Discouraging "chat" in an online meeting platform

[Faith D]

We are using an online meeting platform for our virtual meetings during the pandemic. We have a large board of 65 people.

Due to the limitations of the platform, functions like "raise hand" and "Q&A" are not sufficient for discussion or debate. Therefore, we populate the speakers list by asking members to type "speakers list" in the c"Chat" function. We do the same for Points of Order, we request they type "point of order" in the chat, and we recognize them immediately (a staff person monitors the chat window and notifies the chair immediately).

We asked members to refrain from utilizing the "Chat" function for questions, discussions, etc. so that points of order and speakers list requests are not lost.Additionally, debate was by default being continued in the chat box by those who no longer had the floor.   

It has been suggested that by allowing only "chat to host" or even simply asking members not to use the chat function for continnued discsussion, we are infringing upon the rights of members. However, this seems a disingenuous argument. In an in-person meeting, members seated across the room from each other would not be having a discussion while a debate happened, members could not call across the meeting floor to each other to answer a question. 

so, my question is - is it an infringement of the rights of the members to limit the activities that can happen in chat? Can we state that a member using the chat for discussion is out of order? 

[Richard Brown]

7 minutes ago, Faith D said:

so, my question is - is it an infringement of the rights of the members to limit the activities that can happen in chat? Can we state that a member using the chat for discussion is out of order?

No, it is not an infringement of their rights to limit the use of the "chat" function in an online meeting platform unless you have a customized rule permitting its use.  So, you can take whatever reasonable action is necessary to limit or prevent the use of the chat function.  However, for such a limitation to be enforceable and for its violation to have consequences, the society may have to adopt a standing rule or special rule of order restricting its use to only those purposes permitted by the rule.  

However, even without such a rule, the society could determine that the abuse of the chat function by a member, even without a specific rule on it, so interferes with the ability of the assembly to conduct business that  a member could quite possibly be subjected to disciplinary action for such abuse.

Some organizations simply disable the chat function during meetings or limit it to the ability to chat with only a few officials.  

You might want to review Chapter XX in RONR.  That is the chapter on discipline.