Product Description

How to write understandable and usable bylaws using a simple and tested formula; how to write and adopt amendments without causing more problems; how to chair a meeting to consider amendments or a revision; how to instruct committees; how to write and adopt a revision; and scripts for handling these and other motions.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #206209 in Books
• Published on: 2000-05
• Original language: English
• Binding: Plastic Comb
• 95 pages

From the Publisher

The bylaws, sometimes called constitution and bylaws, is the governing document of the organization. The bylaws specify how the organization will be managed, who shall be the members and how they shall be chosen. This document describes the purpose of the organization and how various matters shall be handled. The constitution is a separate document, many of the rules will be contained in it, and it takes precedence of the bylaws. However, more and more organizations are choosing to combine these two documents into one, called the bylaws. Usually, there is very little reason to have separate documents. Some organizations call the articles of incorporation the charter, and some call the constitution the charter. Usually, however, the charter is a document distributed by a parent organization to a subordinate unit, such as a local or state chapter, giving authority to exist under the name of the parent organization.

It is important to distinguish between the different types of documents because the statutes and other rules will govern their content. If some state statutes define the articles of incorporation as the 'corporate charter', then that is the term that should be used to describe them. The articles of incorporation should contain only as much information as the statutes require. The main organizational rules should be contained in the bylaws.

Some organizations with existing bylaws have great difficulty in understanding the original intent of many provisions and find them to be a hindrance to the work of the organization. If amending them proves to be too difficult, many just give up and try to live with them, usually ignoring them. Occasionally, a parliamentarian consulting for an organization will find that bylaws are nonexistent, or have been missing for many years, or no one has a copy to use for guidance. In these cases, I recommend a revision so that a new document can be devised to reflect the current use of rules and customs of the organization.

In this book, we will start with the basic bylaws articles and describe each one, with explanations of the various ways each can be written. Then, we will discuss additional articles to meet individual organizational needs. We will provide an explanation of the amending process, how a revision works, how a bylaws committee goes about its work, and finally we will provide scripts for the procedures.

The information in this publication is directed to nonprofit voluntary organizations. Organizations which require the help of an attorney to write their bylaws include nonprofit organizations with very large purses, those providing personal or social services which could lead to legal difficulties, condominium and homeowner associations which are governed by strict state statutes, and business organizations. However, regardless of what type of organization you have, this book will help you to understand the process better, so that you can work with the attorney more knowledgeably.

Amending bylaws is not difficult if one has an explanation of process at hand. If the bylaws are too complicated, ambiguous, or reflect procedures no longer used, a revision might be in order. This publication will help to do both without undue difficulty.

A special section on starting a new organization is included for those who have requested the information from the author. We will attempt to answer the questions most often asked of parliamentarians regarding governing documents.

The glossary will be helpful in finding words that are unfamiliar.

About the Author
Joyce L. Stephens, Professional Registered Parliamentarian, Parliamentary Specialist, Certified Teacher

Joyce L. Stephens was awarded a Certificate of Registration in 1980 by examination of the National Association of Parliamentarians, and achieved the designation of Professional at the same time. She is certified by examination of The Academy of Parliamentary Procedure and Law as Parliamentary Specialist and Certified Teacher. Her certifications are the highest which can be achieved by both organizations. She has served as National President of the Academy and as President of the Florida State Association of Parliamentarians. She graduated from Eckerd College (formerlyFlorida Presbyterian College) with a degree in management. She is a colleague of the Community Associations Institute. She is adjunct faculty at Daytona Beach Community College and an instructor for the Florida Institute of Government at the University of South Florida. She is author of books on parliamentary procedure and articles in several publications, editor of The Answer, the journal of the Academy, and editor of The Florida Parliamentarian. She currently serves as parliamentarian for the Florida State Association of Parliamentarians and as national parliamentarian for The Academy of Parliamentary Procedure and law. She has extensive experience in all phases of parliamentary law and procedure having served as a parliamentary consultant for eighteen years. She has served in numerous offices in professional, civic, and charitable associations, acquiring the kind of organizational experience which cannot be acquired in any other way. She has performed all parliamentary services to conventions, professional associations, fraternal associations, homeowner's associations, credit unions, labor unions, and other not for profit associations.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
From Chapter One - Points To Remember In Writing Bylaws

Ultimate control of the organization should be left to the voting membership. Limitations to this control must be detailed in the bylaws. Powers not delegated to officers, boards, and committees remain with the members...

Care should be taken to avoid conflicting statements. This holds true for writing bylaws and the later amendment of them...

Bylaws should be written 'tightly', that is, using no extra words that only serve to confuse. Choose someone with excellent language skills to review the bylaws and make recommendations regarding the writing...

The words shall, may, and will have different meanings in the bylaws. The word "will" should not be used at all. What shall be done is required behavior, what may be done is left to the discretion of the entity described in the sentence...

From Chapter 4 - Special Committee on Revision

There is the point where a revision would be appropriate. A revision is a whole new set of bylaws. It is not a few isolated changes to the existing bylaws to clean up a few minor flaws or to add requested provisions...

A revision, being a whole new document, can propose many changes in the way the organization is structured, is managed, and how it elects its officers. The new document may have any new provisions that the writers believe are necessary and desirable...

A revision should be written by a special committee appointed for that purpose only. The assembly may adopt a motion to appoint a committee to revise the bylaws. Usually a revision committee is given a much longer period of time to accomplish its task than are other special committees, because a revision is time-consuming and complicated...

Even though writing the revision will take time, the motion to appoint the revision committee should place a time limit on the committee to finish the task. The time required will be determined by the complexity of the existing bylaws and the new provisions that have been asked for by the assembly. The assembly is not required to have any other reason for a revision than that it believes a new document is in order. However, the assembly may have had problems with the entire document and wants the bylaws to be easier to use and interpret...

The committee should consist of members who are interested in the bylaws, who are familiar with the existing bylaws, who are literate, and who have the time to attend the many meetings required to finish such a document. The committee should be large enough to allow for assignments, but small enough to avoid too many conflicts in opinion on style and language. If there is a small group of bylaws experts within the membership, and if they are acceptable to the membership, this group is ideal for the revision committee...

The revision committee should begin by reviewing the current bylaws, articles of incorporation, state corporation statutes, and any other documents which impose rules on the organization. The second step is to make an outline of the new document using suggestions from members, committees, and the board. The committee will write the new document using consistent language, punctuation, and titles, making certain that all provisions are understandable and relate well to other provisions. The committee, individually and collectively, checks the new document several times to make certain that there are no conflicts within the document itself and that cross references are in place where required.

Customer Reviews

June 2004, the copy I received had no problems.
The margins, pages, etc, were just fine in the copy I received in June 2004. This is an easy to read book that gives a good overview of what is required to write bylaws. If you are starting a new organizaiton, or re-writing the bylaws for one, I suggest that you get this book and "Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, 10th Edition" (a.k.a. "RONR"). I myself also bought the Idiot's Guide to Robert's Rules; it seems very useful, but I haven't had time to use it much yet. RONR has the technical rules needed to run an organization's meetings, and Bylaws will tell you how to set up the rest of the organization's structure. (If you're a multi-million dollar company or organization, you should obviously hire professionals to write your Bylaws. But even then, this book will help you as an individual better understand the Bylaws that they write and how to use them effectively.) I recommend Bylaws.

Bylaws
I'm on the bylaws committee of a non-profit society where we are undertaking a bylaws revision. This book offers some good tips, proper language and even a script outlining how to go about a revision during the meeting of the society. Also, has same for amending bylaws.
This book will be an invaluable help to the committee now as we work through this complicated process and in the future as we may need to amend the bylaws. There is also a section on developing bylaws. We bought one of these books and have since purchased a book for every member on the bylaws committee.

Not bad
Good book for advanced beginners/borderline intermediate students of parlimentary procedure and bylaws. Very general in scope yet toward the back of the book you'll find small tidbits that are very useful. However, I do wish there were more detailed sections offering examples, suggestions and maybe some case studies on how small organizations on finances. Overall, I was pleased with the book.