairman of the board..  I don't know this for a fact, but I have a hunch the practice started when the "board" probably just consisted of the two of them, or maybe them and their wives.  When  DeVos died last  week, he was a very rich man.

Edited September 12, 2018 at 02:22 AM by Richard Brown

[chassv]

Thank you RIchard.

I'm not sure why people think rules are needed less for two persons. It's quite common: two persons who do not get along but have to do business. 

What I see is the chair does not need to even be in the association, so it looks like we could hire a chair, and do it that way. 

Thanks

[Guest Who's Coming to Dinner]

2 hours ago, chassv said:

I'm not sure why people think rules are needed less for two persons. It's quite common: two persons who do not get along but have to do business.

In such dire situations, there are usually two chairmen and they are called "lawyers." 😉