Bylaws

As amended July 2005.

ARTICLE I. NAME

The name of this special interest section of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) shall be the Foreign, Comparative, and International Law Section.

ARTICLE II. OBJECT

Section 1.

The object of the Foreign, Comparative, and International Law Section shall be to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and information of foreign, comparative, and international law; and to represent its members' interests and concerns within the AALL.

Section 2.

It shall conduct its affairs in conformity with the Constitution and Bylaws of the American Association of Law Libraries.

ARTICLE III. MEMBERSHIP

Membership shall be open to any AALL member requesting affiliation with the Foreign, Comparative, and International Law Section as provided in the AALL Bylaws. Membership shall be renewable each year.

ARTICLE IV. MEETINGS

Section 1.

There shall be an annual meeting of the Foreign, Comparative, and International Law Section held in connection with or during the annual meeting of the AALL. The scheduling of the annual meeting during the annual meeting of AALL shall be cleared with the Convention Program Chair or as otherwise provided in the AALL Bylaws. Meetings shall be open to all members of the Association (AALL) but no person may vote in any meeting who is not a section member in good standing.

Section 2.

A quorum shall consist of ten members.

ARTICLE V. OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES

Section 1. Officers

The officers shall consist of a Chair, a Vice-chair/Chair-elect, and a Secretary/Treasurer. The Vice-chair shall automatically become Chair at the end of one year. The Secretary/Treasurer shall be elected biennially. Officers shall serve until their successors are elected.

Section 2. Duties of Officers

The Chair, Vice-chair/Chair-elect, and Secretary/Treasurer shall perform the duties usually pertaining to their respective offices and such other duties as may be assigned by the Section's Executive Committee or the membership.

Section 3. Executive Committee

There shall be an executive committee consisting of the officers named above and the immediate past Chair.

Section 4. Committees and Interest Groups

There shall be a Nominating Committee and such other standing Committees, Special Committees, and Interest Groups as the Executive Committee or the membership shall create.

Interest Groups leaders shall have two-year terms. The Executive Committee will publicly announce which terms are ending by April 1, via the list and the newsletter, and request volunteers for the position to submit their names to the Committee by May 1. The Executive Committee can post the names to the SIS and request feedback from the SIS membership if they so desire. The Executive Committee will select and announce the new Interest Group leaders by June 1. Repeat terms will be permissible. The Executive Committee will follow a similar procedure in filling a temporary Interest Group coordinator vacancy, but need not wait until April.

Section 5. Vacancies

Should the position of Chair become vacant, the Vice-chair/Chair-elect shall succeed immediately as Chair in advance of the next annual meeting. Any vacancy in the office of Chair that cannot be filled by the succession of the Vice-Chair or by extension of the term of the current Chair shall be filled on a temporary basis by a vote of the Nominating Committee. The opening will be publicized via print and/or electronic means and the Nominating Committee will draw from potential candidates who have submitted their written interest to the Chair of the Nominating Committee by a set date. The Committee's appointment will be for the remainder of the predecessor's term.

A vacancy in the office of the Vice-Chair/Chair-elect shall not be filled until the next regularly scheduled election. The Vice-Chair's duties shall be assumed by the current Chair or a section member appointed by the Executive Committee. A vacancy in the office of the Secretary/Treasurer shall, however, be filled by the nomination of the Nominating Committee and subsequent appointment by the Chair.

ARTICLE VI. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS

Section 1.

The executive Committee shall appoint a Chair and two others to serve as a Nominating Committee. The members, whose terms shall be for one year, shall not be current officers or candidates at the next election. One candidate shall be nominated for the office of Vice-Chair/Chair-elect and one for the office of Secretary/Treasurer. During the even numbered years there shall be an election for Vice-Chair. During the odd numbered years there shall be an election for Vice-Chair and Secretary/Treasurer. In the event the Vice Chair/Chair-elect cannot assume the duties of Chair, the Nominating Committee shall also submit one name of a candidate for the office of Chair for the term of one year.

Section 2.

The Nominating Committee shall submit the names of candidates together with their written acceptances to the Chair in sufficient time to enable the Chair to inform the members of the nominations via publication in the February issue of the SIS newsletter, which may be sent solely in electronic format. In the event of nominations for the office of Chair after distribution of the February issue of the SIS newsletter, such notification may be limited to the actual ballot itself along with an explanation for the exigent circumstances.

Further nominations may be made upon written petition of five members. Such petitions, with the written acceptances of the nominees, should be filed with the Secretary/Treasurer not later than April 12. The Secretary/Treasurer shall prepare an official ballot, including nominations by petition.

Section 3.

The election of officers will be conducted every year by mail or electronic ballot. The Secretary/Treasurer shall prepare an official ballot, including nominations by petition. The professional position of each nominee shall appear on the ballet. In the event paper ballots are used, the newsletter editor shall include a copy of the ballots section in the February issue of the newsletter. The newsletter editor will notify the section members when the newsletter is available and inform the section members that the issue contains the ballot. Ballots shall be marked, sealed in a plain envelope, and returned to the Secretary/Treasurer before March 31, in covering envelopes bearing on the outside the name and address of the member voting. The Secretary/Treasurer shall verify the validity of all votes against a list of individual voting members and shall count and tabulate all votes cast. In the event electronic ballots are used, the details of conducting the election shall first be approved by the Executive Committee. The Committee shall ensure that an election conducted by electronic balloting is fundamentally fair and preserves the right of secret ballot.

The candidates receiving the largest number of votes shall be elected and shall be so reported at the annual meeting by the Secretary/Treasurer. All candidates shall be notified of the results of the election by the Secretary/Treasurer at the earliest possible time. In case of a tie vote, a run-off election shall be held at the annual meeting. Run-off elections shall be by secret ballot. The ballots shall be immediately counted and the candidate with the largest number of votes declared elected, provided there is a quorum. Should the run-off election result in a continuing tie, the candidates shall be named co-officers. In the event the Secretary/Treasurer is a candidate, the Chair shall appoint another member to perform all election-related functions with the exception of the preparation and distribution of the ballot.

Any vacancy occurring after distribution of the ballots and before April 15 shall be filled by a special election. The Secretary/Treasurer shall prepare the special election ballots in the manner described in the first paragraph of this Section. The Secretary/Treasurer shall distribute the special election ballots. The special election ballots shall be returned to the Secretary/Treasurer before May 10, in the same manner as described in the first paragraph of this Section. Any vacancy occurring after April 15 shall be filled by nomination from the floor and election at the annual meeting. The candidates with the largest number of votes shall be declared elected, provided there is a quorum.

Section 4.

If there are no challenges to the results of the election at the annual section meeting, the ballots may be destroyed by the Secretary/Treasurer after the meeting.

ARTICLE VII. AMENDMENTS

Amendments to the Bylaws may be proposed by the Executive Committee or by a petition signed by 20 members in good standing of the Foreign, Comparative, and International Law Section.

Proposed amendments shall become effective when approved by the AALL Executive Board, and by either of the following as specified by the Executive Committee:

(a) a majority vote of the members present and voting at an annual meeting, assuming a quorum is present, or

(b) a two-thirds majority of the votes cast by a mail ballot conducted by the Secretary/Treasurer.

With regard to method (a), notice of any proposed amendment shall be mailed to the Section's members or be published in the Section's newsletter 30 days in advance of the meeting.

With regard to method (b), each ballot shall state by what date it must be returned.

Mailings sent with regard to either method shall not only state the text of the proposal, but shall also contain a brief explanation of the reasons for the proposal.

ARTICLE VIII. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

Sturgis' Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure, in the latest edition, shall govern all deliberations of the section when not in conflict with the Bylaws of the section. The Executive Committee shall appoint a member in advance of the annual meeting of the section to serve as parliamentarian.