| FLSA Constitution |
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Constitution of the Flinders Law Students’ Association Inc. As ratified 23rd October 2007 Summary of Sections
Part
1 – General
Part
2 – Membership of the Association
Part
3 – Membership of the Committee
Part
4 – Meetings
Part
5 – Elections
Part
6 – Rules and Regulations
Part 1 – General
1. NAME 1.1. The name of the law society is the “Flinders Law Students’ Association
Incorporated” (in this Constitution, called ‘FLSA’). 2. OBJECTIVES 2.1. The objectives and purposes of FLSA are: 2.1.1.
To participate in the governance
of the Law School at Flinders University. 2.1.2.
To encourage the unity of students who are currently engaged
in the study of law at Flinders University. 2.1.3.
To encourage and promote the interaction between students
currently engaged in the study of Law at Flinders University, the Flinders
University Law school staff and the general community. 2.1.4.
To organise academic, social
and vocational functions for students and/or staff in which other schools of
law, law associations, law societies and other such organisations in Australia
and overseas may participate. 2.1.5.
To liaise with and participate
in functions organised by other schools of law, law associations, law societies
and other such organisations in Australia and overseas. 2.1.6.
To represent law students of Flinders University and any
other members who are willing to comply with the objects and purposes of FLSA. 2.2. The assets and income of FLSA shall be applied solely in furtherance
of the abovementioned objectives and no portion shall be distributed either
directly or indirectly to the members of the Committee or FLSA except as bona
fide compensation for services rendered or expenses incurred on behalf of FLSA. 3. POWERS 3.1. For the purpose of carrying out its objectives, FLSA may, subject to
the Associations Incorporation Act 1985 (SA) and its rules: 3.1.1.
Acquire, hold, deal with, and
dispose of, any real or personal property. 3.1.2.
Administer any property on
trust. 3.1.3.
Open and operate bank accounts. 3.1.4.
Invest its money: 3.1.4.1.In any
security in which trust moneys may, by Act of Parliament, be invested; or 3.1.4.2.In any
other manner authorised by the rules of FLSA. 3.1.4.3.Borrow
money upon such terms and conditions as FLSA thinks fit. 3.1.4.4.Give
such security for the discharge of liabilities incurred by FLSA as FLSA thinks
fit. 3.1.5.
Appoint agents to transact any
business of FLSA on its behalf. 3.1.6.
Enter into any other contract
it considers necessary or desirable. 4. FINANCE 4.1. FLSA shall hold accounts with such financial institutions as the
Committee, in its discretion, shall decide. 4.2. All funds of FLSA shall only be kept in FLSA bank accounts and
appropriated only with the approval of the committee. 4.3. The Treasurer shall keep and maintain proper books and accounts
showing correctly the financial affairs of FLSA. 4.4. The financial year of FLSA shall be from the first of September to
the thirty-first of August. 4.5. The Treasurer shall prepare at the close of each financial year a
statement of FLSA financial affairs which shall be duly audited and forwarded
to the Flinders Campus Community Services Inc. 5. DISSOLUTION 5.1. In the event of the Association being dissolved, the amount that
remains after such dissolution and the satisfaction of all debts and
liabilities shall be transferred to the Flinders Campus Community Services Inc. Part 2 – Membership
of the Association 6. MEMBERSHIP 6.1. Membership of FLSA is open to all persons enrolled in a degree at Flinders
University. People shall become members of FLSA upon payment of the membership
fee. 6.2. The Committee shall determine the membership fee and its time of
payment at the beginning of the year in a Committee Meeting. 6.3. The membership fee shall be no less than the minimum amount prescribed
by the Flinders Campus Community Services Inc. 6.4. All members of FLSA are bound by the Constitution and By-Laws. 6.5. If a member breaches this Constitution and it is also a breach in
law, an (A)GM has the power to decide to take legal action against that member. 6.6. No new members will be accepted after notice of an AGM has been
given. 6.7. People wanting to participate in academic competitions and work experience
programs organised by FLSA must be members of FLSA. 6.8. A register of members must be kept and maintained by the Secretary,
containing the name and address of each member. 7. RESIGNATION OF MEMBERSHIP 7.1. A member may resign from membership of FLSA by giving written notice
to the Secretary. That member shall be liable for any outstanding payments due
to FLSA incurred from membership. 8. HONORARY MEMBERSHIP 8.1. The Committee may, by three-quarters majority, confer Honorary
Membership of FLSA, unless that person elects not to be a member, in
appreciation of their outstanding service to FLSA and legal education at Flinders
University. 8.2. An Honorary Member: 8.2.1.
shall not be subject to any
membership fee; 8.2.2.
may not vote at any meeting of
FLSA; 8.2.3.
is ineligible to stand for
election for any position on the FLSA Committee; and 8.2.4.
is bound by the FLSA
Constitution and By-Laws. Part 3 – Membership of the Committee 9. THE COMMITTEE 9.1. The affairs of FLSA shall be managed by a Committee comprised of: 9.1.1.
The President 9.1.2.
The Vice President (Education
& Careers) 9.1.3.
The Sponsorship Director 9.1.4.
The Competitions Director 9.1.5.
The Secretary 9.1.6.
The Treasurer 9.1.7.
The Education Officer 9.1.8.
The Careers Officer 9.1.9.
The Competitions Coordinators
(x 2) 9.1.10.
The Activities Coordinators (x 2) 9.1.11.
The Marketing Officer 9.1.12.
The Publications Editors (x 2) 9.1.13.
The First Year Representative 9.1.14.
The Equity Officer 9.1.15.
The Information Technology Officer 9.2.
The Immediate Past President
shall hold an ex-officio position on the Committee. 9.2.1.
The Immediate Past President
shall be the person who was the President of FLSA in the term preceding the
current committee’s term. 9.3. The Executive of FLSA is composed of the President, Vice President (Education and Careers), the Sponsorship Director, the Competitions Director, the Secretary and the Treasurer. 9.4. The Committee shall meet at such times as the Committee considers
appropriate, but normally at least once a month during the academic year. 9.5. Committee meetings are to be chaired by the President or his/her
nominee. 9.6. The Committee shall have the power to appoint such officers and
sub-committees as it deems necessary. The duties of such officers and
sub-committees shall be defined by the Committee to which the said officers and
sub-committees shall be responsible to, for the duration of that position. 9.7. If a Committee member is to be absent for long period of time,
during this period the Committee can appoint a person as an ‘acting’ Committee
member for that position. Where the President is absent for a long period of
time, the ‘acting’ President is to be the Vice President/ Education and Careers
Representative. 9.8.
All Committee members and
‘acting’ Committee members must be members of FLSA. 9.9.
The term of the Committee is to
run from the first of December to the thirtieth of November the following year.
10. DUTIES OF FLSA COMMITTEE
MEMBERS 10.1. The duties of FLSA Committee Members are defined in by-laws. 10.2. The duties of all officers of FLSA committee include any matters
incidental to their position. 11. RESIGNATION OF COMMITTEE
MEMBERS 11.1. A member of the Committee shall cease to be a member of the
Committee upon any of the following: 11.1.1.
He/She submits his/her
resignation in writing to the Secretary. 11.1.2.
He/She ceases to be a member of
FLSA. 12. DISQUALIFICATION AND
DISCIPLINARY ACTION 12.1. A member may be expelled from FLSA for a period deemed appropriate
by a General Meeting if he or she acts in a manner contrary to the aims of FLSA
and its objectives. 12.2. Subject to the Committee member being given an opportunity to be
heard or make a written submission at an (A)GM, one half plus one of members
present may resolve to expel the Committee member where his/her actions are
detrimental to the interests and goodwill of FLSA. Voting is to be by secret
ballot. 12.3. A Committee member may be dismissed by the FLSA Committee where one
of the following has occurred: 12.3.1.
he/she has been absent from 3
consecutive meetings without leave of absence being granted by the Committee;
or 12.3.2.
he/she is absent without leave
of absence being granted by the Committee for more than 6 Committee meetings
within a year; or 12.3.3.
three quarters of the Committee
decide that he or she has consistently failed to adequately discharge the
duties of his or her position. 12.3.4.
The Committee member being
dismissed must be given at least seven days’ notice in writing by the President
and reasonable opportunity to respond to the allegations prior to dismissal. Part 4 - Meetings
13. COMMITTEE MEETINGS 13.1. The Secretary shall convene a Committee meeting of FLSA at the
request of the President or 4 Committee members of FLSA. 13.2. Committee members are to be given 5 working days notice. Notice must
include the agenda, and is to be sent by email to all Committee Members. 13.3. The draft minutes of the previous meeting must be presented and
accepted upon approval at the subsequent meeting. The draft minutes are to be
made available at the same time as the agenda for the next meeting. 13.4. The quorum for a Committee Meeting is one third of sitting Committee
members (including at least two members of the Executive). 14. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
MEETINGS 14.1. Executive Committee Meetings are to be attended by the Executive
members of FLSA. 14.2. Business before this Committee must be approved by at least 4 out of
6 Executive members. 14.3. Executive Committee Meetings are to be convened by the President.
The Secretary must give Executive members 2 working days notice by email and /
or phone. 15. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS 15.1. There shall be an Annual General Meeting (AGM) of FLSA to be held by
the thirtieth of September to: 15.1.1.
Receive a report from the
Committee. 15.1.2.
Receive the audited statements
of the financial affairs of FLSA for the previous financial year. 15.1.3.
To commence the election of
members for the Committee for the next year. 15.1.4.
To conduct other such business
as is properly brought before the meeting. 15.2. The Secretary shall give 14 days notice of the AGM by means of a
notice by email to all law students. 15.3. Notice of the AGM must set out where and when the AGM will be held
and the particulars of the nature and order of the business to be discussed. 15.4. The quorum for the AGM shall be one third of total membership or 25
members of FLSA. 16. GENERAL MEETINGS 16.1. The Secretary shall convene a General Meeting (GM) of FLSA: 16.1.1.
At the direction of the
Committee. 16.1.2.
Or, within 14 days of a
petition signed by either 25 members of FLSA or 10 Committee members, provided
that such a petition shall state the business to be discussed at the General Meeting. 16.2. The Secretary shall give 14 days notice of a GM by means of an email
to all law students. 16.3. Notice of the GM must
set out where and when the meeting will be held and the particulars of the
nature and order of the business to be discussed. 16.4. The quorum for a GM is one third membership or 25 members of FLSA.
For a GM called under Clause 16.1.2 of this constitution, the quorum shall
include at least 50 percent of the petitioning members. 16.5. If within 30 minutes after the time appointed for the GM, a quorum
of members is not present, a meeting convened upon requisition of members shall
lapse. In any other case, the meeting shall stand adjourned to the same day in
the next week at the same time and the same place. If such an adjourned meeting
a quorum is not present within 30 minutes of the time appointed for the meeting
the members present shall form a quorum. 17. VOTING 17.1. The President shall chair FLSA meetings, but in the President’s
absence, the chairperson shall be a person eligible to vote, elected by the
meeting. 17.2. Persons eligible to vote shall be: 17.2.1.
At Committee Meetings, members
of the Committee. 17.2.2.
At General Meetings and Annual
General Meetings, those members of FLSA and the law students present. 17.3. The Immediate Past President shall be entitled to attend Committee
Meetings but does not have any voting rights. 17.3.1. The Immediate Past President may hold a Committee member position, and will be accorded voting rights at meetings in accordance with that position. 17.4. The chairperson of each
meeting of FLSA is to have: 17.4.1.
The deciding vote only in the
event of deadlock in a General Meeting or an Annual General Meeting. 17.4.2.
One vote in Executive or
Committee meetings. 17.5. In the event of a deadlock in a Committee meeting, the motion will
be put to the Committee members for a second vote. The President’s vote is to
be counted as one vote. In the event of a double deadlock, the President will
have the deciding vote. 17.6. In the event of a deadlock in an Executive Committee Meeting, the
motion will be put to the Executive members for a second vote. The President’s
vote is to be counted as one vote. In the event of a double deadlock, the
President will have the deciding vote. 18. PROXY VOTING 18.1. Proxy votes may be used in FLSA Committee meetings only. 18.1.1.
Committee members who wish to
submit a proxy vote must give notice in writing to the Secretary two days prior
to the meeting. 18.1.1.1.
The notice must state the
agenda item the Committee member wishes to vote on. 18.1.1.2.
The Secretary must note all
proxy votes in the minutes of the meeting. 18.1.2. A proxy vote does not constitute attendance at the Committee meeting.
Part 5 – Elections
19. ELECTIONS 19.1. All positions on FLSA Committee, excluding the positions of Immediate Past President and First Year Representative, shall be declared open at the Annual General Meeting with nominations for such positions closing one week following the AGM. Elections will be open for one week following the close of nominations. |