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NAME |
1. The Association shall be called “THE IRISH ASSOCIATION OF
LAW TEACHERS”. |
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OBJECTS |
2. The objects of the Association shall be the advancement of
legal education and legal research and of the work and the interests of law
teachers in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. |
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MEMBERSHIP |
3. There shall be four categories of Members of the Association
to be called respectively: (1) Ordinary
Members, (2) Honorary
Members, (3) Emeritus
Members, (4) Associate
Members. |
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ORDINARY MEMBERS |
4. Ordinary Members of the Association shall be such teachers
of law in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland as shall signify to the
Membership Secretary of the
Association their wish to become Ordinary Members, shall duly pay their
subscriptions, and shall conform to the rules of the Association. Provided that no one shall become an
Ordinary Member until his acceptance as such as been formally notified to him
by the Membership Secretary of the Association and that, before such
notification, the Council may, if it thinks fit, after giving the candidate
an opportunity of explanation, refer the question of the acceptance of any
Ordinary Member to the next or any general meeting of the Association, whose
decision shall be final. |
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DEFINITION OF TEACHERS OF LAW |
5. Ordinary Membership of the Association shall be open to
all persons in the Republic of
Ireland or Northern Ireland who are regularly and substantially engaged in
teaching law, whether full-time or part-time in (a) any university, university college, national institute of
higher education, polytechnic, regional technical college or other third
level institution approved by the Council; (b) the Law Society of Ireland, the Incorporated Law Society of
Northern Ireland, the Honourable Society of King’s Inns and the Inn of Court
of Northern Ireland. The Council may require evidence of qualification for
membership, and on any question that may arise as to the interpretation and
application of this Rule, the decision of the Council shall, unless and until
altered by a general meeting of the Association, be conclusive. |
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HONORARY MEMBERS |
6. Any person who has been engaged in teaching law in the
Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland under the conditions described in
Rule 5, any person who is or has been so engaged in other countries, and any
person interested in legal education who shall have conferred important
benefits on the Association or on legal education, by pecuniary gifts or
otherwise, may be invited by the Council to become, and shall on giving his
consent become, an Honorary Member of the Association. Honorary Members shall not be entitled to
vote at any of the meetings of the Association or for the election of its
committees of officers. In other respects
their rights shall be the same as those of Ordinary Members. The number of such Honorary Members shall not at any time
exceed twelve and, after the year 1980, not more than two such members shall
be elected in any one year. |
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EMERITUS MEMBERS AND ASSOCIATE MEMBERS |
7(i) The Council may elect to be an Emeritus Member of the
Association in recognition of services rendered to legal education any person
who has been a member of the Association and who has ceased to be engaged in
the teaching of law. Emeritus Members
shall not be called upon to pay subscriptions. (ii) The Council may
elect to be Associate Members: (a) Ordinary Members who have ceased to be engaged in the
teaching of law in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland and who have
expressed their desire to become Associate Members. Provided that such persons shall, on becoming again engaged in
such teaching, cease to be Associate Members, but shall be entitled to resume
their positions as Ordinary Members under Rule 4. (b) Teachers of law in the Republic of Ireland or Northern
Ireland who do not qualify for Ordinary Membership under Rule 5. (c) Teachers of law who hold or have held appointments outside
the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland in such institutions or bodies or
their equivalents as specified in Rule 5. Emeritus Members and Associate Members shall not be
eligible for election as officers. |
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ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION |
8. The expenses of the Association shall be met from the
subscriptions of Ordinary and Associate Members of the Association and from
such funds as the Association may by donation or otherwise acquire. The amount of the annual subscription of
each Ordinary and Associate Member shall be prescribed from time to time by
the Council and shall be payable on 1st October in each year, the first
subscription being payable on admission to the Association, to cover the
period to 1st October next following.
Associate Members elected under Rule 7(ii)(b) shall have an option at
the time of their election of paying a life subscription of an amount to be
prescribed from time to time by the Council.
No Ordinary Member shall vote at any meeting or election whilst his
subscription is in arrears; and a
delay of two years in payment of any subscription shall ipso facto in the absence of an excuse satisfactory to the
Council be equivalent to resignation by the Member concerned. For the time being the Council has prescribed the
following rate of subscription: For
Ordinary Members: £15 per
annum For Associate Members: £10 per annum Life subscription for Associate Members elected under
Rule 7(ii)(b): £60. |
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FUNDS |
9. (a) All subscriptions and other property
received for the purposes of the Association shall be kept by the Treasurer
under the supervision of the Council.
The Council shall have the power to direct or approve the expenditure
or investment of the funds in such manner as they think fit in accordance
with these Rules. (b) The Council shall bank any of the funds of the Association in
the name of the Association and may authorise any officer to draw cheques
thereon. (c) The Treasurer shall present to the Annual General Meeting a
Statement of Accounts audited by two Ordinary Members of the Association,
approved for this purpose by the Annual General Meeting. |
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COUNCIL AND OFFICERS |
10. The affairs of the Association shall be managed by a Council
consisting of a President, a Treasurer, a Membership Secretary, and a
Secretary (herein called the Officers of the Association) and up to six
Ordinary Members of the Association elected under Rules 11 and 13. Subject to the control of any general
meeting the Council shall be entitled to take any action on behalf of the
Association which it shall deem to be conducive to the interests of the Association. It shall be the duty of the Council to
present at each Annual General Meeting a report of its proceedings during the
previous year. |
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ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS |
11. Subject to Rule 13, the Officers of the Association and the
other members of the Council shall be elected from among the Ordinary Members
of the Association at its Annual General Meeting by the members present
thereat. No Ordinary Member shall
(save as hereinafter provided) be eligible, unless his name, together with
those of his proposer and seconder, shall appear as that of a candidate for
the office in question or for membership of the Council in the summons
convening the meeting, or in some notice sent to each member of the
Association at least ten days before the meeting. It shall be the duty of the Secretary to circulate all
nominations in due time for the Annual General Meeting; and, in the event of
no nomination for an office having been received before the issue of the
summons convening the meeting, it shall be the duty of the retiring Council
to present a suitable nomination at the meeting. Officers shall, in each instance, be elected for one year only,
but shall be eligible for re-election.
Any casual vacancy occurring among the Officers or the Council may be
filled by the Council until the next Annual General Meeting. |
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CO-OPTED MEMBERS OF COUNCIL |
12. The Council may from time to time co-opt, for any period not
exceeding one year, not more than four Ordinary Members of the Association to
serve on the Council, and may renew such appointments from time to time. |
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ELECTION OF COUNCIL PROCEDURE |
13. The Council members shall be elected as follows: (i) The President, Treasurer, Secretary, and Membership Secretary shall first be elected in turn; (ii) thereafter the remaining six members of the Council shall be
elected so that the Council shall be composed as nearly as possible of the
following representatives: Universities and University Colleges: 8 members of
Council; Other Third Level Institutions: 1 member of Council; Professional Bodies: 1 member of
Council. All members present at the Annual General Meeting shall
be entitled to vote in the election for any position on the Council. |
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DELEGATION |
14. The Council may delegate such of its powers as it deems
necessary to committees of itself or to officers. |
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SPECIAL COMMITTEES |
15. The Association may, at any general meeting, elect such
special committees as it may from time to time deem desirable and may
prescribe the duties and powers of such committees, including the power to
take executive action. Provided that
no such special committee shall be empowered to undertake any of the
functions hereby specifically entrusted to the Council. |
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GENERAL MEETINGS |
16. The Annual General Meeting of the Association shall be held in
each calendar year on a date to be fixed by the Council. The President shall have power to summon a
special general meeting whenever he may deem it advisable to do so; and he shall
do so on being thereto requested in writing by ten Ordinary Members of the Association. At least ten days’ notice must be given
of any such special general meeting unless in the opinion of the President
circumstances that have arisen justify shorter notice. At any general meeting, the President, or
failing him, the Secretary shall take the chair; but in the absence of both
of them the meeting shall elect a chairman. |
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BUSINESS |
17. Notice of all motions, including the names of proposers and
seconders and of all papers and discussions proposed shall reach the
Secretary at least fourteen days before the date fixed for holding the Annual
General Meeting. Exceptionally,
motions may be accepted at the Annual General Meeting notwithstanding this
Rule. All papers, notices,
resolutions and other documents to be considered at any meeting shall
normally be circulated by the Secretary to each Member, so as to reach the
member not later than one week before that meeting. |
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MEMBERSHIP REGISTER |
18. The Council shall prepare and maintain a Register containing
the name, qualifications, experience, and other particulars supplied by
Ordinary Members of the Association and by Associate Members. |
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EXPULSION |
19. Any member of the Association who, in the opinion of the
Council, has been guilty of any conduct which renders his membership
detrimental to the interests of the Association, may be expelled by a
resolution of the Council, subject to an opportunity being given to him to
explain his conduct. Any such
resolution shall require a majority of not less than two-thirds of the
Council present and voting. The
expelled member may appeal to a general meeting, which will decide his appeal
by a simple majority of those present and voting. |
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ALTERATION |
20. Subject to sub-paragraph (iii) any of these Rules may be rescinded
or amended by a resolution passed at any Annual or Special General Meeting of
the Association by a two-thirds majority of the Ordinary Members present and
voting. Provided that (i) such majority shall consist of not less than ten Ordinary
Members; (ii) notice of such resolution, stating the nature of the
proposed alteration and the name of the proposer and seconder, shall have
reached the Secretary at least fourteen days before the date fixed for the
meeting; (iii) in the event of a resolution being passed to rescind or
amend any part of Rules 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or this Rule, such resolution
shall not be effective until confirmed by a simple majority vote of Ordinary
Members voting in a postal ballot to be conducted within two months after the
date of the meeting at which it was passed. |
