Royal Canadian Legion

The
GENERAL BY-LAWS OF
Zone Europe
Of The Royal Canadian Legion

INTERPRETATIONS:

In these By-laws unless the context otherwise requires, the words:

1. "Dominion Command" shall mean the Dominion Command of The Royal Canadian Legion.

2. "Zone" shall mean the elected members of the Zone Europe Council of The Royal Canadian Legion.

3. Words indicating the masculine import the feminine and words indicating the singular import the plural.

4. Whenever the word "shall" occurs in these By-laws the provisions of the clause in which it occurs must be interpreted as being mandatory, and when the word "may" occurs in these By-laws the provisions of the clause in which it occurs shall be interpreted as being permissive.

PART I - ORGANIZATION

1) GENERAL

a) The Title of this organization as provided in the General By-laws is Zone Europe of The Royal Canadian Legion.

b) The Zone will be comprised of all chartered Branches within Europe.

2) BRANCH

a) The Branch By-laws shown in Appendix "A" hereto shall be the By-laws of the Branch unless a Branch has its own By-laws which have, through Zone, received the approval of Dominion Command.

b) Each Branch shall have an Executive Committee which shall consist of a President, Immediate Past President, Vice President, and such other officers and Executive Committee members as the Branch may determine from time to time. The Executive Committee shall meet monthly and shall transact the current business of the Branch, subject to the jurisdiction of the membership of the Branch assembled in General Meetings.

c) General Meetings: A General Meeting of the Branch shall be held at least once within every three months at which the minutes of the previous General Meeting and Executive Committee meeting held subsequent to the previous General Meeting shall be read for approval.

d) A financial report of the Branch shall be presented to a General Meeting of the Members at least once a year, notice of which meeting shall be forwarded to every member at least one week in advance. A Branch may by By-law adopt a fiscal year of its choice. In default of such a By-law the fiscal year of the Branch shall be the calendar year.

e) Excepting for the Immediate Past President, no elected Branch Officer shall hold office for more than two years without being re-elected.

f) Election of Branch officers shall be held at a General Meeting of the members at least biennially, notice of which meeting shall be forwarded to every member at least one week in advance.

g) Standing Committees:

i. Pending the size and administration needs of the Branch the Executive Committee may appoint a Chairman for each of the following Standing Committees at the first meeting of the Executive Committee following its election: Finance; Entertainment; Membership and Ritual; House and Property; Sick Visiting; Sports and Games; By-laws and Legislation; Welfare; Poppy; or such Chairmen as the Branch may require.

ii. A member may be appointed to the Chairmanship of more than one Committee.

iii. Each Chairman so appointed shall select the members of his own Committee, submitting same to the Executive Committee for approval at its next meeting. All Chairmen of Standing Committees shall submit a written report to General Meetings.

3) ZONE

a) Zone Europe is subject to the jurisdiction of Dominion Command.

b) A Zone Council shall consist of all elected Zone Officers, Immediate Past Zone Commander and the Presidents of all its Branches, or in the absence or disability of a Branch President, a member of that Branch Executive Committee. It shall assist and advise the Zone Commander. It shall meet at the call of the Zone Commander who shall be its Chairman.

c) The Deputy Zone Commander shall assist the Zone Commander in the performance of his duties, and in the absence or disability of the Zone Commander, all the rights and powers vested in the Zone Commander shall, for the time being, be vested in the Deputy.

d) Zone Officers and members of the Zone Executive shall serve without remuneration other than such compensation that may be authorized from time to time. Attendance of Branch members at Zone Meetings is the financial responsibility of the Branch.

e) All monies received by the Zone shall be deposited forthwith, in the name of the Zone, in a recognized financial institution as the Zone may decide. Zones shall maintain an adequate system of bookkeeping and reporting.

f) Unless otherwise stated in your Branch By-Laws a majority of the members of any council or committee shall constitute a quorum.

g) In all matters of procedure the provisions of the Rules of Procedure for Legion Meetings shall apply. Where the guide does not make adequate provision, "Robert's Rules of Order" shall apply.

APPENDIX "A"
TO THE GENERAL BY-LAWS OF
ZONE EUROPE THE ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION

BRANCH BY-LAWS

1. Title

The Branch shall be known as the "Name of the Branch Branch No. 000 in Zone Europe a Branch of Dominion Command of the Royal Canadian Legion. It may hereafter be refereed to as The Branch and The Royal Canadian Legion may be refereed as the Legion or R.C.L. The purpose and objects shall be set forth in:

a. The Act to Incorporate The Royal Canadian Legion;
b. The General By-Laws of the Legion;
c. Rules of Procedure for Legion Meetings; and
d. R.C.L. Ritual and Insignia Manual

2. Membership:

a) Branch Membership shall be comprised of members qualified in accordance with the General By-laws of The Royal Canadian Legion. In particular the sections dealing with Membership in Europe Branches Articles 215 through 219 of the General By-laws of The Royal Canadian Legion.

b) The Branch Executive Committee shall form the Membership Committee and appoint a Membership Chairman.

c) Members in good standing shall be entitled to hold any elective office and vote at meetings of the Branch.

d) No member who is a full time, regular part time or casual employee of the Branch who receives directly or indirectly any salary or wages for or on account of any service rendered to the Branch shall be eligible to hold any executive position in the Legion

e) For the purposes of this Article, a member who provides unpaid volunteer services to a branch is not, by virtue of accepting tips from paying customers, considered to be receiving a salary or wages.

3. Initiation:

Every new member shall be initiated according to the Ritual and Insignia Manual.

4. Annual Dues:

a) Every member shall pay annual dues in an amount to be decided upon by a General Meeting of the Branch excepting that the Branch Executive shall have discretionary powers regarding dues of Life Members and members warranting special consideration due to unusual circumstances.

b) Members whose dues are in arrears shall be dealt with in accordance with The General By-laws of The Royal Canadian Legion.

c) The Secretary shall annually present a list to the Executive, of the names of those whose membership has lapsed.

d) Dues of an "Early Bird" member who is deceased prior to 1 January of the coming year shall be refunded by his Branch upon the request of his family or the Executors of his Estate.

5. Executive Committee:

a) The Branch Executive Committee shall be as follows: President, Immediate Past President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, Sergeant-at-Arms, or such officers and members as may be required for the operation of the Branch.

b) With the exception of the Immediate Past President, all officers and members of the Executive Committee shall be elected or appointed and shall assume office on the first day of the month following the date of election.

c) The Executive Committee shall meet monthly and shall transact the current business of the Branch, subject to the jurisdiction of the membership of the Branch assembled in General Meeting.

6. General Meetings:

A General Meeting of the Branch shall be held at least once within every three months at which the minutes of the previous General Meeting and Executive Committee meeting held subsequent to the previous General Meeting shall be read for approval as required.

7. Annual Meeting:

A meeting of the general membership, notice of which shall be forwarded to every member, at least one week in advance, shall be held at least once every year for the receiving of a report of the Branch finances and for the election of Branch Officers, or in lieu thereof, for deciding the date and method of electing Branch Officers.

8. Special General Meetings:

In unusual or pressing circumstances a Special General Meeting may be called by the Branch Executive Committee or at the written request of a specified number of members. The Branch By-laws shall specify the number of signatures required to call such a meeting. In the absence of such a By-law, the specified number shall be 25% of the voting members of the Branch.

a) Where the meeting is called by the Executive Committee, the members shall be notified at least seven days prior to the meeting. Such notice shall contain, briefly, the purpose of the meeting.

b) Where the meeting is called at the request of members, the written request shall contain the required number of signatures, as specified above, and the purpose of the meeting. Members shall be notified at least seven days prior to the meeting.

c) Only that business for which the Special Meeting has been called shall be dealt with.

d) The minutes of Special Meetings shall be recorded and posted for the information of all members unless, for a special reason, the meeting directs otherwise.

9. Standing Committees:

a) Pending the size and administrative needs of the Branch the Executive Committee may appoint a Chairman for each of the following Standing Committees at the first meeting of the Executive Committee following its election: Finance, Entertainment, Membership and Ritual, House and Property, Sick Visiting, Sports and Games, By-laws and Legislation, Welfare, Poppy, Ways and Means, Leadership and Development, or, such Chairmen as the Branch may require.

b) A member may be appointed to the Chairmanship of more than one Committee.

c) Each Chairman so appointed shall select the members of his own Committee, submitting same to the Executive Committee for approval at its next meeting.

d) All Chairmen of Standing Committees shall submit a written report to the Executive Committee and General Meetings as required.

10. Secretary:

a) A Secretary, if not elected, shall be appointed by the Executive Committee at its first meeting following election, such appointment to be approved by the General Membership at its next meeting.

b) The Secretary shall keep a record of the proceedings of all meetings and all Branch correspondence and shall be the custodian of all Branch records.

c) Perform all other duties assigned to him by the President.

11. Treasurer:

a) Shall keep a just and true account of all financial transactions of the Branch and shall present a statement of same to all Executive Committee and General Meetings of the Branch.

b) Shall be prepared, when called upon to give a complete statement of the assets and liabilities of the Branch.

c) Perform all other duties assigned to him by the President.

12. Bank:

All monies received by the Branch shall be deposited in the name of the Branch in a recognized financial institution approved by the Executive Committee. All monies paid on behalf of the Branch shall be requisitioned and signed by the treasurer and one other Branch Officer as may be determined by the Executive Committee.

13. Auditors:

The Financial Records of the Branch shall be audited by an Audit Committee prior to the Annual Meeting for report to the Annual Meeting. No member of the Executive Committee or salaried employee shall be eligible to conduct such audit.

14. Vacancies:

a) Any vacancy occurring in the Executive of the Branch shall be filled by election at the General Meeting at which the vacancy is accepted. The President may appoint a member to fill the vacancy on a temporary basis pending the election.

b) Any Branch officer or Executive member (except the Immediate Past President) absent from three consecutive Regular Executive Meetings without receiving the consent of the Executive shall cease to hold office.

15. Quorums:

A majority shall form a Quorum at all meetings of the Executive Committee. Quorums for all other meetings of the Branch shall be set by resolution at the Branch Annual Meeting.

16. Rules of Order:

In all matters of procedure the provisions of the Legion's "Rules of Procedure for Legion Meetings" shall apply. In all cases where these rules do not make adequate provision then, and then only, "Robert's Rules of Order" shall apply.

17. Branch Regulations:

Branch Regulations may only be created and maintained in reference to those situations as provided for in these By-laws. Branch Regulations approved by the Branch shall have the same authority and effect as these By-laws and shall be a permissible extension of same.

The creation or amendment of any Branch Regulation shall be the subject of a motion of which notice shall have been given at the previous meeting of the Branch. Such notice of motion shall state the wording of the proposed addition or amendment and shall be dated and signed by the member presenting the motion. The President, or his Designate, shall act on behalf of the Executive Committee representing any proposal originating from this body under this provision.

A motion to create or amend the Branch Regulations must receive the approval of at least two-thirds of the voting members present at the meeting of the Branch.

Branch Regulations or any such Amendments shall be forwarded to Zone for approval to become effective.

The By-Laws have been approved by the Dominion Command Constitution and Laws Committee on 08 November 2011.


Comrade Steven Clark
Secretary, Dominion Command Constitution and Laws Committee
Dominion Command, The Royal Canadian Legion


R.C. (Reg) Bonnar
Royal Canadian Legion
Zone Commander, Europe