BYLAWS OF THE BARRISTERS OF THE BEVERLY HILLS BAR ASSOCIATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS BARRISTERS BYLAWS


ARTICLE I
NAME

ARTICLE II
PURPOSE

ARTICLE III
MEMBERSHIP AND DUES

ARTICLE IV
BOARD OF GOVERNORS
Composition of Board
Nominating Committee and Elections
Rules and Regulations
Powers and Duties
Meetings
Appointment of Barristers Members to the Board of Governors of the Association
Vacancies
Resignation

ARTICLE V
OFFICERS
Elective Officers
President
President-Elect
Secretary
Treasurer
Election and Term of Office of Officers
Vacancy
Rules and Regulations

ARTICLE VI
COMMITTEES
Appointment
Vacancies

ARTICLE VII
FISCAL YEAR

ARTICLE VIII
AMENDMENTS
By Members
By Board of Governors

ARTICLE IX
ACTION BY UNANIMOUS WRITTEN CONSENT

ARTICLE X
TIME OF TAKING EFFECT

CERTIFICATE OF SECRETARY

MISSION STATEMENT OF THE BARRISTERS



BYLAWS OF THE BARRISTERS OF THE BEVERLY HILLS BAR ASSOCIATION


ARTICLE I
NAME

This section shall be known as the "Barristers of the Beverly Hills Bar Association" ("Barristers"). (Back To Top)

ARTICLE II
PURPOSE

The purpose of the Barristers shall be to stimulate and broaden new lawyers' acquaintanceship among the members of the Bench and Bar; to form an available working unit to assist in the activities of the Beverly Hills Bar Association (the "Association"); to promote high ethical standards of professional conduct; and to otherwise further the interests of the members of the Barristers, the legal profession as a whole, and the public. (Back To Top)

ARTICLE III
MEMBERSHIP AND DUES

Pursuant to Section 1 of Article IV of the Bylaws of the Association, every regular member of the Association who on the first day of an Operating Year either (i) is age thirty-six or under, or (ii) has been admitted to practice for ten years or less, shall automatically be a member of the Barristers during such Operating Year. There shall be no dues for membership in the Barristers other than those paid to the Association for membership in the Association. (Back To Top)

ARTICLE IV
BOARD OF GOVERNORS

Section 1. Composition of Board
.
a) The Board of Governors of the Barristers, including officers, shall consist of not less than seventeen (17) nor more than twenty-nine (29) Barristers members as the Board of Governors may from time to time determine. Members of the Board of Governors (a "Board Member") shall be elected from among the members of the Barristers. The term of each Board Member's membership on the Board of Governors shall be two (2) years or until the Board Member's earlier resignation. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a Board Member shall cease to be a member of the Barristers, such Board Member's term shall expire on the September 30 immediately following the date upon which such Board Member ceases to be a member of the Barristers. In addition, when a Board Member is elected as an officer, such Board Member's membership on the Board of Governors shall be deemed extended for the duration of his or her office. The terms of office for various Board Members shall be established so that the terms of approximately 50% of the Board Members expire at the end of each fiscal year.
b) The immediate past President of the Board of Governors and the Executive Director of the Association shall be Members Ex Officio of the Board of Governors but shall have no voting privileges. (Back To Top)

Section 2. Nominating Committee and Elections .

Following elections in May of each year, the then President shall appoint a Nominating Committee for the purpose of nominating candidates for open positions on the Board of Governors. The Nominating Committee shall consist of the then President, the President-Elect and three (3) other Board Members appointed by the President whose terms will not expire until the end of the next fiscal year. The names of the Nominating Committee shall appear in the June issue of the Association's membership newsletter or in a general mailing to the Barristers members with instructions to Barristers members to contact said individuals on or before July 1 if such Barristers seek consideration for election to a vacancy on the Board of Governors.(Back To Top)

The Nominating Committee shall meet during the month of July and shall nominate Barristers members to fill the upcoming vacancies on the Board of Governors. The deadline for submitting names to the Nominating Committee shall be July 1. Between July 1 and the July meeting of the Board of Governors, the Nominating Committee shall meet and, at such July meeting, shall notify the Board of Governors of its nominations. In addition, the Nominating Committee shall promptly notify any Barristers member who had submitted his or her name for consideration, but was not nominated, of such fact. If any Barristers member who was not so nominated but who submitted his or her name by July 1 to the Nominating Committee wishes to seek election, such individual's name may be placed on the ballot nevertheless, provided that such individual submits, by July 31, a nominating petition signed by at least twenty-five (25) other Barristers members to the Secretary of the Barristers, at the Association's office. Additionally, the name of a Board Member whose term will expire at the end of September of the current fiscal year and whose name has not been recommended by the Nominating Committee may be placed on the ballot nevertheless if such Board Member submits his or her name to the Nominating Committee by July 31. If the number of persons nominated and who have placed their names on the ballot pursuant to the foregoing equal the number of vacancies on the Board of Governors, then all such persons shall be deemed elected and notice thereof shall be given through the September issue of the Association's membership newsletter or a general mailing to the Barristers members. If the number of persons nominated and who have placed their names on the ballot pursuant to the foregoing exceeds the number of vacancies on the Board, then the Barristers members shall vote to fill the vacancies in the Board of Governors as follows: the names of all such nominees shall be placed in the September issue of the Association's membership newsletter or in a general mailing to the Barristers members, along with ballots and an indication of the number of vacancies to be filled. In the event of such a contested election, only completed ballots received in the Association's office by 9:00 A.M. on the third Wednesday in September will be counted. An announcement of the names of the successful candidates will be made at the September meeting of the Board of Governors, and notice thereof shall be placed in the next issue of the Association's membership newsletter.
 
Section 3. Rules and Regulations .

The Board of Governors may establish such rules and regulations as it may deem proper governing all elections for Board Members, which rules shall be binding upon the Nominating Committee, provided that such rules and regulations do not conflict with these Bylaws.

Section 4. Powers and Duties .

The Board of Governors shall supervise and direct the affairs and determine the policies of the Barristers, subject to and in accordance with these Bylaws and the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws of the Association.

Section 5. Meetings .

Eight (8) Board Members shall constitute a quorum to transact business at any meeting. Meetings shall be held pursuant to written notice in accordance with a regular schedule established at the beginning of each fiscal year by the Barristers President after conferring with the Board of Governors as to the most convenient day of the month for such meetings. Meetings also may be called by any other officer of the Barristers, or by a majority of the Board Members, provided written notice is given thereby.

Section 6. Appointment of Barristers Members to the
Board of Governors of the Association.

Pursuant to the Bylaws of the Association, five members of the Barristers are to serve one year terms as members of the Association's Board of Governors. The five names to be submitted by the Board of Governors of the Barristers to the Nominating Committee of the Association shall be chosen by the Board of Governors of the Barristers by secret ballot. Said Barristers members need not be Board Members. The number of votes received by each of the five persons so named shall not be revealed. The five names shall be submitted to the Nominating Committee of the Association in alphabetical order and shall not be ranked in any way.

Section 7. Vacancies.

Any vacancy in the Board of Governors shall be filled by a vote of majority of the Board, with nominees submitted by any Board Member.

Section 8. Resignation.

A Member of the Board of Governors shall be deemed to have resigned under the following circumstances:

(a) If the Member provides notification of such resignation to the President or President-Elect of the Barristers;

(b) If the Member fails to maintain membership in good standing in the Association;

(c) If the Member moves out of the Southern California region; or

(d) If the Member misses three consecutive Board meetings and, after reasonable efforts to contact the Member by the President or the President's designee, the Member does not provide adequate assurances of his or her continued commitment to the Barristers, and the Board, upon motion, subsequently votes to remove such Member by a two-thirds vote of those present.

ARTICLE V
OFFICERS

Section 1. Elective Officers .

The Barristers shall have a President, President- Elect, Secretary and Treasurer. (Back To Top)

Section 2. President .

It shall be the duty of the President (a) to preside at all meetings of the Barristers and of the Board of Governors; (b) to appoint, with the advice of the Board of Governors, such committees as the Board of Governors may from time to time direct, or as may from time to time seem to the President to be necessary or desirable; (c) to conduct the activities and affairs of the Barristers; and (d) to have such other executive powers and perform such other duties as are usually possessed or exercised by presiding officers that are not inconsistent with these Bylaws or with the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws of the Association.

Section 3. President-Elect .

The President-Elect shall perform all the duties of the President during the latter's absence or inability to act and, when so acting, shall have all the powers of, and be subject to all the restrictions upon, the President. The President-Elect shall have such other powers and perform such other duties not inconsistent with these Bylaws as may from time to time be prescribed by the President or by the Board of Governors.

Section 4. Secretary .

It shall be the duty of the Secretary to keep a record of the proceedings of all business meetings of Barristers members and of all meetings of the Board of Governors, together with a record of all matters of which a record may be ordered by the Barristers or its Board of Governors. The Secretary (a) shall cause to be mailed all notices of meetings and keep a record of the names and addresses of all Barristers members, (b) shall have custody of all records, reports and other papers belonging to the Barristers, and (c) shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the President or by the Board of Governors.

Section 5. Treasurer .

The Treasurer (a) shall collect, take charge of and, with the approval of the Board of Governors, disburse the funds of the Barristers; (b) shall keep an accurate record of all receipts and disbursements of the Barristers which shall be open to the inspection of any Board Member; and (c) at the last regular meeting of the Board of Governors for the fiscal year, shall make a full report of all receipts and disbursements of the fiscal year. At the first regular meeting of the fiscal year of the Board of Governors, the Treasurer shall submit a proposed budget for that fiscal year to be approved by the Board of Governors.

Section 6. Election and Term of Office of Officers .

a) During May of each year, the then President shall conduct an election for the offices of President-Elect, Secretary and Treasurer for the following fiscal year.

b) The President-Elect for the current fiscal year shall succeed to the office of President for the following fiscal year; therefore, there shall be no election for the office of President at the May meeting of the Board of Governors. However, there shall be an election for the office of President for the 1993-94 fiscal year only.

c) Any person who is a Board Member at the time of the election may be nominated as a candidate for election by any Board Member and any Board Member may place his or her own name in nomination. Nominations for each office shall be prior to voting for such office.

d) All contested elections shall be by secret ballot, and each Board Member in attendance at the May meeting of the Board of Governors shall be entitled to one vote for each office to be filled.

e) A majority of votes cast shall elect. If any nominee shall not receive a majority, a run-off election shall be conducted between the two nominees receiving the highest number of votes.

f) The term of all officers shall be for one fiscal year, commencing October 1 and ending September 30.

Section 7. Vacancy .

A vacancy in any office shall be filled by a special election conducted by the Board of Governors, following the same procedure as outlined in Subsections (c) through (e) of Section 6, above, except that only a person who has been a Board Member for at least one year at the time of the special election may be nominated to fill a vacancy in the office of President.
Section 8. Rules and Regulations . The Board of Governors may establish such rules and regulations as it may deem proper governing all campaigns for office, provided that such rules and regulations do not conflict with these Bylaws. (Back To Top)

ARTICLE VI
COMMITTEES

Section 1. Appointment .

The Barristers shall have such standing and other committees as may be determined from time to time by a majority of the Board of Governors. Their chairpersons and members shall be appointed annually by the President prior to the beginning of the fiscal year for which the President was elected, and the chairpersons and members of such committees shall continue in office until the end of the fiscal year or until their successors are appointed, whichever shall first occur.

Section 2. Vacancies .

The President shall have power to fill vacancies in any committee. (Back To Top)

ARTICLE VII
FISCAL YEAR

The Barristers shall operate on a fiscal year which shall be for a period of twelve consecutive months, commencing October 1 and ending September 30. (Back To Top)

ARTICLE VIII
AMENDMENTS

Section 1. By Members .

These Bylaws may be amended by the affirmative vote of a majority of the Barristers members present and voting at any meeting thereof, provided that at least 50 Barristers members are present at such meeting and the notice of the proposed amendment(s) shall have been given by the Secretary to all Barristers members in writing at least ten days before the meeting at which the amendment(s) is offered.

Section 2. By Board of Governors .

These Bylaws may also be amended by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Board of Governors present and voting at any meeting thereof. (Back To Top)

ARTICLE IX
ACTION BY UNANIMOUS WRITTEN CONSENT

Any action required or permitted to be taken by the Barristers Board of Governors may be taken without a meeting if all the Board Members shall, individually or collectively, consent in writing to such action. Such written consent or consents shall be filed with the minutes of the proceedings of the Board of Governors. Such action by written consent shall have the same force and effect as a unanimous vote of such Board Members. (Back To Top)


ARTICLE X
TIME OF TAKING EFFECT

These Bylaws and any amendments thereto shall take effect immediately upon adoption by the affirmative vote of a majority of the Barristers Members or by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Board of Governors present and voting at any meeting thereof. (Back To Top)

CERTIFICATE OF SECRETARY

I, the undersigned, do hereby certify:

1. That I am the duly elected and acting Secretary of the Barristers of the Beverly Hills Bar Association; and

2. That the foregoing Bylaws, as amended, were adopted pursuant to the vote of at least two-thirds of the Board of Governors of the Barristers of the Beverly Hills Bar Association at a regular meeting duly called at which a quorum was present, held on ________________, 20___.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed the seal of the Beverly Hills Bar Association this ___ day of ________________, 20__.



__________________________
Barristers Secretary

MISSION STATEMENT OF THE BARRISTERS
ADOPTED MAY 1996


The Barristers division of the Beverly Hills Bar Association is dedicated to enhancing and serving the educational and professional needs of its membership and providing assistance and support to the community by:

* Fostering innovative programs and events;
* Serving and enriching our community for the benefit of the public and promoting the integrity of the profession;
* Strengthening membership; and
* Stimulating leadership development within the Association.


By-laws Amended

Article IV, section 8 adopted February 10, 1999

Article III amended October 2002.