Constitution and Rules

Submitted by admin on Sun, 05/03/2009 - 19:15

Great Swiss Mountain Dog Club of Great Britain Constitution and Rules
(including amendments up to May 2009)

  1. NAME AND OBJECTS: The Club shall be called the Great Swiss Mountain Dog Club of Great Britain and its objects shall be to foster and promote the breed in Great Britain and to impress upon exhibitors and judges the true type as defined by the breed standard; to protect the interest of the breed and to assist members wherever possible in matters relating to the breed.
  2. THE CLUB shall consist of a Patron, President, Hon. Secretary, Hon. Treasurer, a Committee of five and an unlimited number of members whose names and addresses shall be kept by the Secretary. The Society must make a list of members and their addresses available for inspection if so requested by members of the Society or by the Kennel Club.
  3. MEMBERSHIP: All applications for membership of the Club shall be made in writing to the Membership Secretary on the current form prescribed by the Committee. Joint members shall be two or more adults having, for Club mailing purposes, only one address and therefore only receiving a single copy of each mailing and each joint member shall enjoy the benefits of individual membership. Junior members, who must be under 18 years of age, will be entitled to membership but will not be eligible for election as Officers or Committee members and shall not have voting rights. Overseas members shall be deemed to be associate members, receiving all copies of newsletters etc. but not voting papers. The Committee reserves the right to refuse any application for membership; any such refusal must be by a majority vote.
  4. SUBSCRIPTIONS: The annual subscription payable on application or on 1 January each year shall be: Single £10, Joint £12, Junior 75p, Overseas: Europe £15, other countries £20. Over 60 years of age: Single £8, Joint £9. The subscription of any new member joining after 1 October shall be valid for the following year. No member whose subscription is unpaid shall be entitled to any of the privileges of membership, and if any member shall fail to pay the annual subscription by 1 February, the Committee shall have the power to erase his or her name from the list of members. Any member who wishes to resign shall notify the Secretary in writing of his or her intention to do so and will thereby forfeit any subscriptions paid to the Club up to that date.
  5. MANAGEMENT: The management of the Club shall be in the hands of the Committee who shall be elected to serve for three years, one third of whom shall retire annually but shall be eligible for re-election without nomination. Officers and Committee members of the Club must not be Officers or Committee members of any other club solely devoted to the Great Swiss Mountain Dog.
  6. The President, Hon. Secretary, Hon, Treasurer shall be elected to serve for three years, one of whom will stand for election every year in rotation.
  7. The Chairman of the Committee shall be elected by the Committee from amongst the Committee members at the first Committee Meeting held after the Annual General Meeting. In addition to a vote as a Committee member, the Chairman shall also have a casting vote.
  8. Committee meetings shall be held as often as deemed necessary by members of the Committee. Five shall form a quorum for the transaction of business.
  9. The Committee shall have the power to appoint sub-committees.
  10. The Committee shall have the power to deal with or dispose of any questions which may arise on the any matter whatsoever which are not expressly provided for in these rules.
  11. Any member of the Committee failing to attend three consecutive meetings of the Committee without a reasonable explanation shall be deemed to have resigned. The Committee shall have power to co-opt members to replace those who have ceased to be members of the Committee with due regard to unsuccessful candidates at the last election. Those co-opted shall only hold office until the next General Meeting of the Club at which an election of officers and Committee place and must be proposed and seconded in the usual way.
  12. The Hon. Secretary or deputy shall be required to summon and attend all meetings and keep the minutes of any such meeting in a proper Minute Book and to conduct the correspondence for the club.
  13. Should the Hon. Secretary or Hon. Treasurer resign from their positions during the first three months of their terms of office, nominations and a postal ballot of members will take place to elect replacements. Should these Officers resign their positions after the first three months of their term of office, the Committee may appoint a temporary/acting Hon. Secretary or Hon. Treasurer. At the subsequent election of Officers the acting Secretary or Treasurer must be proposed and seconded in the usual way.
  14. GENERAL MEETINGS: The financial year of the Club shall be from 1 January to 31 December. The Annual General Meeting shall be held before 30 April for the following purposes: to receive the report of the Committee and the Statement of Accounts and Balance Sheet and the result of the Election of Officers and members of the Committee and to discuss any notice of motion signed by the Proposer and Seconder and which has been duly placed on the Agenda. Prior written notice of any motion must be in the hands of the Secretary by the date notified by the Committee which shall be at least 28 days prior to the meeting. The preliminary notice of the Annual General Meeting shall be sent out at least 14 days before the date by which nominations and motions must be in the hands of the Secretary. At least 42 days prior to the Annual General Meeting, fully paid-up members shall be notified of the Meeting and shall be asked to submit items for the Agenda and nominations for candidates to the Offices of President, Vice-President, Hon. Secretary, Hon. Treasurer and Committee members for the ensuing year. This notification may be given by publication in the papers “Dogs World” and “Our Dogs” and in the Club’s own Magazine if this meets the specified time schedule. Only a member who has been a member for at least three consecutive years immediately prior to the election or co-option is eligible for nomination for an Office or the Committee and must be proposed by one member and seconded by another. These nominations must be in the hands of the Secretary by the date notified by the Committee which shall be at least 28 days prior to the Meeting. A voting paper recording the names of the nominees shall be sent to each member at least 14 days prior to the meeting. These voting papers on which members must record their votes must be returned for counting by impartial scrutineers by the date stated on the voting paper. The sealed envelope in which the results are recorded will be opened in the presence of the members at the A.G.M. The candidates receiving the largest number of votes shall be declared by the Chairman to be the Officers and the Committee Members for the ensuing year. In the event of the same number of votes being recorded for any two or more candidates for the last place on the Committee, a final decision between these candidates will be made by a ballot of members present at the meeting. A Special General Meeting shall be summoned by the Hon. Secretary if thirty five members send a signed requisition stating the subject to be discussed. No business other than the matter on the Agenda can be discussed at a Special General Meeting. Members shall receive 14 days notice of a Special General Meeting. This notification may be given by publication in the papers “Dogs World” and “Our Dogs” and in the Club’s own magazine if this meets the specified time schedule. Thirty five shall form a quorum at such a meeting.
  15. CLUB PROPERTY AND DISSOLUTION: The property of the Club shall be vested in the Committee. If, at a Special General Meeting called for such a purpose, a resolution for the dissolution of the Club shall be passed by a majority of the Members present, then and in such case the Members present at such Special General Meeting may decide upon the disposal of the assets of the Club after discharging all the liabilities of the Club, save that Trophies which have been donated to the Club shall be disposed of in accordance with the wishes of the donors or the executors of the donors if such wishes are known at the time of the dissolution. If this should prove impracticable then the value of the Trophies may be realised and the proceeds donated to a canine charity or service selected by the Committee.
  16. CLUB ACCOUNTS: A bank account(s) and, if deemed necessary, a Building Society account shall be opened in the name of the Club, into which all revenue of the Club shall be paid and from which withdrawal shall be made only on the signature of two or more Officers as appointed by the Committee, one of whom shall be the Treasurer. The Accounts shall be kept by the Hon. Treasurer and a qualified Accountant shall be appointed at each Annual General Meeting who shall audit the Club’s Accounts for the ensuing year before the Annual General Meeting.
  17. All Club expenditure must be submitted in detail to the Committee and authorised by a majority vote. This authority is to be obtained whenever possible by the Treasurer before payment is made, but where this is not possible, the expenditure must not exceed £500 and must receive the approval of the Committee at its next meeting.
  18. EXPULSION OF MEMBERS: Any member who shall be suspended under Kennel Club Rule A42(8) and/or any member whose dog(s) is/are disqualified under Kennel Club Rule A42(8) shall, ipso facto, cease to be a member of the Society for the duration of the suspension and/or disqualification. If the conduct of any member shall in the opinion of the Committee of the Club, be injurious or likely to be injurious to the character or interests of the Club, the Committee of the Club may, at a meeting the notices convening which include as an object the consideration of the conduct of the member, determine that a Special General Meeting of the Club shall be called for the purpose of passing a resolution to expel him/her. Notice of the Special General Meeting shall be sent to the accused member, giving particulars of the complaint and advising him/her of the place, date and hour of the meeting so that he/she may attend and offer an explanation. If, at that meeting, a resolution is passed by a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting, his/her name shall forthwith be erased from the list of members and he/she shall thereupon cease to be a member of the Club, except that he/she may within two calendar months from the date of such meeting, appeal to the Kennel Club upon and subject to such condition as the Kennel Club shall impose.
  19. The Rules of the Club shall not be altered except at an Annual General Meeting or Special General Meeting. Any alterations to the Rules shall not be brought into force until the Kennel Club has been advised and given it’s approval to such alterations.
  20. The Judges list shall be drawn up by the Committee by secret ballot and a majority vote in favour of each judge shall be needed for approval. Nominations for Judges to be included on Judging lists or to be transferred from one list to another should be sent to the Club on the Judges Application Form, obtainable from the Hon. Secretary, for approval at the next Committee meeting. Membership of the Club is not a prerequisite for inclusion in the lists. Nominations for judges to be included may be sent to the Committee by any member of the Club for approval at a meeting. Each list shall begin and end on a specific date and on expiry a new list shall be drawn up. The selection of Judges for all Championship Shows run by the Club shall be by ballot of the membership from the GSMD of GB A1 Judges List with each member providing up to five names and that irrespective of the result of the Club ballot for Judges, no one shall judge the Great Swiss Mountain Dog Club of Great Britain’s Championship Show more than once in 10 years, as from the 200? Championship Show. It is also a requirement that they will not have judged a GSMD in the UK within a 24 month period prior to the show. Also included on the ballot paper for the Championship Show Judges shall be an option to allow the members to vote for `new overseas judges’. In the event of this option winning the vote the Committee to search out and appoint these judges. Judges selected to be acknowledged Great Swiss breed specialists in their Country of origin but not having judged in the UK previously and therefore not on the club A1 list. The selection of judges for all Open Shows run by the Club shall be by ballot of the membership from the GSMD of GB B Judges Lists with each member providing up to five names and that irrespective of the result of the club ballot for Judges no one shall judge the Great Swiss Mountain Dog Club of Great Britain’s Open Show more than once, as from the end of 200?. It is also a requirement that they will not have judged any Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Club Show within a 24 month period or at a general open show within a 12 month period and a radius of 150 miles, prior to the show.
  21. ANNUAL RETURNS TO THE KENNEL CLUB: The Officers acknowledge that during the month of January each year, Maintenance of Title fee will be forwarded to the Kennel Club by the Secretary for continuance of Registration, and that prior to 31 July each year, other returns, as stipulated in Kennel Club Regulations for the Registration and Maintenance of Title of Societies and Breed Councils and the Affiliation of Agricultural Societies and Municipal Authorities be forwarded to the Kennel Club. The Officers also acknowledge their duty to inform the Kennel Club of any change of Secretary of the Society which may occur during the course of the year.
  22. The Club shall not be classed as a Trading Business so that all profits from any source, function or activity of the Club shall be maintained for the benefit of the breed and for the further education or the members in the management, training, showing, breeding and all aspects pertaining to the improvement of the breed.
  23. No person who can be shown to have knowingly exported or assisted in the export of a dog to any country which does not have legislation for the protection of animals similar in intent to such laws in Great Britain, and which does not have a reciprocal agreement with the Kennel Club, shall be accepted for membership. Any existing member who exports or assists, in the export of a dog or dogs to any country which does not have legislation for the protection of animals similar in intent to such laws in Great Britain, and which does not have a reciprocal agreement with the Kennel Club shall be deemed to have offended against Rule 18. The Committee shall consider their continued membership in the light of the circumstances.
  24. No person whilst an undischarged bankrupt may serve on the Committee or hold any other office or appointment within the Club.
  25. No dealer shall be elected a member of the Club; neither shall any member sell puppies or adult dogs to a dealer. The word “dealer” is to be defined as someone who buys and sells for commercial gain puppies and adult dogs other than the direct progeny of his/her own stock. The only exclusion to this rule would be the Club’s own recognised Rescue/Welfare Societies.
  26. The Kennel Club is the final authority for interpreting the Rules and Regulations of the Club and in all cases relative to canine matters and Club matters. The Club shall not join any Federation of Clubs or Societies.