AVIATION LAW SECTION BYLAWS
OF THE STATE BAR OF TEXAS
ARTICLE I
Name and Purposes
Section I. Name. This Section shall be known as the AVIATION LAW SECTION of the State Bar of Texas.
Section 2. Purpose. The Purpose of the Aviation Law Section shall be to promote the objectives of the State Bar of Texas and the interest of its members concerning all phases of aviation and space law.
ARTICLE II
Membership and Dues
Section I. Members. Any member in good standing of any State Bar or student at an accredited law school, upon application and payment of dues for the current year, shall be enrolled as a member of the Aviation Law Section.
Section 2. Annual Dues. The annual dues that each member of the Section shall be required to pay shall be set from time to time by the members of the Council of the Section with the approval of the Directors of the State Bar of Texas. The annual dues shall be due and payable in advance each year concurrently with the payment of the regular annual dues of the State Bar of Texas.
Section 3. Termination of Membership. Membership in the Section will terminate upon resignation or nonpayment of annual dues which shall be more than six months delinquent.
ARTICLE III
Officers
Section 1. Officers. The officers of the Section shall be a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Director and Immediate Past Chairperson, each of whom shall be a voting member of the Section in good standing and members of the State Bar of Texas shall hold office for a term beginning with the close of the annual meeting at which they are elected and ending at the close of the next succeeding annual meeting of the Section and until their successor has been elected.
Section 2. Chairperson. The Chairperson shall preside at all meetings of the Council (See Article IV) and at the annual meeting of the Section. The Chairperson shall formulate and present at each annual meeting of the State bar of Texas a report of the work of the Section for the past year. The Chairperson shall perform such other duties and acts as usually pertain to said office.
Section 3. Vice-Chairperson. The Vice-Chairperson shall be an ex-officio member of the all of the committees appointed by the Chairperson of the Council. Upon the death, resignation, or during the disability of the Chairperson, or upon the Chairperson’s absence or refusal to act, the Vice-Chairperson shall perform the duties of the Chairperson for the remainder of the Chairperson’s term but only during so much of the term as the absence or disability continues.
Section 4. Secretary. The Secretary shall be custodian of all books, papers, documents, and other property of the Section. The Secretary shall keep a true record of the proceedings of all meetings of the Section and of the Council, whether assembled or action under submission. With the Chairperson, the Secretary shall prepare a summary or digest of the proceedings of the Section at its annual meeting for publication in the Texas Bar Journal, upon approval by the President of the State Bar of Texas. The Secretary, in conjunction with the Chairperson, as authorized by the Council, shall attend generally to the business of the Section.
Section 5. Treasurer. The Treasurer shall receive all dues payable by members of the Section and all other funds to which the Section is entitled and shall make payments for expenses incurred in the regular course of the Section’s business, and for other items approved by the Chairperson or the Council. The Treasurer shall keep accurate records and shall account for all sums received. The Treasurer shall select the depository of all funds of the Section and shall keep an accurate account of all dues collected and of all monies appropriated for the Section and expended for its use.
Section 6. Membership Director. The Membership Director shall compile and maintain a current roster of the membership of the Section, including a list of the current officers and general Council members. The Membership Director shall maintain a record of the term and date of election of each general Council member.
ARTICLE IV
The Council
Section 1. General Responsibility. The Council shall have general supervision and control of the affairs of the Section subject to the provisions of the Charter and Bylaws of the State Bar of Texas and the Bylaws of the Section. It shall adopt procedures to authorize expenditures of money generally, and shall approve any expenditure which exceeds the amount of annual dues collected by the Section and commitments or contracts which involve obligations for the payment of money by the Section in excess of five hundred dollars.
Section 2. Membership. The Council for the Section shall consist of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Director, Immediate Past Chairperson and six general Council members to be elected by the Section as hereinafter provided. The Editor of the Newsletter also shall be an ex-officio member of the Council. In addition, the President and President-Elect of the State Bar of Texas and the Chairman of the Board and Board advisor to the Section from the Board of Directors of the State Bar of Texas shall be ex-officio members of the Council.
Section 3. Filling Vacancies in Office. The Council, during the interim between annual meetings of the Section, may fill vacancies in its own membership, in the office of Secretary or Treasurer, or in the position of Editor of the Newsletter, or in the event of a vacancy in both the office of Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson, then in the office of Chairperson.
Section 4. Ex-Officio Members. Ex-officio members of the Council shall have the right to attend all Council meetings and participate in the discussions at Council meetings, but shall have no right to vote. Ex-officio members may serve on any committees, either as committee members or as Chairperson.
Section 5. No Re-Election of General Members. No person shall be eligible for election as a general member of the Council if they are then a general member of the Council and have been such continuously for a period of three years or more.
Section 6. Removal for Failure to Attend Meetings. If any elected general member of the Council shall fail to attend three consecutive regular meetings of the Council, the office held by such member shall be automatically vacated, and the Council shall fill the vacancy for the unexpired term.
Section 7. Newsletter. The Council may cause to be published a newsletter and the Chairperson may appoint one or more editors for the newsletter. The editor shall serve at the pleasure of the Chairperson.
Section 8. Special Committees. The Council may authorize the Chairperson to appoint special committees from the Section members, to perform such duties and exercise such powers as the Council may direct, subject to the limitation of these Bylaws and the Charter and Bylaws of the State Bar of Texas. Special committees may be appointed to draft and study the proposed legislation in the field of laws of special interest to the Section. The Chairperson and member of such special committees may, but need not, be members or officers of the Council. The Chairperson may designate to whom any special committee shall report.
Section 9. Continuing Legal Education. The Council may authorize the study of any and all problems related to the field of aviation law, may conduct institutes and seminars and study session thereon, and may authorize participation in any institute or meeting relating to such subject matters conducted by the State Bar of Texas or any section or committee authorized by it.
ARTICLE V
Nomination and Election of Officers and Council Members
Section 1. Initial Nominations. The Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Director and Council shall be nominated and elected at the organizational meeting of the Section for such purpose, and thereafter (in the manner hereinafter provided) at each annual election meeting of the Section, and the Chairperson for the preceding year shall be the Immediate Past Chairperson, to hold office for an initial term beginning with the date of approval and creation of the Section until the close of the next annual meeting thereafter.
Section 2. Nominations. Not less than ninety days prior to the next annual meeting, the Chairperson shall appoint a nominating committee of five members of the Council, one of whom to be designated Chairperson of the nominating committee, which committee shall make and report nominations to the Section for the offices of Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Director and the members of the Council to succeed those whose terms expire at the close of the then annual meeting to which officers and members of the Council will be elected. Ex-officio members of the Council may serve on the nominating committee. A copy of the report of the nominating committee shall be submitted to the Chairperson of the Section in sufficient time to conform to the notice requirement of Section 4 of this ARTICLE V, and shall be presented to the annual meeting by the Chairperson of the nominating committee.
Section 3. Representative Membership. The voting membership of the Section should reflect, as much as possible, the membership of the Section as a whole, taking into consideration all relevant factors, including, but not limited to the geographical location of the membership as a whole and other factors relevant to maintaining the Section Council membership which reflects the membership of the Section as a whole. Provided, however, that the representation need not be in proportion between those Section members who are Board Certified Specialists and those who are not.
Section 4. Notice. Written notice of the nominees for election to the offices and Council positions as nominated by the nominating committee shall be given to members of the Section not less than thirty days prior to the date for the election.
Section 5. Number and Term of Council Members. At the organization meeting of the Section at which these Bylaws shall have been adopted, two members of the Council shall be nominated and elected to serve for one year; two members of the Council shall be nominated and elected to serve for a term of two years’ and two members of the Council shall be nominated and elected to serve for a term of three years. [The word “year” as used herein means a term beginning at the close of the first annual meeting after the organization meeting, and thereafter at the annual meeting, at which they shall have been elected and ending at the close of the first, second and third succeeding annual meetings of the Section, respectively.] Thereafter, upon the expiration of each of these initial terms, two members of the Council shall be elected at each annual meeting of the Section, for terms of three years beginning at the close of the annual meeting at which they shall have been elected and ending at the close of the third succeeding annual meeting of the Section.
Section 6. Elections. All elections shall be made by majority vote of the voting members of the Section in attendance at the annual meeting and shall be by written ballot unless otherwise ordered by resolution duly adopted by the Section at the meeting at which the election is held.
ARTICLE VI
Meetings
Section 1. Annual Meeting of Section. The annual meeting of the Section may be held during the annual meeting of the State Bar of Texas, and at the same city or place, which such and order as may be arranged, or the annual meeting of the Section may be held at any such time and place as agreed upon by a majority of the Council.
Section 2. Special Meetings of Section. Special meetings of the Section may be called by the Chairperson upon approval of the Council, at such time and place and upon such notice as the Council may determine.
Section 3. Voting at Section Meetings. The members of the Section present at any meeting shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. All binding action of the Section shall be by a majority vote of the members present.
Section 4. Meetings of the Council. Special meetings of the Council may be called by the Chairperson at such place and time as the chairperson may designate. Regular meetings of the Council shall be held in the fall, winter, spring at such place and time as the Chairperson may designate.
Section 5. Voting and Council Meetings. A majority of the members of the Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. Action by a majority vote of the Council members present shall constitute the binding action of the Council, except as provided in Section 6 of ARTIGLE VI. Members of the Council when personally present at a meeting of the Council shall vote in person, but when absent may communicate their vote, in writing, upon any proposition to the Secretary and have it counted with the same effect as if cast personally at such meeting.
Section 6. Council Voting on Formal Propositions. The Chairperson of the Section may, and upon request of any member of the Council, shall submit or cause to be submitted in writing to each of the members of the Council, any proposition upon which the Council may be authorized to act, and the members of the Council may vote upon such proposition or propositions so submitted by communicating their vote thereon, in writing over their respective signatures, to the Secretary, who shall record upon the minutes each proposition so submitted, when, how, at whose requested same was submitted, and the vote of each member of Council thereon, and keep on file such written and signed votes. If the votes of a majority of the members of the Council so recorded shall be in favor of such proposition or if such majority shall be against such proposition, such majority vote shall constitute the binding action of the Council.
ARTICLE VII
Miscellaneous Provisions
Section 1. of Texas Fiscal Year. The Fiscal Year shall be the same as that of the State Bar.
Section 2. Payment of Bills. All bills incurred by the Section, before payment by the Treasurer, shall be submitted to and approved by the Chairperson or, if the Council shall so direct, by both of them.
Section 3. Limitation on Compensation. No salary of compensation shall be paid to any officer, member of the Council, or member of a committee. Nevertheless, a person may be compensated for work done outside the meetings of the Council on special studies or projects, provided they have been employed by vote of the Council.
Section 4. Reimbursement for Expenses. Members of the Council and other persons expressly requested to attend a Council meeting shall be reimbursed for actual out of-pocket expenses incurred in attendance at any meeting of the Council. Member of any committee shall be reimbursed for actual out-of-pocket expenses incurred in attending any meeting of the committee, provided that Chairperson has approved reimbursement before or after the meeting. Except for non-Council members expressly requested to attend a Council meeting, the amount of reimbursement shall not exceed the maximum amount of reimbursement from time to time established by the Directors of the State Bar of Texas for a person attending meetings of the Board of Directors of the State Bar of Texas or other official meetings.
Section 5. Exerting Positions on Behalf of the State Bar of Texas. No action, policy determination, or recommendation of the Section, or any committee thereof, shall be deemed to be, or be referred to as, the action of the State Bar of Texas prior to submission of the same to, and approved by, the Board of Directors of the State Bar of Texas, the General Assembly of the State Bar of Texas in annual convention, or duly authorized referendum of the State Bar of Texas. Any resolution adopted or action taken by the Section may on request of the Section be reported by the Chairperson to the annual meeting of the State Bar of Texas for action thereon.
Section 6. Governmental Authority. The Section, through the process called “Governmental Authority”, may seek the authority to present a position of the State Bar of Texas before a public, judicial, executive, or legislative body. A position of the Section with respect to which the Governmental Authority process is desired shall be authorized by the Council only notice to all members of the Council of the proposed position to be adopted and the date at which the position will be considered by the Council. If a proposed position is adopted by the Council as provided above, thereafter all requirements and procedures set forth in the Policy Governing Legislative Action by the State Bar of Texas adopted by the Board of Directors of the State Bar of Texas on July 3, 1984, as amended from time to time, with respect to application, notice, circulation, clearance, objections, disclaimer, presentation, filing and all other matters shall be strictly followed.
Section 7. Indemnification. Officers and general members of the Council and duly authorized permanent and general special committee members of the Section shall be indemnified by the Section for losses and expenses incurred as a result of a suit for any conduct in the course of their official duties not a result of intentional acts or gross negligence on the part of such person. The indemnification granted here shall extend to actions at law or in equity. Notwithstanding the provisions of the indemnification, this indemnification shall be qualified to the extent that professional liability insurance is maintained by each person and is effective in this instance, and at no time shall the amount for which any individual may seek indemnification exceed the amount of funds held on deposit by the Section.
Section 8. Amendment. These Bylaws may be amended at any meeting of the Section provided such proposed amendment shall first have been presented in writing to the Chairperson and approved by a majority of the members of the Section present and voting at a meeting at which such amendment is considered. No amendment so adopted shall become effective until same shall have also been approved by the Board of Directors of the State Bar of Texas. Notice that an amendment to these Bylaws is to be considered shall be contained in the notice to the members of the Section of the meeting at which such amendment is to be considered.