Bourinot's Rules of Order: A Manual on the Practices and Usages of the House of Commons of Canada and on the Procedure at Public Assemblies, Including Meetings of Shareholders by Geoffrey Stanford

Author:Geoffrey Stanford [Stanford, Geoffrey]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781551995274
Publisher: McClelland & Stewart
Published: 2011-01-14T00:00:00+00:00

(d) The chair may, on his or her own initiative, recess or adjourn a disorderly meeting he or she cannot call to order.

(e) Should the meeting fail to reach quorum at its outset, or lose quorum part-way through its proceedings, the chair should adjourn it to another day. The meeting can proceed as an information meeting only; any decisions made are not binding and cannot be put into effect until ratified by a properly constituted meeting.

47. Minutes and Records

Minutes are a record of proceedings and they are an integral part of the operation of any organization. The responsibility for preparing and maintaining the minutes belongs to the secretary, recording secretary, clerk or other officer specifically appointed for the purpose. The minute-taker writes notes during the meeting and prepares a typed or clean copy of the complete minutes as soon as possible after the meeting. Copies of all minutes should be kept in consecutive order in a binder, where they serve as an important record of the organization’s proceedings and decisions.

The minutes of each meeting should record the place, date and time at which it was held; the name of the presiding officer; either a list of those attending or some other evidence of a quorum, and any other relevant detail, such as the attendance of guests or regrets sent by members unable to attend.

The minutes should accurately record the actions taken and decisions made by the meeting in regard to the items of business it considered. They should not attempt to be a verbatim account of the meeting, but can include references to the major points made in the course of debate. Usually, speakers are not identified, but their names can be recorded if that information is directly relevant to the issue being debated. The minute-taker should aim for completeness, clarity and succinctness.

The first item of business at most meetings is the reading and approval, or confirmation, of the minutes of the previous meeting. If an error is detected, the necessary correction should be made at once and the minutes approved as corrected after a motion to that effect has been moved and seconded. There should be no debate on the policy or merits of a question dealt with in the minutes, and remarks on the minutes must relate strictly to the matter of the error.

If possible, the minutes of the previous meeting should be distributed in advance to those entitled to receive them. This reminds members who attended the last meeting of the business transacted, and informs members who were not present. It also reduces the time required for dealing with the minutes, since they can be taken as read and approved or confirmed by a simple motion.

After the minutes have been approved, the copy to be used as the permanent record should be signed by the presiding officer.

Other papers regarding an organization’s business, such as reports, financial statements, and so on, must also be preserved by the secretary or recording officer or another official appointed to the task.

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