The ACBA Board of Directors have proposed substantive changes to the ACBA Bylaws for 2020

Description of Proposed Substantive Changes to ACBA Bylaws

November 2019

Read the redlined version here

1. Article 2, Number 3. Eliminate list of potential judicial offices, and simply make any judicial officer in California a “Judicial Member.”
2. Article 4, Number 1. Prior Bylaws provided that Past President sat ex officio as a Director, but without a vote.  California law prohibits non-voting Directors.  Bylaw therefore changed to make the Past President a “Special Advisor to the Board.”
3. Article 5, Number 1. Eliminate the complicated residency requirements for Officers.  With our increasingly regional lives, this no longer makes sense. 
4. Article 5, Number 5. Changes the requirement for a full audit of the Association’s books from every other year to every third year. (In years with no audit, a financial review is still required.)  This will save funds while still assuring independent financial oversight.
5. Article 6, Numbers 2 and 4. Changes publication requirements for Board elections from the legal newspaper to an email – which is likely to be more effective and less expensive.
6. Article 10, Number 1. Clarified indemnification provision.
7. Article 13, Number 4.a. Requires that every Section Executive Committee include at least one member of the Barristers Section (attorneys in first 10 years of practice).  This helps ensure that newer attorneys get a chance to get engaged in their areas of interest, and that Section activities are planned with input from newer attorneys.
8. Article 13, Number 4.b. Reduced the number of terms that Section Executive Committee members can serve from three tow-year terms to two two-year terms (to help ensure turnover and a variety of perspectives) but allows the CEO to authorize exceptions as needed, if there are not enough qualified people interested in serving.
9. Article 15, Number 2. Clarifies that the LRS, CAAP and JAEC Committees have authority to act on behalf of the Association with respect to their particular spheres.
10. Article 16, Number 2. Provides direction on how to collect public comment on proposed material amendments to the Bylaws. 

Read the redlined version here

Please direct any comments to Tiela Chalmers at tiela@acbanet.org by December 4, 2019.