Bylaws

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Article I: NAME

The name of this special interest section of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) shall be the Academic Law Libraries Special Interest Section (ALL-SIS).

Article II: OBJECT

The Academic Law Libraries Special Interest Section is established:

  1. To provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and information on Academic Law Libraries;
  2. To represent its members’ interests and concerns within the American Association of Law Libraries; and
  3. To support its members’ professional careers by providing resources to achieve their professional goals and better support their own institutions.

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

Article III: ANTIDISCRIMINATION

Membership in the Academic Law Libraries Special Interest Section, or participation in any activity of ALL-SIS, shall not be denied or abridged to any individual on account of race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity. (New Article III, adopted at the Section’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, July 13, 2014.)

Article IV: MEMBERSHIP

Membership shall be open to any AALL member requesting affiliation with the Academic Law Libraries Section as provided in the AALL bylaws. Membership shall be renewable each year. (Formerly Article III, renumbered at the Section’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, July 13, 2014.)

Article V: OFFICERS

Section 1. Officers

The officers shall consist of a Chair, a Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, and a Secretary/Treasurer. The Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect shall automatically become Chair one year after being elected Vice-Chair and shall serve as Chair during the second year following that election. The Secretary/Treasurer shall be elected biennially. The Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect shall serve a three-year term, the first year as Vice-Chair, the second year as Chair, and the third year as Immediate Past Chair. A new Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect shall be elected each year. The Secretary/Treasurer shall serve a two-year term and shall be elected every other year.

Section 2. Compensation

These officers shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for any expenditures incurred in the discharge of their duties. The Executive Board will not reimburse travel expenses of its members to attend ALL-SIS meetings, including but not limited to the Annual Meeting of AALL.

Section 3. Executive Board

  1. There shall be an ALL-SIS Executive Board consisting of:
    1. A Chair;
    2. A Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect;
    3. An Immediate Past Chair;
    4. A Secretary/Treasurer, who shall serve a two-year term which will be staggered with the election of the Member-at-Large; and
    5. One (1) elected Executive Board Member-at-Large.
      1. The Member-at-Large shall serve a two year term;
      2. The Member-at-Large shall be elected every other year staggered with the election of the Secretary/Treasurer.
  2. All officers and members of the ALL-SIS Executive Board shall serve until the adjournment of the annual ALL-SIS Business Meeting.
  3. The Executive Board shall meet during each AALL Annual Meeting and may also hold additional meetings by electronic means or in person.

Section 4. Duties of Officers

Officers and other members of the Executive Board shall serve as liaisons between the Executive Board and ALL-SIS Committees or other groups as assigned by the Chair, and perform duties usually pertaining to their respective offices and such other duties as may be assigned by the Chair.

  1. Chair. It shall be the duty of the Chair to:
    1. Coordinate all business and projects through the Executive Board;
    2. Prepare a column for each issue of the ALL-SIS Newsletter;
    3. Act as liaison to the AALL Executive Board through the SIS Council;
    4. Prepare required reports for and correspondence with the AALL Executive Director, as appropriate; and
    5. Assign committee chairs and members as vacancies arise or new committees are established during the year.
  2. Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect. It shall be the duty of the Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect to:
    1. Appoint members and chairs to the committees of the special interest section;
    2. Solicit and develop initiatives to be furthered by ALL-SIS members;
    3. Serve as liaison to the committee responsible for programming; and
    4. Such other duties as may be assigned by the chair.
  3. Secretary/Treasurer. It shall be the duty of the Secretary/Treasurer to:
    1. Maintain the ALL-SIS financial records;
    2. Keep the minutes of all Executive Board meetings;
    3. Conduct and report the result of at least one election each year; and
    4. Such other duties as may be assigned by the chair.

Section 5. Succession

The occurrence of a vacancy in the position of Chair shall be filled by the succession of the present Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect to serve as Chair until the next scheduled election of special interest section officers. The occurrence of a vacancy in the position of Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, Secretary/Treasurer, or Immediate Past Chair when six months or more of service remain in the term of the vacant position shall be filled by a special election. If the Immediate Past Chair is unable to complete a term of service, the position filled shall be called “Member at Large” for purpose of election. Any person elected by special election shall fulfill the term for the duration of office.

(Formerly Article IV, renumbered at the Section’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, July 13, 2014.)

Article VI: COMMITTEES

Section 1. Qualifications

All committee members must be members of the SIS.

Section 2. Nominating Committee

There shall be a standing Nominating Committee, appointed by the ALL-SIS Chair, to consist of five (5) members, no one of whom shall be a member of the Executive Board, and no one of whom shall be a candidate for office at the succeeding election. Each member of the Committee shall serve from the time of appointment until the following annual meeting.

Section 3. Committees: Purpose and Terms

  1. Standing Committees. Besides those committees whose descriptions are specifically delineated in the bylaws, when the Executive Board creates a committee, the Board shall designate its purpose, term, and structure. All current and future standing committees shall have a default term of service for members of two years. Should the members of a committee wish to recommend changes to its purpose or term, it may provide those to the Executive Board for review and decision.
  2. Local Arrangements. There shall be a Local Arrangements Committee, responsible for planning events occurring at the AALL Annual Meeting. A chair of the committee, residing in the location of the upcoming Annual Meeting, will be appointed by the ALL-SIS Chair, in consultation with the Executive Board. Additional members of the committee will be selected by the chair, in consultation with the Executive Board. The term of this committee will be one year running from the close of one Annual Meeting through the end of the Annual Meeting for which the committee has planning responsibilities.
  3. Newsletter Board. Members of this Board will be responsible for working closely with the Editor to solicit articles, ensure regular columns are assigned to authors, and identify areas of coverage for the Newsletter. Members of the Newsletter Board will be appointed by the ALL-SIS Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, upon recommendation of the Newsletter Editor, for such term as recommended and accepted by the Editor. Upon notice of impending resignation of the Editor, recomposition of the Newsletter Board may be undertaken, regardless of the previously decided terms, and new terms may be decided upon the discretion of the Executive Board, in consultation with the incoming Newsletter Editor.
  4. Other Groups. Other groups such as Task Forces and Working Committees may be established by the Executive Board as necessary.

(Formerly Article V, renumbered at the Section’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, July 13, 2014.)

Article VII: NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS

Section 1. Nominating Committee

  1. The Nominating Committee shall submit the names of candidates for the office of Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, Secretary/Treasurer, and the elected Member-at-Large, together with their written acceptances, to the Chair by January 30. Since the Secretary/Treasurer and the Member-at-Large are only elected biennially (see Article V, Section 3. Executive Board above), the Nominating Committee will alternate submitting candidates for those positions every year.
  2. In the event that the Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect cannot assume the duties of Chair, and such fact is known prior to January 15, the Nominating Committee shall also submit the names of candidates for the office of Chair for the term of one year as Chair and one year as Immediate Past Chair.
  3. Unless granted an exception by the Executive Board, the Nominating Committee shall nominate two persons per office.
  4. All candidates must be members in good standing of ALL-SIS.

Section 2. Notification

The Executive Board shall notify membership of the candidates proposed by the nominating committee by March 1. Notification to the membership can be by mail, ALL-SIS newsletter, or broadcast email as the Executive Board decides.

Section 3. Nomination by Petition

Additional nominations may be made upon written petition of five (5) members of the Section. Such petitions, accompanied by written acceptance of the nominees, must be filed with the Chair by March 7.
(Revised Article V, Section 1, adopted at the Section’s Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, July 15, 2007.)

Section 4. Candidate Biographical Statements

The Secretary/Treasurer will notify the candidates, whether proposed by the Nominating Committee or by petition, that they must deliver their candidate biographical statements to the Secretary/Treasurer, to arrive no later than March 1, to be included in the annual special edition of the Special Interest Section newsletter and to be included in the Special Interest Section’s election information available to members. The Secretary/Treasurer shall notify the candidates nominated by petition that they must deliver their candidate biographical statements to the Secretary/Treasurer to arrive no later than March 14, to be included in the Special Interest Section’s election information available to members.

Section 5. Ballots

The Secretary/Treasurer shall prepare an official ballot, including nominations by petition. The professional position of each nominee shall appear on the ballot. Voting shall be by secret ballot.

Section 6. Election

  1. The Officers of the Section shall be elected by ballot. The Secretary/Treasurer shall distribute ballots to each member of the Special Interest Section by April 1. Ballots shall be marked and returned to the Secretary/Treasurer by April 25. The candidates receiving the largest number of votes for each office shall be declared elected and shall be reported by the Secretary/Treasurer at the annual meeting of the Section. All candidates shall be notified of the results of election and election results should be reported by May 5.
  2. The dates in this Article shall be adjusted as necessary to ensure the election occurs no later than two (2) months prior to the date of the AALL Annual Meeting

Section 7. Tie Votes

In case of a tie vote, a run-off election shall be held within thirty (30) days after the results have been reported.

(Formerly Article VI, renumbered at the Section’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, July 13, 2014.)

Article VIII: MEETINGS

Section 1. Annual Meeting

ALL-SIS shall hold an annual business meeting, preferably held in connection with, or during, the Annual Meeting of AALL.

Section 2. Quorum

A quorum shall consist of the members present at the meeting.

(Formerly Article VII, renumbered at the Section’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, July 13, 2014.)

Article IX: AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Bylaws.

These bylaws may be amended by a majority vote of ALL-SIS members voting through a distributed ballot. Whenever the bylaws are to be changed by a distributed ballot, the Secretary/Treasurer shall distribute ballots to every member in good standing of the Special Interest Section. Such ballots shall state the text of the proposed change, the purpose of the change, and the date by which ballots must be returned to the Secretary/Treasurer. Proposed changes in the bylaws by distributed ballot must receive a majority vote of the ballots returned to the Secretary/Treasurer in order to pass. Tie votes shall be considered failure to pass.

Section 2. Notice

Notice of proposed amendments shall be provided to the AALL Bylaws and Resolutions Committee at least 60 days prior to the election. After the AALL Bylaws and Resolutions Committee reviews and approves the proposed changes, the Secretary/Treasurer shall announce the election at least 30 days in advance of the election.

Section 3. Effect

Any amendment shall take effect after it has been approved by AALL’s Bylaws and Resolutions Committee and passed by a majority of voting ALL-SIS members.

(Formerly Article VIII, renumbered at the Section’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, July 13, 2014.)

Article X: PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

ALL-SIS shall conduct its affairs in conformity with the Bylaws of AALL. The rules of order mandated by AALL’s Bylaws shall govern all deliberations of the Special Interest Section. (Formerly Article IX, renumbered at the Section’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, July 13, 2014.)