voting on motion

[Guest Nicole]

Hi:

On September 21st, at 5:20 pm a member of our Board emailed his resignation to another member of the Board.

On September 21st, at 8:36 pm, an email was forwarded to members asking for a vote on a motion.

The member who resigned 3 hours earlier, posted a response to the call for a vote.

Our secretary is including this vote in the tally. She says, he voted before his resignation was formally accepted by the Board. Our constitution/bylaws state that a resignation is deemed to have been accepted 24 hours after its receipt, by any member of the Board.

My position is that this person having resigned, is no longer in a position to vote on any motion. the formality of accepting the resignation, is just that, a formality.

Accepting this person's vote, changes the result of the vote, to a tie vote, forcing the vote of the President to break the tie.

Who is correct?

Thank you for your help

Nicole

[Chris Harrison]

On September 21st, at 5:20 pm a member of our Board emailed his resignation to another member of the Board.

On September 21st, at 8:36 pm, an email was forwarded to members asking for a vote on a motion.

The member who resigned 3 hours earlier, posted a response to the call for a vote.

Our constitution/bylaws state that a resignation is deemed to have been accepted 24 hours after its receipt, by any member of the Board.

Our secretary is including this vote in the tally. She says, he voted before his resignation was formally accepted by the Board

My position is that this person having resigned, is no longer in a position to vote on any motion. the formality of accepting the resignation, is just that, a formality.

Who is correct?

It seems pretty obvious from your posting that the Secretary is.

[Nicole]

It seems pretty obvious from your posting that the Secretary is.

Just so I have this straight.

It does not matter when a person resigned, but the date and time of the acceptance of the resignation is what is important ?

I can accept that, but it makes no real sense.

I have asked the secretary to forward this person's vote, so the date and time stamp of his reply can be verified.

If the date and time stamp are 24 hours or more after the resignation was received, then the vote is not counted ?

[Chris Harrison]

Just so I have this straight.

It does not matter when a person resigned, but the date and time of the acceptance of the resignation is what is important ?

Yes. A member is a member until the resignation is accepted and that per your bylaws is 24 hours after the Board member received the resignation. So until the 24 hours are up he is still a member and can vote and also can withdraw the resignation.

I have asked the secretary to forward this person's vote, so the date and time stamp of his reply can be verified.

If the date and time stamp are 24 hours or more after the resignation was received, then the vote is not counted ?

Yes.

[Nicole]

Yes. A member is a member until the resignation is accepted and that per your bylaws is 24 hours after the Board member received the resignation. So until the 24 hours are up he is still a member and can vote and also can withdraw the resignation.

Yes.

I have received the following information from the Secretary.

The resignation was sent to one of our Board members on the 21st, and was sent on to the rest of the Board on the 22nd.

So, as the resignation is deemed accepted 24 hours later, then the resignation is accepted on the 23rd.

On the 23rd, the Secretary sent a reminder, only to the member whose resignation she received the day before, to please vote on the motion.

The reply from the member was received on the 24th.

Is this a valid vote. Our Secretary says it still is because the request for the vote was sent prior to the resignation.

I disagree, as the member is no longer a member on the 24th.

HELP

[Chris Harrison]

I have received the following information from the Secretary.

The resignation was sent to one of our Board members on the 21st, and was sent on to the rest of the Board on the 22nd.

So, as the resignation is deemed accepted 24 hours later, then the resignation is accepted on the 23rd.

On the 23rd, the Secretary sent a reminder, only to the member whose resignation she received the day before, to please vote on the motion.

The reply from the member was received on the 24th.

Is this a valid vote. Our Secretary says it still is because the request for the vote was sent prior to the resignation.

I disagree, as the member is no longer a member on the 24th.

HELP

The whole timeline makes no sense and I suspect there are nuances in the situation that don't convey too well here. I would recommend you all get together with the timeline and bylaws (in their entirety) to determine what exactly happened and whether the person was a member at the time in question.

[David A Foulkes]

Our constitution/bylaws state that a resignation is deemed to have been accepted 24 hours after its receipt, by any member of the Board.

The resignation was sent to one of our Board members on the 21st, and was sent on to the rest of the Board on the 22nd.

So, as the resignation is deemed accepted 24 hours later, then the resignation is accepted on the 23rd.

You have to interpret your own bylaws. But taken at face value, the "time stamp" on the 21st when the Board member received the resignation started the 24-hour clock ticking. That clock ran out, presumably, at the same hour/minute on the 22nd, 24 hours later. At that moment, the resignation was "deemed accepted." Not on the 23rd. Not on the 24th. Not today.

Here's the rub - when did the Board member actually "receive" the email resignation? Can anyone know, in this world of instantaneous electronic communication? Does "receive" mean "read by"?

At some point, it might be a good idea to amend your bylaws and remove that 24-hour rule. It's obviously not serving you in this instance, and likely won't in the next.

[Gary Novosielski]

Just so I have this straight.

It does not matter when a person resigned, but the date and time of the acceptance of the resignation is what is important ?

I can accept that, but it makes no real sense.

I have asked the secretary to forward this person's vote, so the date and time stamp of his reply can be verified.

If the date and time stamp are 24 hours or more after the resignation was received, then the vote is not counted ?

The reason it makes sense is that a resignation is in the nature of a request to be excused from a duty. The person is required to continue performing all the duties of the office until excused from doing so--i.e., until the resignation becomes effective.