LAKE COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION
An Illinois Corporation, Not-For-Profit
BY-LAWS
2008 REVISION Approved by Executive Committee January 17, 2008
ARTICLE I - DENOMINATION AND FUNCTION
SECTION 1. NAME. This corporation shall be known as the "LAKE COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION" (the “Association” or “LCBA”)) and is incorporated under the Laws of the State of Illinois as a corporation, "Not For Profit".
SECTION 2. PURPOSE. The Association is formed to foster respect for the administration of law; to promote good will among the members of the bar and the judiciary; to advance the science of jurisprudence; to encourage increased competency and knowledge of current laws, procedures and regulations through continuing legal education, and to uphold the honor and dignity of the legal profession.
SECTION 3. PRO BONO PUBLICO. The Association recognizes that it is the responsibility of members of the legal profession, as stated in the Preamble to the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct, to assure access to the judicial system to those who are unable to pay for legal services. To fulfill that responsibility the Association expects that all members will participate in the providing of pro-bono legal services to indigent and low income persons either directly, if not prohibited by conflicting professional obligations, or indirectly, by supporting financially the Lake County Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Program.
ARTICLE II - MEMBERSHIP
SECTION 1. MEMBERSHIP. The membership of the LCBA shall consist of two(2) classes: (a) Attorney Members; and (b) Associate Members.
(a) ATTORNEY MEMBERS. Any lawyer or Judge is eligible to be an Attorney Member of this Association who is duly licensed and registered to practice law in the State of Illinois. Only Attorney Members are eligible to vote. After thirty (30) years of continuing Attorney Membership, an Attorney Member who is no longer in the active practice of law may, with the consent of the Board of Directors, elect Life Attorney Membership. The Board of Directors may vary or eliminate the dues for Life Attorney Members.
(b) ASSOCIATE MEMBERS. Any person, including but not limited to law students, attorneys on active duty with the military, attorneys licensed by other states, paralegals, certified public accountants, and any other allied professional, may be Associate Members. The Board of Directors may adopt such requirements or qualifications and set the dues for Associate Members as deemed appropriate from time—to-time. Associate Members may not vote.
SECTION 2. APPLICATIONS. All applications for membership must be in writing, in form as shall be determined by the Board of Directors, signed by the applicant.
SECTION 3. ACTION ON APPLICATION.
A. The Executive Director, upon receipt of an application for membership as an Attorney Member shall verify registration with the Attorney Registration Commission of the Supreme Court of Illinois or the appropriate jurisdiction.
B. An application for Associate Membership shall require nomination by at least two (2) Attorney Members and the Executive Director shall verify the information contained therein.
C. The verified application may then be accepted by the Board of Directors subject to its complete discretion.
Section 4. CHANGE OF CLASS. A member may change from one class of membership to the other if eligible.
Section 5. PRIVILEGES. All members in good standing shall be entitled to all rights and privileges of membership, except that Associate Members shall have a voice but not a vote at the meetings of the Association and shall not be entitled to hold office.
Section 6. PUBLIC STATEMENTS. No member of the Association shall make any public statement on behalf of the Association which has not been first approved by the membership or the Board of Directors except that the Board may authorize the President to make a statement on behalf of the Association or to respond to press inquiries. When an officer, director or committee chair makes any public statement as an individual there may be an implication that such statement is the official position of the Association. Accordingly, if an officer, director or committee chair makes a statement in his or her individual capacity that person shall have a duty to make certain that it is made clear that such statement is personal only and not the position of the Association, its committees or members.
In furtherance of this policy, no member, committee chair, or vice chair, past or present officer or director shall state any public opinion using the Association name or their position within the Association without the express approval of the membership or the Board.
ARTICLE III – BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
Section 1. MEMBERSHIP OF BOARD. The Association shall be governed by a Board of Directors, consisting of the Officers and Directors.
Section 2. DIRECTORS. There shall be six (6) Attorney Members elected as Directors, each to be elected for a three year term and each to serve no more than 6 consecutive years, unless serving as an Officer. Terms shall begin on the first Friday [after they have been sworn]in June of the year of their election. Vacancies shall be filled by appointment of the President with the consent of the Board and appointed Directors may only serve until the next Annual Meeting, when a Director will be elected to serve the balance of the vacant term. If a Director is appointed or elected to fill a vacancy on the Board, that member may only stand for election for a full term if at the conclusion of that full term, the member will have served for no more than 6 consecutive years.
Section 3. OFFICERS AS DIRECTORS. The Officers of the Association shall also be members of the Board of Directors. The President shall preside over the Board but shall only vote in the event of a tie.
Section 4. DUTIES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS. The Board of Directors shall have the duty of management of the regular affairs of the Association, determine policy, authorize expenditures and be charged generally with the governance of the Association except as to those matters reserved to the general membership. The Board shall meet monthly in regular meetings and in special meetings at such times and places as may be called by the President or by any three (3) Directors and Officers.
Section 5. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. In between meetings of the Board, the Officers may meet as the Executive Committee and exercise the powers of the Board as they deem appropriate until the next meeting of the Board.
Section 6. TRANSITION. Initially the Directors shall be selected in three groups: (a) two Directors for a three year term, (b) two Directors for a two year term; and (c) two Directors for a one year term, including the Member-At-Large Elect. Thereafter, each term shall be three years.
ARTICLE IV – OFFICERS AND DUTIES
Section 1. OFFICERS. The officers shall be: President, First Vice-President, Second Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and Immediate Past President. Officers shall be Attorney Members.
Section 2. DUTIES OF THE PRESIDENT. The President shall preside at all meetings, shall supervise the regular business of the Association, and such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors. The President shall initiate and recommend programs and activities to further the interests of the Association and its members, act as Chair of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee, appoint the Chair and members of committees, and supervise the regular business and operation of the Association. The President, with the approval of the Board, shall create such ad hoc committees as are deemed useful.
Section 3. DUTIES OF THE VICE-PRESIDENT. The Vice-Presidents, in order, shall act in absence of the President and shall perform such duties as may be assigned by the President.
Section 4. DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY. The Secretary shall keep records of the proceedings of the Association and of such other matters as may be directed to be placed in the files of the Association, and shall issue notices of all meetings. The Secretary shall furnish the Treasurer with the names and addresses of persons elected members, and shall supervise the correspondence of the Association. The Secretary shall report the activities of the Association at the annual meeting of the Association and shall perform such other duties as may herein be vested in that office. The Association's books, papers and records at all times shall be open to the inspection of the members of the Association.
Section 5. DUTIES OF THE TREASURER. The Treasurer shall keep an accurate roll of the members of the Association; shall notify members of their election to membership: shall collect, keep careful and regular book accounts of, and expend, under the direction of the Board of Directors, all monies of the Association. The Treasurer, when directed by the President or the Board, shall submit detailed statements of the monies received and expended and the amounts due to and by the Association. The Treasurer's books and accounts shall at all times be subject to examination and audit by the officers, or by special committee appointed for that purpose.
Section 6. IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT. The Immediate Past President shall act as Chair of the Long Range Planning Committee and perform such other duties as assigned by the President.
ARTICLE V OTHER POSITIONS
4 Section 1. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. The Association shall employ an Executive Director and such other employees as are needed to conduct the operations and affairs of the Association. Such employees shall be hired by the President with the approval of the Board of Directors. Involuntary termination of such employment shall be by the Board of Directors. The Executive Director is not an officer of the Lake County Bar Association. The Secretary and the Treasurer may delegate to the Executive Director such of their duties as they deem appropriate.
Section 2. OMBUDSPERSON. The Ombudsperson shall serve as a liaison between members of the Bar and the local judiciary. The Ombudsperson shall perform those duties set forth in the December 1, 2003 Joint Resolution of the Lake County Bar Association and the Lake County Judges of the Nineteenth Judicial Circuit. The Ombudsperson shall be appointed by the Board of Directors with the advice and consent of the Chief Judge for a one-year term beginning the first day of September of any given year. The appointment is renewable from year to year. The Ombudsperson is not an officer of the Association.
ARTICLE VI - ELECTIONS
Section 1. NOMINATIONS. Nominations for Second Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and Directors shall be made by the Nominating Committee not less than 25 days nor more than 45 days prior to the Annual Meeting and publicized to the membership. Any Attorney Member, not nominated by the Nominating Committee, may become a candidate for those offices by filing with the Secretary of the Association, a Nominating Petition bearing the signatures of not less than thirty (30) Attorney Members of the Association.
No person not the nominee of the Nominating Committee nor nominee by petition shall be eligible for election at the Annual Meeting.
Section 2. ELECTION. The Second Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and Directors shall be elected by secret ballot at the Annual Meeting of the Association. At the conclusion of his or her term, the Second Vice President shall succeed to the First Vice Presidency. The First Vice President shall, at the conclusion of his or her term, succeed to President.
Section 3. TERM OF OFFICE. All officers shall take office on the first Friday of June of the year of their election and shall hold office for one calendar year, and until their successors are elected and shall have qualified.
Section 4. VACANCY. A vacancy in the office of the President or First Vice President shall be filled by succession as in Section 2. A vacancy in the Second Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer or Director shall be filled by appointment. The President with the consent of the Board of Directors shall appoint an Attorney Member of the Association to fill the vacancy. The member appointed Second Vice President shall not automatically succeed to the First Vice President upon completion of his or her term. Should there be an appointed Second Vice President, the Nominating Committee, following the procedure in Section 1 of this Article, shall nominate a person for First Vice President and the election shall be held as in Section 2 above.
ARTICLE VII - MEETINGS
Section 1. ANNUAL. The annual meeting of the Association shall be held on the fourth Tuesday of March of each year or such other date within the month of March as may be selected by the Board of Directors.
Section 2. REGULAR. Regular meetings of the Association as determined by the Board of Directors shall be held in addition to the annual meeting.
Section 3. SPECIAL. Special meetings may be called by the Secretary, in writing, when requested by the President or by twenty (20) or more members of the Association. The notice shall specify the purpose of the meeting and no other business shall be transacted at a special meeting.
Section 4. NOTICE. At least ten days written notice shall be given of the annual and all regular meetings, and at least five days notice of any special meetings, by letter mailed to each member at his or her listed address. Any member may opt to receive notice electronically.
Section 5. QUORUM. At each meeting of the membership 5 percent of the Attorney Members shall constitute a quorum.
Section 6. CONDUCT. All meetings shall be conducted according to Robert's Rules of Order, except as modified herein, or in such abbreviated form as may be approved by the members present.
ARTICLE VIII - COMMITTEES
Section 1. STANDING COMMITTEES. There are hereby created the following standing committees:
MANAGEMENT & OPERATIONS LEGAL PRACTICE AREAS
1.Courtroom Facilities & Library 1. Civil Trial & Appeal
2.Continuing Legal Education 2. Criminal Trial & Appeal
3.Docket/Editorial Board 3. Employment Law
4.Judiciary & Court Rules 4. Family Law
5.Judicial Selection & Retention 5. Juvenile Law
6.Volunteer Lawyers Program 6. Local Government
7.Legal Referral 7. Real Estate
8.Membership Services 8. Wills, Probate & Trust
9.Nominating Committee 9. Worker’s Compensation
10.Public Relations
11.Young and New Lawyers
Section 2. JUDICIAL SELECTION AND RETENTION. The membership of the Judicial Selection & Retention Committee shall consist of sixteen (16) members, including a Chair. Only Attorney Members shall serve on the Committee. They shall represent a broad spectrum of the profession. Each member shall be appointed by the President to a three (3) year term and the President shall fill any vacancies. The Chair shall be appointed by the President for a three (3) year term.
Holders of an evaluated office and members of the Committee if they apply for an evaluated office shall be ineligible for appointment during their tenure.
The Chair of the Committee will serve as presiding officer. In the event the Chair is not present, the Committee members present will elect a Chair pro tem who will serve as presiding officer.
Section 3. NOMINATING COMMITTEE. The nominating committee shall consist of seven members, three of whom are the three most recent immediate past presidents and the remaining four by appointment of the president.
Section 4. COMMITTEE APPOINTMENT. Each committee, except the Nominating Committee and the Judicial Selection And Retention Committee, may consist of a Chair and a Vice Chair and one or more members to be appointed by the President and approved by the Board.
Section 5. DUTIES. The duties of each standing committee shall be promulgated annually by the President with approval of the Board.
Section 6. MODIFICATION. Standing Committees may be dissolved and additional standing committees may be added from time-to-time by the Board of Directors.
Section 7. APPROVAL OF COMMITTEE STATEMENTS. No committee or member shall assume to represent the Lake County Bar Association before any legislative body, in any court, or before any other tribunal unless authorized to do so by the Board of Directors.
No report or recommendation of any committee of the Lake County Bar Association shall be considered as the action of the Lake County Bar Association unless and until it has been approved by the Board of Directors or the general membership.
ARTICLE IX – JUDICIAL EVALUATIONS
Section 1. BAR POLL. The Association shall survey the Attorney Members concerning the qualifications of judicial candidates, including the general election and/or retention of circuit judges, the reappointment of associate judges, the appointment of new associate judges and any other proceeding involving the election or appointment of Supreme Court, Appellate or Circuit Court jurists.
Section 2. PROCEDURE. The Association shall inquire of each voter as to that voter's knowledge as to the qualification of the candidates, and if the voter indicates a lack of sufficient knowledge to adequately rate a particular candidate, the voter shall be instructed not to rate the candidate. Voters shall be requested to rate the candidates as to various specific criteria, including but not limited to, integrity, impartiality, legal ability, temperament, court management, and health. Finally voters shall be asked to indicate their belief as to whether the candidate meets the acceptable requirements of the office.
Section 3. MINIMUM KNOWLEDGE. The Association shall make no recommendation as to any candidate rated by less than 25% of the responding voters whose ballots are determined to be valid and counted. As to any candidate rated by less than 25% of the responding voters, the Association shall announce that insufficient results were obtained to make the recommendation.
As to the candidates who are rated by 25% or more of the responding voters, the Association shall publicly announce the numerical results of each and every specific category of inquiry.
ARTICLE X - FISCAL YEAR AND DUES.
Section 1. FISCAL YEAR. The fiscal year shall begin on the first day of July in each year.
Section 2. DUES. Semi-annual dues shall be payable on the first day of January and the first day of July each year. Amount of dues shall be determined from time-to-time upon recommendation of the Board of Directors and approval by a majority vote of those present at a regular or special meeting of the Association.
Section 3. DELINQUENT. The Treasurer shall, after diligently seeking to collect, and after notice to the members of this By-Law, report to the Board of Directors the names of all members who are ninety days, or more, in arrears on their dues. The Board may thereupon declare such persons to be no longer members of this Association, and may reinstate such members upon payment of all outstanding dues.
ARTICLE XI - PENALTIES
Section 1. FORFEITURE OR SUSPENSION. Any member of this Association disbarred from practice by final order of the Supreme Court of this State shall automatically forfeit membership in this Association. If any member of this Association shall be suspended from the practice of law by order of the Supreme Court of this State, the membership of such person in this Association shall be suspended during the interval such suspension from practice shall be in force. Additionally, the Board of Directors may terminate the membership of any Associate Member.
Section 2. REINSTATEMENT. Reinstatement to practice after disbarment shall not reinstate such person to membership in this Association, but such disbarred member shall seek re-admittance in the manner provided for original applicants.
ARTICLE XII - AMENDMENTS
Section 1. PROCEDURE. Amendments may be made to these By-Laws only by a vote of two-thirds of the members present at any meeting called for that purpose. No proposed amendment shall be considered unless the proposed amendment shall have been included verbatim in the notice for the meeting at which it is to be considered.
These By-Laws shall be in full force and effect from and after
the date of their passage.
Ratified and Adopted this 9th day of September, 1977.
Ratified and Amended this 16th day of May, 1983.
Ratified and Amended this 28th day of March, 1989.
Ratified and Amended this 28th day of March, 1995.
Ratified and Amended this 24th day of March, 1998.
Ratified and Amended this 27th day of April, 1999.
Ratified and Amended this 24th day of October, 2000.
Ratified and Amended this 24th day of October, 2006.
Ratified and Amended this 20th day of March, 2008. |
