Cancelling a meeting due to Covid 19

[Guest barbhen@aol.com]

The organization's by -laws requires it  to hold an annual meeting where several actions items are required - election of national officers, budget and funding projects.  Concern that the facility will not allow them to hold meeting due to Covid 19.  They have no provisions in their by-laws to cancel meeting.  Any suggestions on how they should handle?  I have suggested an on-line meeting but difficult when there are 200+ delegates.  

[Richard Brown]

9 minutes ago, Guest barbhen@aol.com said:

The organization's by -laws requires it  to hold an annual meeting where several actions items are required - election of national officers, budget and funding projects

What exactly do your bylaws say about the date of the annual meeting? How and by whom it is to be scheduled? What type notice provision do the bylaws have for the annual meeting? Please quote those provisions exactly, don’t paraphrase.

Edited April 10, 2020 at 04:59 PM by Richard Brown
Typographical correction

[Josh Martin]

6 hours ago, Guest barbhen@aol.com said:

The organization's by -laws requires it  to hold an annual meeting where several actions items are required - election of national officers, budget and funding projects.  Concern that the facility will not allow them to hold meeting due to Covid 19.  They have no provisions in their by-laws to cancel meeting.  Any suggestions on how they should handle?  I have suggested an on-line meeting but difficult when there are 200+ delegates.  

It should first be noted that online meetings are not permitted unless they are authorized in the bylaws. (I also agree that this is "difficult" if there are 200+ delegates - indeed, I think that is an understatement.)

Notwithstanding the fact that there are no explicit provisions in the bylaws regarding canceling or rescheduling the meeting, it might still be possible to cancel or reschedule the meeting in advance, depending on what the bylaws say regarding when the annual meeting is held, how it is scheduled, etc.

In the event that it is not possible to cancel or reschedule the meeting in advance, another option is to still technically hold the meeting, tell people not to attend, and that the meeting will be rescheduled. There are some actions which may be taken even in the absence of a quorum. One of them is to schedule an adjourned meeting. So if even one person shows up to the meeting, they could adopt a motion "To adjourn the meeting until the call of the (board/President/etc.)". Perhaps the meeting location could be changed to that member's home to make it easier.

It would also be desirable to know what the bylaws say regarding the terms of officers. Depending on what they say, additional steps may (or may not) be necessary to ensure the continuity of officers.

Edited April 10, 2020 at 11:34 PM by Josh Martin