Unit
194 ByLaws
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CONSTITUTION
AND BY-LAWS
OF THE
CANADIAN
MARITIMES UNIT
NUMBER 194
OF
THE
AMERICAN
CONTRACT BRIDGE
LEAGUE
1.
NAME
The name of this organization is The Canadian Maritimes Unit Number 194
of the American Contract Bridge League ( hereinafter referred to as the
"Unit" ). This Unit
recognizes that the American Contract Bridge League ( hereinafter referred to as
the "ACBL" ) has authority and control over Tournament Bridge in
Bermuda, Mexico, the United States and Canada, subject always to the authority,
in Canada only, vested, or to be vested, in the Canadian Bridge Federation.
This Unit functions within the constitution and By-laws of the ACBL.
2.
JURISDICTION
2.1 The Unit has sole
jurisdiction throughout the Province of Nova Scotia (exclusive of Cumberland
County) and throughout the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
2.2 With the approval of
the ACBL the Unit may extend or reduce the area of jurisdiction from time to
time as circumstances of growth and development render advisable.
3. HEAD
OFFICE
The Head Office of the Unit shall be the domicile of each current
President.
4. OBJECTS
4.1
The Unit shall maintain, promote and stimulate an interest in Contract
Bridge including but not restricted to Duplicate Contract Bridge.
4.2 The Unit may organize
various bridge events and tournaments, including regular games at which Master
Points or fractions thereof are awarded.
4.3 The Unit shall
co-operate with and assist the ACBL in the promotion and conduct of ACBL
Sanctioned Tournaments.
4.4 The Unit shall
conduct at least two Sectional Tournaments per year.
One of which shall be designated as the "FALL Sectional".
The Unit may conduct further Sectional Tournaments in compliance with
ACBL regulations.
4.5 The Unit shall
establish close relations and interchange with neighbouring Units in all matters
of mutual interest.
4.6 The Unit shall
promote the development and organization of Affiliated Clubs within the Unit.
An Affiliated Club is any ACBL Sanctioned Club.
5. DUES
Membership dues will be as set forth by the ACBL.
6.
MEMBERSHIP
6.1
A person whose application for membership has been submitted to the ACBL
is bound to comply with the Constitution and By-Laws of both organizations.
6.2 No person may be a
member of more than one Unit and any member who changes his domicile to a place
outside this Unit's jurisdictional area shall cease to be a member of the Unit
at the end of the Unit's fiscal year.
6.3 In order to remain a
member a person must:
(a) pay his membership dues
by the date set by the ACBL,
(b) and not be suspended or
expelled under the Provisions of these By-Laws.
6.4 Only members may vote
or hold office.
7. MEETINGS
OF THE UNIT
7.1
Annual Meeting
(1) The Annual Meeting of the Unit shall be held on the
second day of the "FALL Sectional".
(2)
Notice of the Annual Meeting stating the time and place of the meeting
and giving notice of any proposed extraordinary business or motions shall be
included in the program of the "FALL Sectional” as published in the
MARITIME BRIDGE LINE. This notice
shall be available to all Unit members at least three weeks prior to the Annual
Meeting.
(3)
For the purpose of this Section, notice is deemed to be given when a
written notice is sent through the ordinary mail or published in the MARITIME
BRIDGE LINE and distributed to all ACBL affiliated clubs within the Unit”
(4)
The Annual Meeting shall consider the following items of business:
(a)
Minutes of the Last Annual Meeting;
(b)
Hearing the Annual Reports of the Officers of the Unit;
(c)
Consideration of the place and time of future Regional and Sectional
Tournaments and the
establishment of the amount of table fees for all Sectional and Regional
Tournaments for the following year;
(d)
New business;
(e)
Election of Officers and of Executive;
(f)
Appointment of Auditors;
(5)
A quorum at the Annual Meeting shall be ten (10) members
7.2
General Meeting
(1)
General Meetings of the Unit may be held from time to time as a majority
of the Executive or fifteen or more members request.
This request shall be made in writing to the Secretary of the Unit
whereupon the President shall call the meeting.
(2) Notice in writing of
such meeting shall be made available to all members of the Unit at least three
weeks prior to the meeting.
(3) A quorum at a General
Meeting shall be fifteen (15) members.
(4) Business transacted
at a General Meeting, as constituted under this Section, has the same force and
effect as business transacted at an Annual Meeting.
8. OFFICERS
AND DUTIES OF OFFICERS
8.1
Election of Officers
The
Annual Meeting shall elect the following Officers for a two-year term:
(a) The President;
(b)
The First Vice-President;
(c)
The Second Vice-President;
(d)
The Secretary;
(e)
The Treasurer, or
(f)
The Secretary-Treasurer
8.2
The immediate past-President shall be an Officer of the Unit
8.3 Duties
of the President
(1)
The President is the chief executive officer of the Unit and shall have
general supervision of the affairs of the Unit.
(2)
The President shall act as Chairman of all meetings of the Unit and of
the Executive.
(3) The President
may appoint standing and special committees with the approval of the Executive,
with the exception of the Nominating Committee and the Rules and Ethics
Committee which are appointed by the Executive.
(4) The President
shall be the chief delegate or representative to the ACBL and shall supervise
all correspondence and negotiations with that organization.
(5) The President
shall be one of the Signing Officers of the Unit.
(6) The President
shall be a member ex-officio of all committees with the exception of the
Nominating Committee and the Rules and Ethics Committee.
8.4 Duties
of the Vice-Presidents
(1) In the absence
of the President, the First Vice-President shall perform the duties of and
exercise the powers of the President.
(2) The
Vice-President shall be one of the Signing Officers of the Unit.
(3) In the absence
of the President and the First Vice-President the Second Vice-President shall
perform the duties and exercise the powers of the President.
8.5
Duties of the Secretary
(1)
The Secretary shall keep the minutes of the proceedings of the Unit.
(2) The Secretary
shall supervise the details of membership, including keeping up-to-date lists of
the members.
(3)
The Secretary shall send notice of all meetings to all concerned.
(4)
The Secretary shall notify members of their appointment to committees.
(5) The Secretary
shall determine the voting eligibility of all persons in attendance at all Unit
Meetings as laid down in Article 6.3.
(6) The Secretary
shall have available copies of the Constitution and By-Laws at all Sectional and
Regional Tournaments held by and in this Unit.
(7) The Secretary
shall perform all other duties pertaining to the Secretariat as the President or
the Executive may require.
8.6
Duties of the Treasurer
(1) The Treasurer
shall collect and receive all moneys due and owing to the Unit and shall make
all disbursements in accordance with these By-Laws.
(2) The Treasurer
shall be one of the Signing Officers of the Unit.
(3) The Treasurer
shall deposit all ordinary funds of the Unit in a Chartered Bank or Trust
Company in the name of the Unit.
(4) The Treasurer
shall prepare financial statements annually, or more often if requested to do
so, and shall arrange for the audit of accounts.
(5) The Treasurer
shall perform any other duties relating to the office of Treasurer as the
President or the Executive may require.
8.7
Special Expenditure of Funds by the Officers
The Officers may spend up to
$500.00 per fiscal year on each of any three items of Unit business (other than
the operation of Sectional or Regional Tournaments) provided always that each
and every one of these expenditures is approved by a majority of the Officers.
9. THE
EXECUTIVE
9.1
The Annual Meeting shall elect at least eleven members, who together with
the Officers of the Unit shall be the Executive of the Unit.
9.2 Each member of the
Executive may hold office for one year, or for a longer period if re-elected.
9.3 The area distribution
of the members of the Executive shall be:
(1)
One from the South Shore, including Yarmouth County;
(2)
One from the Annapolis Valley;
(3)
Two from Cape Breton Island;
(4)
Two from Newfoundland and Labrador;
(5)
Two from the Counties of Colchester, Pictou and Antigonish;
(6)
Three from Halifax County.
9.4
The following shall be non-voting ex-officio members of the Executive:
(1)
The Editor of the MARITIME BRIDGE LINE;
(2)
The Zone I Director of the Canadian Bridge Federation;
(3)
The Unit Tournament Chairman;
(4)
The Can-At Chairman.
9.5
The Unit Tournament Chairman and the Can-At Chairman shall be appointed
from time to time by the executive.
9.6 A quorum from an
Executive Meeting shall be seven (7) members of the executive.
9.7 Election
of the Executive
(1)
The Executive shall appoint three members of the Unit to act as a
Nominating Committee to present proposed nominations for Officers and Executive
members to the Annual Meeting. The
Nominating Committee must be appointed at least two months before the date of
the Annual Meeting.
(2) Further
nominations may be made by members of the Unit from the floor at the Annual
Meeting provided that the nominee is either present or has given in writing
their consent to serve.
(3) Election
of the Executive and Officers shall be by show of hands, but if a poll is
demanded a secret ballot shall be held.
9.8
If a member of the Executive resigns, or is unable to serve, the
Executive may appoint another member of the Unit to fill the vacancy.
10.
POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE
EXECUTIVE
10.1
The Executive shall have general supervision of the day to day affairs of
the Unit within the framework of the Constitution and By-Laws subject always to
ratification by the general membership, excepting special expenditures as dealt
with in Section 10.2.
10.2 The Executive shall hold
not less than four Executive meetings annually.
11. THE
RULES AND ETHICS COMMITTEE
The
Rules and Ethics Committee is a standing committee of the Unit and shall be
appointed by the Executive at their first meeting following the Annual Meeting.
It shall consist of three members of the Unit, none of whom shall be
officers of the Executive. It shall
appoint its own Chairman. All of its
members must be present at any meeting of the Committee.
12. COMPLAINTS
AGAINST MEMBERS
12.1
A member of the Unit may be censured, suspended, expelled or otherwise
disciplined by the Unit.
12.2 (1)
If a complaint is made against a member of the Unit the complaint shall
be filed in writing with the President of the Unit who shall forward it to the
Chairman of the Rules and Ethics Committee.
(2) The Rules and Ethics
Committee shall confer with the complainant and the member being charged, or
shall otherwise deal with the complaint in the manner they deem appropriate.
(3) The Rules and Ethics
Committee shall render their decision in writing to the President within thirty
days of the date on which the complaint was filed.
(4) Within fifteen days
of the date on which the decision of the Rules and Ethics Committee is filed,
the President shall call a meeting of the Executive to determine whether further
action is necessary
(5) If the Executive
decides upon a hearing, the Secretary shall then set the time and place for such
hearing, and shall give reasonable notice in writing to all parties.
To constitute a valid hearing there must be at least eleven members of
the Executive present at the hearing.
(6) The member charged
may choose to be represented by counsel.
(7) The Executive, in
hearing the appeal, shall act as a judicial body.
The complainant and the member charged shall appear and give evidence.
A unanimous vote of the Executive present at the hearing shall be
required for expulsion from the membership and at least a 75% vote of the
executive present at the hearing shall be required for suspension or other
disciplinary action.
(8) The decision of the
Executive shall be rendered within thirty days of the date on which the
complaint was heard by them.
12.3 The right of a member to
play in tournaments or Club games while charges are pending against the member
shall not be affected.
12.4 A member has the right to
appeal any disciplinary action by the Unit in accordance with ACBL regulations.
13.
FISCAL YEAR
The
fiscal year of the Unit shall end on the 31st day of October in each and every
year hereafter.
14. TOURNAMENTS
14.1 The Executive shall have
complete authority over all tournaments conducted by the Unit, including the
naming of events and Directors, subject to the requirements of the ACBL.
14.2
No Sectional or Regional Tournament may be conducted for personal profit
by any member of the Unit.
15. SIGNING
OFFICERS
15.1
The Signing Officers of the Unit shall be any two of:
(1)
The President;
(2)
The Treasurer;
(3)
The First Vice-President, if either the President or the Treasurer is
absent or is unable to sign.
15.2
Any cheque payable to the ACBL shall require only one of the signatures
as detailed in Section 15.1.
16.
AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION
AND BY-LAWS
The
Constitution and By-Laws may be amended by a two-thirds majority vote of the
members present at either the Annual Meeting or at any General Meeting called
for this purpose. Notice of any
proposed amendment shall be enclosed in the Notice of Meeting, failing which
unanimous consent of the members present shall be required to make an amendment