MAINE STATE BAR ASSOCIATION
BYLAWS OF THE
CONSUMER AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS LAW SECTION
ARTICLE I: IDENTIFICATION
1.1 SECTION NAME. This Section shall be known as "The Section of Consumer and Financial Institutions Law", and shall be hereinafter designated simply as "the Section".
1.2 PURPOSE. The general purposes of the Section shall be the promotion of the objects of the Maine State Bar Association (the "Association") within the particular fields designated by the name of this Section. To that end, it shall be the purposes of this Section to:
1.2.1 Provide members of the Association with a forum for discourse regarding the law governing consumer credit and financial institutions, construed broadly to encompass banks, thrifts, credit unions, mortgage and finance companies and other financial intermediaries.
1.2.2 Develop and disseminate to the Section, the Association and other appropriate audiences, educational seminars and materials in consumer and financial institutions law.
1.2.3 Support the Board of Governors of the Association in developing positions on legislative and regulatory initiatives in the area of consumer and financial institutions law.
1.2.4 Conduct such other activities as the Section members deem necessary and appropriate to manage the Section's affairs, enhance the quality of services provided by the Bar in the area of consumer's and financial institutions law, and otherwise to advance the purposes of the Association.
1.3 LIMITATIONS. These bylaws have been adopted subject to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Association.
ARTICLE II: MEMBERSHIP
2.1 ENROLLMENT. Any member in good standing of the Association shall, upon request to the Executive Director of the Association, be enrolled as a member of the Section.
2.2 THE MEMBERSHIP. Members so enrolled pursuant to the provisions of this Article shall constitute the Membership of the Section.
2.3 DUES. There shall be no dues for membership in the Section, unless such dues are authorized or required by the Association.
2.4 DELINQUENCY. Any member of the Section whose dues, if such are required by the Association, shall be more than six months past due shall thereupon cease to be a member of this Section.
ARTICLE III: COMMITTEES AND DIVISIONS
3.1 COMMITTEES AND DIVISIONS. This Section is authorized to establish, or to empower the Chairperson of the Section to establish, such committees and divisions as it may deem necessary and desirable to promote effectively the activities of the Section within the jurisdiction of the Section. In establishing a new committee or division, the Section shall state the area of its proposed activities. A division shall be a grouping of committees in such manner as the Council may from time to time designate.
3.2 CHAIRPERSON. The Chairperson shall announce the membership and the chairperson of each committee of the Section (and the director of each division) for the following Section year no later than the business meeting held during the Annual Meeting of the Section.
ARTICLE IV: MEETINGS AND MEMBERSHIP
4.1 ANNUAL MEETING. The section shall hold an Annual Meeting of members in conjunction with either the Annual or Summer Meeting of the Association. The section may hold other meetings of members throughout the year. The notice requirements for such meetings shall be the same as for the annual meeting.
4.2 QUORUM. The members of the Section present at any meeting shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
4.3 CONTROLLING VOTE. Action of the Section shall be by majority vote of the members present.
4.4 VOTING ELIGIBILITY. Any member of the Association and the Section whose good standing can be certified by official Association records for thirty days prior to the time of voting shall be eligible to vote.
4.5 AGENDA. Among the matters of business to be transacted at the annual meeting of the membership shall be the election of officers. The agenda shall consist of other matters as decided by the Chairperson.
4.6 MAIL/TELEFAX VOTING. The Chairperson may direct that a matter be submitted to the members of the Section for vote by mail or telefax. In that event, binding action of the Section shall be by a majority of the votes received from members in accordance with rules fixed by the Council.
ARTICLE V: OFFICERS
5.1 OFFICERS. The officers of the Section shall be the Chairperson, Chairperson-Elect, the Vice-Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer. The offices of Secretary and Treasurer may be combined. The officers of the Section shall have general supervision and control of the affairs of the Section. The appointment of the Chairperson and the Chairperson-Elect shall be in compliance with Article X of the Association's Bylaws.
5.2 CHAIRPERSON. The Chairperson, or successively, the Chairperson-Elect and the Vice-Chairperson, in the absence of the Chairperson, shall preside at all meetings of the Section. He shall appoint the Chairperson and members of all committees of the Section who are to hold office during his term as Chairperson. He shall plan and superintend the program of the Section during his term, subject to the directions and approval of the Board. He shall superintend the performance of activities of the Section. He shall keep the Board duly informed and carry out its decisions. He shall perform such other duties and acts as usually pertain to his office or as may be designated by the Board.
5.3 CHAIRPERSON-ELECT. The Chairperson-Elect shall, on consultation with the Chairperson, arrange for the appointment of the Chairperson and members of all committees who are to hold office during his coming term as Chairperson. He shall aid the Chairperson in the performance of his responsibilities in such manner and to such extent as the Chairperson may request. He shall perform such further duties and have such further powers as usually pertain to his office or as may be designated by the Board or the Chairperson. In case of the death, resignation, or disability of the Chairperson, the Chairperson-Elect shall perform the duties of the Chairperson for the remainder of the Chairperson's term or disability, as the case may be.
5.4 VICE-CHAIRPERSON. The Vice-Chairperson shall aid the Chairperson in the performance of his responsibilities in the manner and to the extent the Chairperson may request.
5.5 SECRETARY. The Secretary shall consult with and assist all the officers of the Section as to the work of the Section generally in the manner and to the extent they may request. The Secretary shall be the liaison between the Section and Association staff regarding the retention and maintenance of books, papers, documents, and other property pertaining to the work of the Section in the custody of the Association. He shall keep a true record of the proceedings of all meetings of the Section, whether assembled or acting under submission. He, in conjunction with the Chairperson, shall attend generally to the business of the Section.
5.6 TREASURER. The Treasurer shall once each year prepare and submit a projected budget to the Section for approval or modification. The approved budget shall be submitted to the Association for consideration. Financial records of the Section shall be maintained by the Association's Administration and Finance Director, who, upon request, will provide section financial information to the Treasurer or Chairperson of the Section.
ARTICLE VI: ELECTIONS
6.1 ELECTIVE OFFICES. At each annual meeting of the Section, the membership shall elect a Chairperson-Elect, a Vice-Chairperson and a Secretary, to serve a term of one year.
6.2 CHAIRPERSON. The Chairperson-Elect shall automatically succeed to the office of Chairperson. He shall serve a term of two years and may not again accede to that office. In the event the office of Chairperson-Elect shall be vacant, then a Chairperson shall be elected by Section members.
6.3 ELIGIBILITY FOR OFFICE. Any member of the Association and the Section whose good standing can be certified by official Association records for thirty days prior to the time of election shall be eligible for office.
6.4 NOMINATIONS AND VOTING. Section and Committee members shall elect their officers at their annual meeting.
6.5 TERM OF OFFICE. The term of office shall begin with the adjournment of the Annual Meeting following the election, and shall end following the Annual Meeting at which a successor has been duly elected. If at the close of any term of office a successor has not been elected then the term shall be extended until a successor shall have been elected.
ARTICLE VII: SUCCESSION OF OFFICERS
AND VACANCIES
7.1 CHAIRPERSON-ELECT. The Chairperson-Elect shall, unless he shall have refused to act as Chairperson-Elect or been disqualified, automatically assumes the office of the Chairperson for a term of two years at the end of the Annual Meeting following his election.
ARTICLE VIII: REPRESENTATION OF
ASSOCIATION POSITION
Any action by this Section must be approved by the Board of Governors of the Maine State Bar Association before action can be effective as the action of the Maine State Bar Association. Any resolution adopted or action taken by the Section shall, on request of the Section, be reported by the Chairperson to the Board of Governors for action by the Association.
ARTICLE IX: AMENDMENTS
These Bylaws may be amended at any annual meeting of the Section by a majority vote of the members of the Section present and voting or voting by mail or telefax as provided in Article IV. They shall become effective upon approval by the Board of Governors.