Bylaws

Rocky Mountain Neurosurgical Society BY-LAWS

Revised June 1999

Article I Application and Election to Membership

Section 1. The President shall appoint a Membership Committee of three members whose duties shall be to review all applications for membership and to conduct careful investigations as to personal and professional qualifications of all applicants. The recommendations of this Committee shall be presented to the Executive Committee at the Annual Meeting.

Section 2. Every candidate for active, associate, senior, inactive or honorary membership shall be proposed by at least two active, associate or senior members of the Society on the required application form furnished by the Society. Appropriately completed membership applications shall be in the hands of the Secretary at least four months before the date of the Annual Meeting. Two months before the Annual Meeting the Secretary shall send to each member of the Society a list of all candidates for membership. Members are urged to submit to the Executive Committee written comments on the candidate?s qualifications for membership.

Section 3. The Executive Committee shall have power of decision in the consideration of each candidate?s eligibility and its judgement upon each eligibility shall be final. No candidate for membership shall be voted upon at the Executive Session of the Society unless recommended by the Executive Committee.

Section 4. Election to the membership shall be at the Executive Session of each Annual Meeting and if three-fourths of the votes are favorable, the candidate shall e declared elected.

Section 5. The names of all candidates who have not been recommended for membership by the Executive Committee three years after nomination shall be withdrawn and their sponsor notified. A subsequent application of such candidate can be made after a period of two years. Any candidate for membership who has been recommended by the Executive Committee but not elected by the Society cannot be proposed again for a period of two years.

Section 6. Any Active or Senior member in good-standing may prefer charges alleging that a member is failing to maintain good professional conduct. Such charges may be made against any class of member. All charges shall be in writing and shall specify the basis thereof. These charges shall be delivered to the Secretary who shall immediately forward a copy to the accused, by registered mail sent to his last known address, a copy to the Executive Committee, and retain the original copy.

The Executive Committee shall investigate the charges and shall call on the members who file the charges for such information, witnesses, evidence etc. as may be necessary for a full investigation. Both the accused and accuser or accusers shall be given a full hearing by the Executive Committee at its next regularly scheduled meeting. The accused may conduct his own defense or shall be entitled to counsel of his own selection, but counsel for the accused shall also be allowed to secure, at the Society? expense, through the use of a competent stenographer, a verbatim report of the hearing of his case by the Executive Committee in the absence of the accused at the hearing, unless he expressly waives participation therein, the Presiding Officer shall appoint a member to represent him and the hearing shall proceed as though he were present. The hearing shall be closed to all except members of the Society and the counselors chosen for the purpose of this hearing.

Provided the investigation is satisfactorily completed and the accused has been given a hearing, if he so desires, the Executive Committee shall within ten days of the completion of the hearing, determine

(A) That the charges are not sustained, and that no further action be taken; or
(B) That the charges are sustained and that the accused be:

1. Censured, or
2. suspended for a definite time, or
3. expelled from the society.

The accused shall be notified by the President in writing, by registered mail sent to his last known address, the date of the meeting in which the recommendation of the Executive Committee will be made. At that meeting the accused shall be given an opportunity to make any statement that he desires before action is taken on the recommendations of the Executive Committee. The President may also make a statement and explain and define findings of the Executive Committee, but there shall be no examination of witnesses or introduction of further evidence before the Executive Committee.

Censure or supervision shall require an affirmative vote of at least 2/3 of the voting members of the Executive Committee present. Expulsion shall require an affirmative vote of at least ? of the voting members of the Executive Committee.

Any members of this Society who may feel aggrieved by the action of the Executive Committee in censuring, suspending, or expelling him shall have the right to appeal to the entire membership at the time of the next annual meeting. At this time, the accused shall be given the opportunity to make any statements he desires and may have counsel present if he so desires. The President of the Rocky Mountain Neurosurgical Society may also make a statement and explain and define the findings of the Executive Committee, but here shall be no examination of witnesses or introduction of further evidence before the membership. At the conclusion of the meeting, the Membership shall, by secret ballot, determine whether it will sustain or change the action of the Executive Committee. An affirmative vote of at least a majority of the voting members present shall sustain or change the action of the Executive committee.

Article II Election of Officers

Section 1. The officers of the Society shall be elected from the Active Membership at each Annual Meeting and shall take office at the close of that meeting. The President shall not be eligible for re-election at any time. The Vice-President, as well, may not be re-elected to the Vice-Presidency but may be eligible for any other office in the Society. The nominating committee shall notify the membership of a proposed slate of officers before the Annual Meeting. Additional nominations may be made from the floor. The election shall be by ballot and the member receiving the greatest number of votes shall be declared elected to the office for which he was a candidate.

Section 2. In the case of a vacancy in an office, it shall be filled by appointment by the Executive Committee.

Article III Initiation Fees and Dues

Section 1. Every Active and Associate Member on his election to membership shall pay an initiation fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) by which act he acknowledges and accepts the Constitution and By-Laws. Honorary members shall not pay an initiation fee.

Section 2. Every Active and Associate member shall pay annual dues. The amount of the dues shall be determined by the vote of the Executive Committee, so as to maintain the Society in a financially stable condition. Payment of dues shall be received by January 1 and if unpaid by March 1, shall become delinquent.

Section 3. Any member in arrears for two years shall be notified by the Treasurer in writing, and if he fails to pay his dues within two months thereafter shall forfeit his membership. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to notify the Executive Committee of this forfeiture.

Section 4. The expenses of the Annual Meeting shall be paid principally from funds received as registration fees for that meeting. The amount of the registration fee for each Annual Meeting will be set by the Executive Committee.

Section 5. The prorated expense of an invited guest shall be borne by his host.

Section 6. While on temporary duty with the Armed Forces, any Active or Associate Member shall be exempt from paying dues.

Article IV Guests

Section 1. Any member may invite a guest to attend the annual meeting. The fees for non-member guests are set by the Executive Committee.

Section 2. The Executive Committee shall be empowered to select official guests. These shall be local physicians and surgeons at the place of the meeting or especially invited guests to participate in the program.

Section 3. The prorata share of the officially invited guests will be borne by the Society, and determined/limited at the time of the invitation.

Section 4. The limitation of the number of guests to attend any given meeting shall be at the discretion of the Executive Committee and the host for said meeting.

Section 5. Invited guests shall be entitled to all the privileges of the Society during the annual session except attendance at business or Executive Sessions.

Article V Meetings

Section 1. The Rocky Mountain Neurosurgical Society, Inc. shall meet annually at such time and place as may be designated by the Executive Committee.

Section 2. There shall be at least one annual Executive Session of Active Members of the Society at which the order of business shall be as follows:

1. Reading of the minutes of the last meeting.
2. Report of the Secretary.
3. Report of the Treasurer.
4. Report of the Executive Committee.
5. Report of the Historian.
6. Report of the review of the Treasurer’s Account and projections for the coming year.
7. Reports of Special Committees.
8. Unfinished Business.
9. New Business.
10. Election of Members.
11. Report of the Nominating Committee.
12. Election of Officers.

Section 3. Members shall sign the permanent register of the Society as a record of their attendance. A special register shall be provided for guests.

Section 4. Special meetings of the Society may be called on the advice of the Executive Committee. Every member shall be notified of the place and time of the meeting at least two weeks in advance.

Article VI Quorum

Only Active Members shall attend any Business Session and shall constitute a quorum for business.

Article VII Parliamentary Authority

Robert’s Rules of Order: Revised Edition shall be parliamentary authority in all matters not specified by the Constitution or By-Laws.

Article VIII Committee

Section 1. The President shall appoint with the approval of the Executive Committee, the following committees:

(A) Program Committee, of which the Secretary is a member ex officio;

(B) Committee on Arrangements for the Annual Meeting;

(C) Membership Committee, consisting of three members;

(D) Nominating Committee, consisting of the immediate three Past Presidents.

Section 2. The President shall appoint such other committees as indicated.

Article IX Forfeiture of Membership

Membership may be forfeited for reasons deemed sufficient by the Society, which may be effected by a three-fourths majority vote.

Article X Scientific Papers

Section 1. An abstract of all papers to be read must be submitted to the Program Committee three months before the meeting, excluding those presented by invited guests of the Society. The Committee shall exercise the right of accepting or rejecting papers.

Section 2. The time allotted for the presentation and discussion of a paper shall be at the discretion of the Program Committee subject to approval of the Executive Committee. A tentative program shall be sent to each member by the Secretary two weeks prior to the stated meeting.

Section 3. A Resident award paper will be selected for presentation t the Annual Meeting by the Program Committee and an award will be given.

Article XI Amendments

These By-Laws may be amended at the Annual Meeting by approval of three-fourths of the voting members present, provided due notice of the proposed changes has been given to the membership at least two months before said meeting.