Arizona Justice of the Peace Association

 "BY-LAWS"

  CHAPTER I
Name 

                The name of the Association shall be the ARIZONA JUSTICE OF THE PEACE ASSOCIATION.

 CHAPTER II
Purpose 

                The purpose of the Association shall be to consider and deal with, by all lawful means consistent with the code of the judicial conduct, concerns involving members of the judiciary of the State of Arizona, so as to advance the welfare of the Justices of the Peace and the judiciary of the State of Arizona.

 CHAPTER III
Principal Office 

                The principal office of the Association shall be located within the State of Arizona at the official address of the then President of the Association.  The Association may have such other offices as may be designated by its Executive Committee.

CHAPTER IV
Membership 

(A) GENERAL MEMBERSHIP: General Membership in the Association shall be available to any current Justice of the Peace, Magistrate, and Active Judge Pro-Tempore who are eligible to become and remain a General Member of this Association with full voting privileges, provided such member is in good standing. 

(B) HONORARY MEMBERSHIP:  All retired Justice of the Peace, Magistrates and Judge Pro-Tempore shall be honorary members of the Association.  Any other persons, by majority vote of the general members of the Association, may be awarded an honorary membership in the Association under such terms and with non-voting privileges. 

(C) VOTING:  Each General Member shall be entitled to one vote in the affairs of the Association, provided dues are paid in full. 

(D) DURATION OF MEMBERSHIP:  Active membership in this Association may terminate by voluntary withdrawal or otherwise as provided in these bylaws.  All rights, privileges, and interests of a member in or to the member may, by giving written notice of such intention, withdraw from membership. 

(E) AMOUNT OF ANNUAL DUES:  The annual dues required for active membership in the Association shall be $100.00 on or before the 1st of July of each year.

CHAPTER V
Meetings 

(A) ANNUAL MEETING:  There shall be an annual meeting of the Association anytime prior to November 1 of each year as ordered by the Executive Board for Election of the Officers, receiving reports, and the transactions of other business.  Meetings shall be open to active members.  Notice of such meetings, issued by the Secretary, shall be mailed to the last recorded address of each member at least 15 days before the time appointed for the meeting. 

(B) QUORUM: Twenty-five percent of the active members of this Association, when present at any meeting, shall constitute a quorum.  In case there are less than this number, the presiding officer may adjourn from time to time until a quorum is present. 

(C) ORDER OF BUSINESS:  The order of business at annual meetings, unless otherwise ordered by the Executive Committee, shall be a follows:  (1) Call to order; (2) Reading of minutes of previous meeting; (3) Reports of officers; (4) Reports of Executive Committee and special committee(s); if any; (5) Unfinished business; (6) New business; (7) Election of officers for the coming year, and (8) Adjournment. 

The order of business may be altered or suspended at any meeting by a majority of the members present. 

(D) SPECIAL MEETINGS:  Special meetings of the Association may be called at any time by the President, or in the President's absence by the Vice-President or Secretary, on the written request of not less than 25 percent of the members of the Association.

CHAPTER VI
Officers 

(A) ELECTIVE OFFICERS:  The elective officers of the Association shall be a president, a vice-president, a secretary, and a treasurer.  Other offices and officers may be established and appointed by the active members of the Association at the regular annual meeting.  Prior to each annual meeting, the nomination committee shall meet and nominate candidates for the elective offices of the Association for the succeeding year, with such nominations to be presented at the time of the annual meeting.   Additional nominations for each office may be made from the floor by any active member/s. 

(B) TERMS:  The President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer shall take office immediately upon their election, and shall serve for a term of one year and until their successors are duly elected.  Vacancies in the office of President, Vice-President, Secretary or Treasurer may be filled by the Executive Committee, for a period extending until the next annual meeting of the Association. 

(C) PRESIDENT:  The President shall be the chief officer of the organization, and shall be present at meetings of the Association and of the Executive Committee.  The President shall be a member ex-officio of all committees.  The President shall communicate to the Association such matters and make such suggestions as may in the President's opinion tend to promote the welfare and increase the usefulness of the Association and shall perform such other duties as are necessarily and customarily incident to the office of President. 

(D) VICE PRESIDENT:  The Vice-President shall perform all duties of the President during the absence of the President, together with other duties as may be assigned to him or her by the President or the Executive Committee.  The Vice-President shall be a member ex-officio of all committees. 

(E) SECRETARY:  In addition to such other duties as may be defined by the Executive Committee, the Secretary shall:  (1) give notice of and attend all meetings of the Association and all committees and make provision for keeping of a record of the proceedings; (2) conduct correspondence and carry into execution all orders, votes and resolutions not otherwise committed; (3) keep a list of the members of the Association; (4) establish a mechanism for the collection of dues and their payment to the Treasurer (in this connection the Secretary may function as an assistant treasurer for the purpose of collecting dues and issuing receipts therefore); and (5) act as credentials chairman during elections. 

(F) TREASURER:  The Treasurer shall keep a permanent account for all monies received and expended by and for the use of the Association, and shall make disbursements authorized by the Executive Committee or President or such person/s as an Active Association member/s may prescribe.  All sums received shall be deposited by the Treasurer in the bank or banks approved by the Executive Committee, bearing the names of the President and the Treasurer.  The Treasurer shall make a report at the annual meeting or when called upon by the President.  Funds may be withdrawn from the permanent account of the Association by the Treasurer.  The duties of the Treasurer may be delegated to an Assistant Treasurer.  The Treasurer may select an Assistant Treasurer upon approval of the Executive Committee. 

(G) MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE BOARD:  The President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and Immediate Past President of the Association shall be members of the Executive Board called Directors.  There shall be three additional members of the Executive Board called Directors.  These Directors shall be elected by vote of the active general members.  These Directors shall serve on the Executive Board until the next election. 

(H) NOMINATION COMMITTEE:  The Nomination Committee shall nominate general members as candidates for the offices of the Association.  This committee of three (3) or more persons shall be composed of all former Presidents of the Association who still retain general membership, the current Secretary of the Association, acting as the credentials chairman, and any others as designated by these bylaws, or as appointed by the President to provide a viable committee.  The most recent former President shall serve as Chair.

CHAPTER VII
Executive Board 

                The Executive Board shall have supervision, control, and direction of the affairs of the Association, shall execute the policies and decisions of the active membership, shall actively pursue the Association's objective, and shall have discretion in the disbursement of the Association's funds.  It may adopt such rules for the conduct of its business as shall be deemed advisable, and may, in the execution of powers granted, appoint subcommittees or agents to work on specified problems or reports.  The Executive Board shall have a regular meeting at the time and place of the annual meeting, and shall report to the membership on its committees.  It shall meet on the call of the President.

CHAPTER VIII
Elections 

(A) OFFICERS:  The election of Association officers shall take place annually at the time and place of the regular annual meeting.  Any active member shall be eligible for office.  Candidates who receive the highest count of votes cast shall be elected. 

(B) PROXY VOTE: Any general member may delegate their vote by proxy to any other active member in writing.  Such proxy may cover any matter at any regularly noticed meeting. 

(C) MAIL VOTE:  When, in the judgment of the Executive Board, any questions shall arise that should be put to a vote of the general membership, and when deemed inexpedient to call a special meeting for that purpose, it may, unless otherwise required by these bylaws, submit the matter to the general membership in writing by mail vote and decision, by certified regular mail, and the question thus presented shall be determined according to a majority of the votes received by mail within thirty (30)  days after such submission to the regular membership.  Action taken in this manner shall be as effective as action taken at a duly called meeting.

CHAPTER IX
Amendments 

                These Bylaws may be amended, repealed, or altered in whole or in part, by majority vote at the annual meeting or any regulations provided each member in good standing be notified of the changes or amendments at lease 30 days prior to the meeting at which changes or amendments will be voted on.

CHAPTER X
Funds 

                This Association is not intended as a profit-making organization, nor is it founded with the expectation of making a profit.  This Association shall use its funds only for objects and purposes specified in these bylaws, and for the benefit of the Association and membership. 

CHAPTER XI
Dissolution 

                The Association may be dissolved by a vote of two-thirds (2/3) of its active members.  In the event of such dissolution, the property of the Association shall be distributed equally to the active voting members of the Association.