Meeting Procedures - ...

what to expect and what is expected

Meeting Procedures - ...what to expect and what is expected

Introduction
The prospect of finding yourself in the unfamiliar surrounds of a meeting in
progress can be quite daunting. Fear of the unknown and the lack of
knowledge in correct meeting procedures has literally stopped people from
taking on roles or positions on decision-making bodies. Obtaining an
understanding of these procedures will allow you to break through this barrier
and make a contribution to various organisations and decision-making bodies.

The Meeting
Meetings occur when groups of people gather to discuss, and try to resolve
matters which are of a mutual concern. Recommendations are made,
directions given and courses of action decided. For a meeting to effectively
achieve these goals, a structure needs to be in place. If a meeting has little or
no structure, the results are unproductive and dissatisfying for all concerned.

The Agenda
Prior to the meeting, an agenda is prepared and circulated to all members.
This agenda forms the structure of the meeting. It states where and when the
meeting will take place and what matters will be discussed. A draft copy of the
minutes of the previous meeting, along with any other relevant material that
the members should read prior to the meeting, are distributed at the same
time as the agenda. 

The Meeting Structure 

 The meeting is unable to begin until

the Chairperson declares a quorum.
This means that there are enough
people in attendance to allow debates
to be conducted and decisions to be
voted upon. If a quorum cannot be
declared within 30 minutes of the
meetings designated starting time, the
Opening the
meeting should be called again for a
Meeting... the meeting
similar time and place a week later. If
begins after the
no more members attend the
Chairperson  declares
reconvened meeting, the Chairperson
the meeting opened.
may be allowed by the standing orders
to conduct the business with those
who arrived.
If a Chairperson has not taken the
chair 15 minutes after the meeting was
due to begin, the meeting should elect
another Chairperson from among the
members present to act temporarily.
 The Chairperson states the names of
Apologies...those those members who formally notified
unable to attend. that they were unable to attend the
meeting.
The Chairperson tables the minutes of
the previous meeting making them
open as a topic of discussion. At this
point the Chairperson will ask the
members to adopt the minutes. If the
members do not agree that the draft
minutes are accurate, changes may be
suggested. The Chairperson should
ask the meeting to vote on those
corrections. If there are only a few
minor corrections, the Chairperson
may ask the members to accept the
Minutes of the Previous minutes with the corrections. The vote
Meeting ... the to adopt the minutes can then go
Chairperson moves ahead on that basis. 
that the minutes of the Once the Minutes have been adopted
previous meeting be the Chairperson should sign every
accepted or adopted. page of the minutes and hand them to
the meeting secretary for filing.
It is not appropriate at this time, to
indulge in debates on decisions which
were made at the previous meeting.
Anyone who wishes to change a
motion should wait until the same
subject arises in the general business
of the current meeting or raise it in the
part called "Any Other Business".
The most important advice about the
minutes of a previous meeting is to
make sure you read them.
Often the issues for Business arising
from the Minutes of the Previous
Meeting are listed in the agenda. Any
Business arising from
reports, pieces of information or other
Minutes of the Previous
matters of substance that were
Meeting ...
requested at the previous meeting are
debated and a vote is taken on the
appropriate action to take.
Correspondence ... Any letters, facsimiles and the like,
letters that have been which have been received by the
sent to the meeting are committee are discussed here. The
tabled and debated, if Chairperson should summarise
the meeting wishes to correspondence which cover similar
 issues, or express similar opinions and
discuss them as a single issue.
The Chairperson presents a piece of
correspondence to the meeting by
putting a motion that the meeting
"receive the correspondence". This is
an acknowledgment by the meeting
that the correspondence as been
formally received and that it may now
be discussed and acted upon, if
do so. necessary.
If correspondence sent to the meeting
is considered offensive, the meeting
can vote on a motion, "not to receive"
it. Alternatively, the meeting can
decide that the correspondence should
be "received and lie on the table". This
means it will not really be dealt with. It
is effectively in limbo until such time in
the future that it is "taken from the
table" and discussed.
Reports and submissions that have
been written for the meeting or include
information relevant to the work of the
meeting are tabled and discussed. A
motion is required to be put that a
report be received. This means that
the report exists, as far as the meeting
Reports ...reports is concerned, and a discussion or
written for the meeting debate may now take placed on the
are tabled and debated, contents, interpretation and
if the meeting wishes to recommendations of the report.
do so. Motions are able to be put for or
against the recommendations of the
report or ask the author to consider
further issues or reconsider issues on
the basis of particular information.
A member of a meeting can even put
forward a motion to change the
wording of a report or submission.
General General business items are
Business ...items so announced singly by the Chairperson
listed in the agenda are and a discussion or debate follows
debated. The debate each one. Motions that suggest
usually begins with the methods of resolving issues are put
Chairperson calling on forward and to a vote. Once the
someone to move a motions receive a simple majority, or a
motion. majority as defined in the standing
 orders, they become resolutions.
Sometimes amendments to a motion
are put forward. Only after the
amendments are debated and voted
upon can the revised substantive
motion be brought to the vote. 
In the case of more formal meetings,
general business consists of motions
that are moved and seconded by
participants of the meetings. A
seconder is someone who agrees that
a motion should be debated. In most
meetings however, the need for a
member to support a motion is
ignored.
It is at this point in time, that the
members are able to raise issues they
feel are important. These include any
items which were not listed on the
agenda. No extremely important or
complex issues should be raised
unannounced during this part of the
Any other
meeting. If an urgent matter must be
Business ...when all
dealt with by the meeting, the
items on the agenda
Chairperson should be informed
have been debated, the
before the meeting begins. A revised
Chairperson may call
agenda can then be drawn up in the
for items not listed in
time that remains before the meeting is
General Business.
due to begin. If the Chairperson feels
that any of the issues brought up for
discussion are too complex or
troublesome, he may call for another
meeting to discuss the issue or
alternatively, put it on the agenda for
the next scheduled meeting.
Once all the issues have been put
forward and discussed, the
Close of Meeting Chairperson advises members of the
date and time of the next meeting. The
meeting is now officially closed.

What can you do?

To be active and effective member of meeting, you must:

o be well prepared
o make sure you have read the agenda
o be aware of the topics that will be discussed
o be involved
 o be a good listener

 There are four steps to good listening.

o hearing - receiving the sound

o attending - focusing on what you are hearing
o understanding - interpreting and evaluating what you listen to
o remembering - storing the information 
 

 Reference: Walsh, F., The Meeting Manual, AGPS, Canberra, 1995.

Standing orders for meetings

DEFINITION: The Rules of Debate, the Agenda, and any "local" rules
concerning the conduct of the meeting are loosely referred to as "Standing
Orders."

1. Timing 
There shall be at least 10 ordinary general meetings and an annual general
meeting in each year.

2. Notice 
Notice shall be sent out to all members at least 14 days in advance of an
annual general meeting and 10 days in advance of an ordinary general
meeting.

3. Members 
Members of the meeting must be those members who have paid the annual
subscription.

(a) Members with full voting and speaking rights - life, youth and senior
members as defined in the Constitution
(b) Members with speaking rights - junior members as defined in the
Constitution 
(c) Members with limited speaking rights - candidates for election to the
Executive Committee

4. Agenda
(a) The agenda for the annual general meeting must include:

opening remarks
ratification of the minutes of the previous meeting 
reports from the Executive Committee 
elections of the Executive Committee 
time to discuss motions.

(b) The agenda for an ordinary general meeting must include:

opening remarks
ratification of the minutes of the previous meeting 
time to discuss motions.

(c) In addition, the agenda for any general meeting may include:

reports from the Executive Committee (at an ordinary general meeting) 

by-elections of the Executive Committee (if necessary) 
guest speakers 
workshop discussions 
debates 
any other business that the Executive Committee may consider appropriate.

5. Motions 
(a) The deadline for the submission of motions shall be no less than two days
before the general meeting. A member can submit up to three motions, all on
different subjects. 
(b) Motions containing more than five hundred words shall be ruled out of
order by the Secretary, unless the motion is an amendment to these standing
orders, or the constitution.
(c) The Secretary shall make sure that a sufficient number of copies are
available for the members to read before and during the general meeting.
(d) Amendments to those motions shall be submitted in writing during the
general meeting. 
(e) Amendments containing more than three hundred words shall be ruled out
of order by the Secretary.

6. Chair
The chair of the annual general meeting shall be taken by the chairperson
elected by the meeting from the members present. The chair shall not
exercise his/her vote except in the instance of a casting vote.

The chairperson shall ensure that the meeting is in order, that remarks are
relevant to the question under debate, that members of the meeting do not
intimidate speakers and that members of the meeting makes no defamatory
remarks concerning another.

7. Procedure
Points of order my be raised to ask for a Chair's ruling or interpretation or to
address any other question relating to the procedure of the meeting, to the
Chair.

Points of order have precedence over all other business, but they may not be
raised during a speech or a vote, unless relating to the conduct of that vote. 
Points of order shall have priority in the following order:

1. a request for a ruling or interpretation; 2. a request for a re-vote; 3. any

other point of order.
Procedural motions have precedence over all over business except point of
order and may not be raised during a speech or the course of a vote, unless
relating to the conduct of that vote. There shall be the following procedural
motions, which are listed in order of priority:

(a) that the meeting has no confidence in the Chair;

(b) that the chair's ruling be overturned; 
(c) that a specified standing order be suspended for a specified reason for a
specified length of time; 
(d) that a vote be by secret ballot; 
(e) that a meeting be adjourned or closed; 
(f) that the question, as specified, be now put; 
(g) that the question, as specified, be not put; 
(h) that the question, as specified, be adjourned to later in the same meeting
or to a later meeting; 
(i) that the question, as specified, be remitted to the Executive Committee.

All procedural motions shall require the support of ten percent of the
membership or ten members whichever is the smaller, before being
discussed. All procedural motions shall be voted on after at least one speech
in favour and one against.

The chair shall be entitled to make the final speech in any motion of no
confidence in the chair or any challenge to the chair's ruling.

A procedural motion to suspend a standing order shall require a two-thirds

majority. All other procedural motions shall require a simple majority. Only one
motion or amendment to it may be debated at any one time.

Understanding Motions

There is a  protocol that determines priority of meeting procedures.

Motion Description Action

Order a count of voting
members present, then
give your ruling. No vote
Takes priority over all
required.
other business and
Call for a
can be raised at any
Quorum (The association's
time during the
Standing Orders states
meeting.
the number voting
members required to form
a quorum)
Point of Order Has priority over all Ask mover to explain PO,
other business then give your ruling and
except a Call for a implement it if necessary.
Quorum. Must state No vote is required. Never
 that the Standing ignore a point of order,
Orders are not being but make sure it is really a
followed. PO.
Ask mover to explain
reasons for dissent.
Explain your ruling. Call
Can be moved by
for a seconder. If none,
anyone present, but
Dissent from a suggest vote will be lost.
must be moved
Chairperson's If seconded, allow brief
immediately after the
ruling debate followed by vote.
ruling has been
IF CARRIED : Reverse
given.
ruling
IF LOST: Continue as
before.

Motions and How to Handle Them

The Chairperson will be required to deal with two kinds of motions -

Substantive and Procedural, and also Amendments to Motions. 

Definition Requirements
A Substantive  Must begin " Mr/Ms chairperson, I
Motion is a formal move ………………."
proposal put before  Must be clearly and unambiguously
the meeting for the worded.
purpose of eliciting a  Must propose a specific course of
decision. It is worded action.
by the mover to  The action proposed must be within
achieve its purpose the jurisdiction of the Club.
in each case, but the  Must be handed to the Secretary in
chairperson  must writing.
ensure that the  Decide if you will accept - never
wording is clear accept a motion you don’t understand.
before  accepting the  Allow mover to explain.
motion.  Call for Seconder. If none, motion
lapses. If seconded, seconder must
Once accepted by speak or reserve the right.
the chairperson and  Call for speaker against motion. If
seconded, a none, put motion.
substantive motion  Alternate speakers. For and against.
becomes the ( No one can Speak twice)
property of the  At the end of the debate the mover
meeting and can has ‘A Right of Reply " but no new
only be altered by a material.
formal vote to amend  Have the motion read and take vote.
it. Both ‘For" and "Against".
 ( If votes are equal, the motion is lost)

An Amendment
Once a substantive motion has been accepted by the chairperson and
seconded, it becomes the   "property of the meeting" and can only be altered
by a formal amendment.

Definition Requirement
 Decide if you will accept.
 Allow mover to explain.
An amendment is a  Call for seconder. If none
change to the detail of amendment lapses. If seconded,
a motion. It must seconder must speak
never negate the  Call for speaker against. If none, put
motion. Anyone can amendment.
move an amendment,  Otherwise as in normal debate.
except the mover and Make sure discussion is focussed on
seconder of the the amendment and not on the
original motion, but original motion, and remember the
everyone can speak mover of an amendment has no
to the amendment. ‘right of reply"
The mover of an  Put amendment to vote, after
amendment has no explaining its effect on the motion.
right of reply  After vote resume discussion on
motion – amended or not.

Procedural Motions
These are working motions that help the processing of substantive motions
through the meeting.  They have fixed wording and are subject to strict
conditions about who can move them and when. The are used to facilitate the
business of the meeting. When dealing with them it is important to remember
that, as presented, they are only motions and have no validity until a vote has
been taken.
A Procedural Motion cannot be moved or seconded by anyone who has
moved, seconded or spoken to the substantive motion or amendment which is
"the Question before the Chair", so when confronted with a Procedural
Motion, ask yourself is this person eligible to move this motion ?
There are many Procedural Motions, here are some commonly used ones:

Motion Action Result

"That the Can be moved at any IF CARRIED : Put vote
question be time during a debate, but on substantive motion ,
put" not by anyone who has after giving mover "
moved, seconded or Right of Reply"
 spoken to the motion.No
seconder required and IF LOST : Proceed with
no debate permitted. Put debate.
vote immediately.

Can be moved at any

time by anybody who has IF CARRIED: Speaker
not spoken to the motion. can take no further part
"That the If you think motion is in "Question before the
speaker be no reasonable, call for a Chair"
longer heard" seconder. If none, motion
lapses.
If seconded, allow brief IF LOST: Debate
debate and put vote. continues.
Can be moved at any IF CARRIED: Debate
time by anyone who has ceases and motion
not taken part in the "Lies on Table" until
"That the
debate, but not raised by a subsequent
motion lie on
interrupting speaker. motion.
the table"
No seconder required
and no debate permitted. IF LOST : Debate
Put vote immediately. continues.

IF CARRIED: Debate
on original motion
Cannot be moved by continues from exactly
anyone who has moved, where it was
"That the
seconded or spoken to suspended, i.e. No one
motion be
the substantive motion. who has spoken
raised from the
No seconder required previously can speak
table"
and no debate permitted. again.
Put vote immediately.
IF LOST: Motion
remains on table.
"That Standing When this motion is IF CARRIED: Meeting
Orders be carried these rules are is dissolved into an
suspended" temporarily suspended "open discussion"
and the meeting is
dissolved into an open IF LOST: Standing
discussion. Decisions Orders continue to
made during this period apply.
are not binding on the
Club. 
If moved before the
debate has begun, can
be moved by anyone. If
not, rules apply.
 Call for seconder. If
Can be moved by anyone and must be carried
"That Standing
before the meeting can revert to normal
Orders be
procedure.
resumed"
Handle as for previous motion.

 Reference: "Towards Better Meetings" and "Take the Chair" 2000, Rostrum
Club.