Asociația Română din Vancouver By-Laws

1        (1) In these bylaws, unless the context otherwise requires:

i. “directors” means the directors of the society for the time being in accordance with the Society Act of British Columbia;

ii. “officers” means a member appointed by the directors of the association;

iii. “board of directors” means the total number of the elected directors and officers;

iv. “Society Act“ means the Society Act of British Columbia from time to time in force and all amendments to it;

v. “quorum” means the minimum number of people necessary for voting a resolution at a general meeting;

vi. “registered address” means the address of the member as recorded in the registration of the respective member;

vii. “confirmed e-mail” means the e-mail, or electronic-mail, as recorded in the registration of the respective members;

viii. “term” means the time between the annual general meeting and the immediate next annual general meeting;

ix. “member” means every person, or corporation, who becomes a member in accordance with the by-laws;

x. “in good standing” means a member that has paid the annual membership fee;

xi. “annual membership” means the fee as decided by the directors, which enables a member to be in good standing for 365 consecutive calendar days as of the day the membership is paid on;

xii. “special resolution” as defined by the Society Act of British Columbia;

xiii. “minimum vote” means the minimum vote required to pass or approve any resolution, not including a special resolution, is 60%.

(2) The definitions in the Society Act on the date these bylaws become effective apply to these bylaws.

2 Words importing the singular include the plural and vice versa, and words importing a male person include a female person and a corporation.

3 The members of the society are the applicants for incorporation of the society, and those persons who subsequently become members, in accordance with these bylaws and, in either case, have not ceased to be members.

4 A person may apply to the directors for membership in the society and on acceptance by the directors is a member.

5 Every member must uphold the constitution and comply with these bylaws.

6 The amount of the first annual membership dues must be determined by the directors and after that the annual membership dues must be determined at the annual general meeting of the society.

7 A person ceases to be a member of the society

(a) by delivering his or her resignation in writing to the secretary of the society or by mailing or delivering it to the address of the society,

(b) on his or her death or, in the case of a corporation, on dissolution,

(c) on being expelled by a vote of the directors upon violating one or more of these by-laws; the expelled vote must occur not less than 30 consecutive days from the violation,

(d) on having been a member not in good standing for 12 consecutive months.

8     (1) A member may be expelled by a special resolution of the members passed at a general meeting.

(2) The notice of special resolution for expulsion must be accompanied by a brief statement of the reasons for the proposed expulsion.

(3) The person who is the subject of the proposed resolution for expulsion must be given an opportunity to be heard at the general meeting before the special resolution is put to a vote.

9 All members are in good standing except a member who has failed to pay his or her current annual membership fee, or any other subscription or debt due and owing by the member to the society, and the member is not in good standing so long as the debt remains unpaid.

10 General meetings of the society must be held at the time and place, in accordance with the Society Act, that the directors decide.

11 Every general meeting, other than an annual general meeting, is an extraordinary general meeting.

12 The directors may, when they think fit, convene an extraordinary general meeting.

13 (1) Notice of a general meeting must specify the place, day and hour of the meeting, and, in case of special business, the general nature of that business.

(2) The accidental omission to give notice of a meeting to, or the non-receipt of a notice by, any of the members entitled to receive notice does not invalidate proceedings at that meeting,

(3) Notice of a general meeting must be send at least 30 calendar days prior to the general meeting, either via confirmed email, registered mail or fax.

14 The first annual general meeting of the society must be held not more than 15 months after the date of incorporation and after that an annual general meeting must be held at least once in every calendar year and not more than 15 months after the holding of the last preceding annual general meeting.

15 Special business is

(a) all business at an extraordinary general meeting except the adoption of rules of order, and

(b) all business conducted at an annual general meeting, except the following:

(i) the adoption of rules of order;

(ii) the consideration of the financial statements;

(iii) the report of the directors;

(iv) the report of the auditor, if any;

(v) the election of directors;

(vi) the appointment of the auditor, if required;

(vii) the other business that, funder these bylaws, ought to be conducted at an annual general meeting, or business that is brought under consideration by the report of the directors issued with the notice convening the meeting.

16 (1) Business, other than the election of a chair and the adjournment or termination of the general meeting, must not be conducted at a general meeting at a time when a quorum is not present.

(2) If at any time during a general meeting there ceases to be a quorum present, business then in progress must be suspended until there is a quorum present or until the meeting is adjourned or terminated.

(3) A quorum is 3 members present or a greater number that the members may determine at a general meeting.

17 If within 30 minutes from the time appointed for a general meeting a quorum is not present, the meeting, if convened on the requisition of members, must be terminated, but in any other case, it must stand adjourned to the same day in the next week, at the same time and place, and if, at the adjourned meeting, a quorum is not present within 30 minutes from the time appointed for the meeting, the members present constitute a quorum.

18 Subject to bylaw 19, the president of the society, the vice president or, in the absence of both, one of the other directors present, must preside as chair of a general meeting.

19 If at a general meeting

(a) there is no president, vice president or other director present within 15 minutes after the time appointed for holding the meeting, or

(b) the president and all the other directors present are unwilling to act as the chair,

(c) the members present must choose one of their number to be the chair.

20 (1) A general meeting may be adjourned from time to time and from place to place, but business must not be conducted at an adjourned meeting other than the business left unfinished at the meeting from which the adjournment took place.

(2) When a meeting is adjourned for 10 days or more, notice of the adjourned meeting must be given as in the case of the original meeting.

(3) Except as provided in this bylaw, it is not necessary to give notice of an adjournment or of the business to be conducted at an adjourned general meeting.

21 (1) A resolution proposed at a general meeting need to be seconded, and the chair of a meeting may move or propose a resolution only after it is seconded by another director.

(2) In the case of a tie vote, the chair does not have a casting or second vote in addition to the vote to which he or she may be entitled as a member, and the proposed resolution does not pass.

22 (1) A member in good standing present at a meeting of members is entitled to one vote.

(2) Voting is by show of hands.

(3) Voting by proxy is permitted.

(4) A member not in good standing shall not be permitted to vote.

23 A corporate member may vote by its authorized representative, who is entitled to speak and vote, and in all other respects exercise the rights of a member, and that representative must be considered as a member for all purposes with respect to a meeting of the society.

24 (1) The directors may exercise all the powers and do all the acts and things that the society may exercise and do, and that are not by these bylaws or by statute or otherwise lawfully directed or required to be exercised or done by the society in a general meeting, but subject, nevertheless, to

(a) all laws affecting the society,

(b) these bylaws, and

(c) rules, not being inconsistent with these bylaws, that are made from time to time by the society in a general meeting.

(2) A rule, made by the society in a general meeting, does not invalidate a prior act of the directors that would have been valid if that rule had not been made.

(3) A director must be a member in good standing of the society.

25 (1) The president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer are the directors of the society.

(2) The number of directors must be 5 or a greater number determined from time to time at a general meeting.

26 (1) The directors must retire from office at the annual general meeting concluding their two year term, when their successors are elected.

(a) president, two year;

(b) vice-president, two year;

(c) secretary, two year;

(d) treasurer, two year;

(e) webmaster, two year.

(2) Separate elections must be held for each office to be filled.

(3) An election may be by acclamation, otherwise it must be by ballot.

(4) If a successor is not elected, the person previously elected or appointed continues to hold office.

27 (1) The officers must retire from office at the annual general meeting, when their successors are elected.

(a) spoke-person, one year;

(b) outreach officer, one year;

(c) and any other as determined by the directors.

28 (1) The directors may at any time and from time to time appoint a member as a director to fill a vacancy in the directors.

(2) A director so appointed holds office only until the conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the society, but is eligible for re-election at the meeting.

29 (1) If a director resigns his or her office or otherwise ceases to hold office, the remaining directors must appoint a member to take the place of the former director.

(2) An act or proceeding of the directors is not invalid merely because there are less than the prescribed number of directors in office.

30 The members may, by special resolution, remove a director, before the expiration of his or her term of office, and may elect a successor to complete the term of office.

31 A director must not be remunerated for being or acting as a director but a director must be reimbursed for all expenses necessarily and reasonably incurred by the director while engaged in the affairs of the society.

32 A director or officer shall be in a member in good standing for the duration of their elected or appointed term.

33 An officer is allowed to submit their application as a candidate to become a director only after being an officer for 2 x 365 consecutive calendar days.

34 A member is allowed to submit their application as a candidate to become an officer only after being a member in good standing for 2 x 365 consecutive calendar days.

35 The founding members are exempt from the requirements in Items 33 and 34 of these By-Laws, and shall automatically fill the roles of the directors.

36 (1) The directors may meet at the places they think fit to conduct business, adjourn and otherwise regulate their meetings and proceedings, as they see fit.

(2) The directors may from time to time set the quorum necessary to conduct business, and unless so set the quorum is a majority of the directors then in office.

(3) The president is the chair of all meetings of the directors, but if at a meeting the president is not present within 30 minutes after the time appointed for holding the meeting, the vice president must act as chair, but if neither is present the directors present may choose one of their number to be the chair at that meeting.

(4) A director may at any time, and the secretary, on the request of a director, must, convene a meeting of the directors.

37 (1) The directors may delegate any, but not all, of their powers to committees consisting of the director or directors as they think fit.

(2) A committee so formed in the exercise of the powers so delegated must conform to any rules imposed on it by the directors, and must report every act or thing done in exercise of those powers to the earliest meeting of the directors held after the act or thing has been done.

38 A committee must elect a chair of its meetings, but if no chair is elected, or if at a meeting the chair is not present within 30 minutes after the time appointed for holding the meeting, the directors present who are members of the committee must choose one of their number to be the chair of the meeting.

39 The members of a committee may meet and adjourn as they think proper.

40 For a first meeting of directors held immediately following the appointment or election of a director or directors at an annual or other general meeting of members, or for a meeting of the directors at which a director is appointed to fill a vacancy in the directors, it is not necessary to give notice of the meeting to the newly elected or appointed director or directors for the meeting to be constituted, if a quorum of the directors is present.

41 A director who may be absent temporarily from British Columbia may send or deliver to the address of the society a waiver of notice, which may be by letter, telegram, telex, cable or confirmed email address, of any meeting of the directors and may at any time withdraw the waiver, and until the waiver is withdrawn,

(a) a notice of meeting of directors is not required to be sent to that director, and

(b) any and all meetings of the directors of the society, notice of which has not been given to that director, if a quorum of the directors is present, are valid and effective.

42 (1) Questions arising at a meeting of the directors and committee of directors must be decided by a majority of votes.

(2) In the case of a tie vote, the chair does not have a second or casting vote.

43 A resolution proposed at a meeting of directors, committee of directors or board of directors meeting need not be seconded, and the chair of a meeting may move or propose a resolution.

44 A resolution in writing, signed by all the directors and placed with the minutes of the directors, is as valid and effective as if regularly passed at a meeting of directors.

45 (1)  The president presides at all meetings of the society and of the directors.

(2)  The president of the society must supervise the other directors and officers in the execution of their duties.

46 The vice president must carry out the duties of the president during the president’s absence.

47 The secretary must do the following:

(a)  conduct the correspondence of the society;

(b)  issue notices of meetings of the society and directors;

(c)  keep minutes of all meetings of the society and directors;

(d)  have custody of all records and documents of the society except those required to be kept by the treasurer;

(e)  have custody of the common seal of the society;

(f)  maintain the register of members.

48 The treasurer must

(a)  keep the financial records, including books of account, necessary to comply with the Society Act, and

(b)  render financial statements to the directors, members and others when required.

49  (1)  The offices of secretary and treasurer may be held by one person who is to be known as the secretary treasurer.

(2)  If a secretary treasurer holds office, the total number of directors must not be less than 5 or the greater number that may have been determined under bylaw 25 (2).

50  In the absence of the secretary from a meeting, the directors must appoint another person to act as secretary at the meeting.

51 The directors may provide a common seal for the society and may destroy a seal and substitute a new seal in its place.

52 The common seal must be affixed only when authorized by a resolution of the directors and then only in the presence of the persons specified in the resolution, or if no persons are specified, in the presence of the president and secretary or president and secretary treasurer.

53 In order to carry out the purposes of the society the directors may, on behalf of and in the name of the society, raise or secure the payment or repayment of money in the manner they decide, and, in particular but without limiting that power, by the issue of debentures.

54 A debenture must not be issued without the authorization by signature of at least three of the directors, one of which must be one of the president, vice-president or treasurer.

55 The members may not restrict the borrowing powers of the directors.

56 This Part applies only if the society is required or has resolved to have an auditor.

57 The first auditor must be appointed by the directors who must also fill all vacancies occurring in the office of auditor.

58 At each annual general meeting the society must appoint an auditor to hold office until the auditor is re-elected or a successor is elected at the next annual general meeting.

59 An auditor may be removed by ordinary resolution.

60 An auditor must be promptly informed in writing of the auditor’s appointment or removal.

61 A director or employee of the society must not be its auditor.

62 The auditor may attend general meetings.

3 A notice may be given to a member, either personally, by mail to the member at the member’s registered address, or by e-mail to the member at the member’s confirmed and registered email address.

64 A notice sent by mail is deemed to have been given on the second day following the day on which the notice is posted, and in proving that notice has been given, it is sufficient to prove the notice was properly addressed and put in a Canadian post office receptacle.

65 A notice sent by confirmed email is deemed to have been given on the second day following the day on which the email is sent, and in providing that notice has been given, it is sufficient to prove the notice was addressed correctly and time-stamped electronically.

66     (1) Notice of a general meeting must be given to

(a) every member shown on the register of members on the day notice is given, and

(b) the auditor, if Part 10 applies.

(2) No other person is entitled to receive a notice of a general meeting.

67 On being admitted to membership, each member is entitled to, and the society must give the member without charge, an electronic copy of the constitution and bylaws of the society.

68 If the By-Laws are requested by hard copy, the member shall pay the sum of $5.00.

69 These bylaws must not be altered or added to except by special resolution.