RULES AND CONSTITUTION

1		NAME AND OBJECTS.
		The Club shall be called the North Eastern Counties Dobermann Society (hereinafter called the Society) and its objects shall be to foster and promote the interests, welfare and good name of the breed, bearing in mind that the Dobermann is a working dog. The Society shall not be classed as a trading business and the profits of the Society from all sources shall be devoted to the furtherance of the objects of the Society.
2		MEMBERS.
		The Society shall consist of an unlimited number of Members, Junior Members (under the age of eighteen) and Honorary Life Members, all of whose names and address shall be entered in a register kept by the Membership Secretary Application for membership shall be made to the Committee through the Membership Secretary on official Society forms obtainable from the Membership Secretary. The form shall be completed by the applicant and submitted through the Membership Secretary together with the appropriate current subscription. Each application shall be considered by the Committee who shall have the right to refuse it without disclosing their reasons. No candidate shall enjoy any privilege of membership until this application has been accepted by the Committee except at the Inaugural Meeting. The Committee may recommend for Honorary Life Membership their own and other members nominations of any person whom they may consider merit such distinction, such recommendations being subject to ratification at the next Annual General Meeting. Honorary Life Membership shall be exempt from paying the annual subscription but shall enjoy the full benefits of membership.
3		OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE.
		The Committee shall consist of a President, Chairman, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer and a Committee of up to 12 members.
4		COMMITTEE
		The management of the Society shall be in the hands of the Officers and Committee all of whom shall retire annually but shall be eligible for re-election. The Society may annually elect a President a person within the Dobermann breed or from outside it. The Office shall be non-voting. The Chairman shall be elected annually from the floor. There shall be a committee of up to 13 elected members and a Honorary Secretary and a Honorary Treasurer both of whom shall be ex-officio members of the Committee all with voting rights. The Committee shall, each year, at its first meeting after the Annual General Meeting elect from among its members a Vice Chairman and a Membership Secretary. Meeting of the Committee shall be held as often as deemed necessary by the Chairman or Secretary, or by the majority of the Committee. For the transaction of business at the Committee Meeting a quorum shall be 50% of whom at least 5 shall be elected Committee Members. Except in an emergency at least 21 clear days notice of a meeting shall be given to all Committee Members stating the place, the date and time. Any Officers or Committee Member whom without reasonable cause, fails to attend three consecutive meetings may be suspended from the Committee. Any acting Officer or Committee Member of the Society will not be permitted to handle or show dogs at Championship Shows organised by the Society. Any acting Officer or Committee Member of the Society who resigns from the Society for any other reason that ill health will not be permitted to stand for re-election to the Committee for a period of two calendar years following resignation.
5		POWERS OF COMMITTEE.
		The Committee shall have the power to call meetings to arbitrate in matters of dispute within the Society, to deal at its absolute discretion with the funds and property of the Society and to settle any question or matter not at present provided for in these Rules. Any decision taken under this Rule shall remain operative until the following Annual General Meeting. The Committee shall have the power to co-opt members onto the Committee in the event of position becoming vacant between Annual General Meetings. These co-opted members shall only hold office until the next Annual General Meeting of the Society at which election of Officers and Committee takes place.
6		ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS.
		Annual subscriptions shall become payable on lst January in each year (except as in Rule 2) and until further notice shall be – Joint £7.50. Single Membership £6.00. Junior Members under the age of eighteen years £1.00. N.B. Joint Membership of any 2 members of the same family or bona fide partnership residing at the same address. New members joining the Society from 1st September in any current year the membership will carry onto the following year. No member whose subscription is unpaid is entitled to the privileges of membership and if the member shall fail to pay outstanding subscriptions by the last day of February of the current year his name shall be automatically erased from the membership register. If the Committee subsequently receives a satisfactory explanation of the delay, the member may, at the discretion of the Committee and on payment of the arrears, be re-admitted to membership
7		VOTING RIGHTS.
		At all Committee Meetings each Officer and each member, and at any Annual General Meeting, each Society member except Junior members, shall have one vote each motion (joint members one vote each member of partnership). In the event of a tie the Chairman, at his/her discretion shall have an additional casting vote. No member shall participate in any Society voting until three calendar months have expired since his/her application to join was accepted by the Committee except at the Inaugural Meeting.
8		ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE.
		Officers and Committee members retiring as under Rule 5 shall if they wish to stand for re-election so notify the Secretary at least 28 days prior to the subsequent Annual General Meeting. New nominations which must be proposed and seconded by a fully paid up member on the appropriate form shall reach the Secretary at least 28 clear days before the subsequent Annual General Meeting. Only paid up members may be elected to any office or to the Committee. No member shall be permitted to stand for any election to any Society office or to nominate another member until six calendar months have expired since his application to join the Society was accepted by the Committee. In the event of insufficient nominations to the Committee being received the requisite additional names shall be nominated from the floor at the Annual General Meeting and elected by a simple majority except at the Inaugural Meeting.
9		EXPLUSION OF MEMBERS.
		Any member who shall be suspended under Kennel Club Rule A42j(8) and/or any members whose dog(s) is/are disqualified under Kennel Club Rule A42j(8) shall ipso facto cease to be a Member of the Society for the duration of the suspension and/or disqualification. If in the opinion of the Committee the conduct of a member is deemed not to be in the best interests of the Society or is in direct contravention of these rules or the Standards of Membership of the Society, the Committee may contravene a Special General Meeting to discuss and consider the conduct of the member and whether he/she should be expelled from the Society. A notice outlining the purpose of the SGM will be sent to the member notifying them of the time, date, location and the grounds for convening the meeting and inviting him/her to attend to provide the membership with an explanation of their conduct. If in the opinion of two thirds of the members present, following a vote, the members conduct was proven to be as outlined, the members name shall be deleted from the membership records and he/she will cease to be a members of the Society. The expelled member may within two months of the date of the SGM appeal to the Kennel Club in writing against the decision of the Society and any findings of the KC will be considered at the next Committee meeting of the Society following the outcome of the appeal. The Committee of the NECDS will have the final decision.
10		ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS.
		A Special General Meeting shall be called as often as the Committee shall decide. The Secretary shall convene a Special General Meeting if 20 or more members submit a clearly signed application for such a meeting stating the business to be transacted, other than which no business other than that detailed on the Agenda can be discussed at a Special General Meeting. All members shall receive at least 14 days notice of a Special General Meeting giving the date, time and place. An Annual General Meeting shall be held not later than 31st March for the following purposes.
	1	To pass the Minutes of the previous General Meeting(s)
	2	To receive reports from the Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer.
	3	To receive Annual Accounts.
	4	To elect Officers, Committee and Honorary Life Members.
	5	To appoint auditors, of whom there shall be two unless one is professional qualified when he alone will suffice.
	6	To discuss items previously submitted to the Agenda.
		At an Annual General Meeting, only business appearing on the published Agenda may be dealt with, except for matters of routine or those considered by the Chairman to be of sufficient urgency. At least 42 clear days notice of the date, time and place of an Annual General Meeting shall be given and all items for the Agenda must be received in writing to the Secretary at least 28 clear days before the meeting. In the event of personal notification of the A.G.M. by post members with outstanding subscriptions 60 clear days before the date of the A.G.M. shall for the purposes of the notification exercise be deemed not to be members.
11		MINUTES OF MEETINGS.
		The Minutes of all Society meetings shall be prepared by the Secretary for agreement by the Chairman. They shall be circulated as required before the next similar meeting at which they shall be confirmed by vote signed by the Chairman. Club records so confirmed shall be circulated as required before the next similar meeting at which they shall be available for inspection by any member entitled to vote after reasonable notice has been given to the Secretary in writing.
12		AMENDMENTS TO RULES.
		The Rules of the Society may not be altered except at an Annual General Meeting or Special General Meeting notice of which includes details of the proposal to alter the Rule and such alterations shall not be brought into force until the Kennel Club has been advised and has given its approval of the alterations.
13		SOCIETY ACCOUNTS.
		The Society financial year shall run from 1st January to 31st December in any year. A Bank Account shall be opened in the name of the Society to which all income shall be credited. Withdrawals shall be made only by any of two of Treasurer, Secretary and Chairman. All reasonable expenses incurred by the Secretary, Treasurer, Show Manager or any other member of the Society so authorised by the Committee shall be reimbursed from Society Funds as soon as possible. The books of account shall be kept by the Treasurer who shall prepare the annual accounts for certification by the Auditors.
14		SHOWS.
		A Show Manager shall be appointed by the Committee from among its members to organise Shows and similar functions and seek out venues as deemed expedient by the Committee. The venues of such events shall be decided by the Committee, bearing in mind the need for varying locations over as wide an area as conditions permit.
15		CUPS, TROPHIES AND SPECIAL AWARDS
	.	A Cup Steward shall be appointed by the Committee from amongst its members who shall be responsible for keeping records of awards and signatures of their recipients. All Cups and Trophies donated to the Society shall be deemed to be the sole property of the Society and it is only under these conditions that they shall be accepted. Each Cup or Trophy shall be awarded in accordance with the wishes of the donor, subject to the Committee’s agreement and shall not be re-allocated without the written consent of the donor. In the event of the donor being untraceable, the Committee may after a period of 6 months make any change deemed to be in the interest of the Society. Cups, Trophies and Special Awards shall, unless specifically stated otherwise be available only to paid up members. If the winner is a non-member no award shall be made on that occasion.
16		JUDGES
		Judges of all Society Shows shall be appointed by the Committee on the basis of a simple majority vote. Any fully paid up member may submit in writing to the Secretary a nomination of a Judge and it shall receive due consideration. No person shall be invited to Judge at the Societies Open Show if they have not judged at least 30 Classes of Dobermanns at Limit or Open Shows and had at least 100 dogs entered under them. Nominations for the Dobermann Breed Council A3, B or C Judging Lists shall be submitted to the Secretary in writing in accordance with the criteria laid down by the DBC for consideration by the Committee. If recommended the Secretary will forward the nomination to the DBC for final approval. Applicants must meet the required DBCcriteria for Judges at the time of their application. Any acting Officer or Committee member, correctly nominated, shall be eligible for invitation to judge at Open or Championship Show level organised by the Society provided they meet the criteria laid down by the DBC.
17		WINDING UP
		In the event of the Society ceasing to exist for any reason the donors of the Cups and Trophies shall be consulted, where possible, and each Cup or Trophy shall be disposed of in accordance with the wishes of the donor. A meeting of the Committee shall be called to decide upon the disposal of any assets remaining after all the Society liabilities have been discharged. The Kennel Club shall be notified as soon as a decision is made to wind up the Society and within 6 months of such date the Kennel Club shall be supplied with a final statement of accounts and a record showing the disposal of all society property.
18		FEDERATION OF CLUBS
		The Society is member of the Dobermann Breed Council which is the representative body for Dobermann Breed Clubs in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Representatives of the Society will attend DBC meetings as notified by the DBC.
19		ANNUAL RETURNS TO THE KENNEL CLUB
		The Officers acknowledge that during the month of January each year, Maintenance fee will be forwarded to the Kennel Club by the Secretary for the continuance of registration and that by 31st July each year, other returns as stipulated in the Kennel Club Regulations for the Registration and Maintenance of Title of Societies and Breed Councils and the Affiliation of Agricultural Societies and Municiple Authorities will be forwarded to the Kennel Club. The Officers also acknowledge their duty to inform the Kennel Club of any change of Secretary of the Society which may occur during the course of the year.
20		KENNEL CLUB AUTHORITY.
		The Kennel Club is the final authority interpreting the Rules and Constitution of the Society and in all cases relating to Canine and Society matters.
21		NAMES OF MEMBERS
		The Society will make a list of members and their address available for inspection if so requested by members of the Society or Kennel Club.

Amended 30th March 2008

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