Constitution

1. NAME: The name of the Club shall be the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club of Canada, hereinafter referred to as the Club. 
2. AFFILIATION: The Club shall work in co-operation with the Canadian Kennel Club and may further affiliate itself with organizations devoted to similar aims and objects as the Club. Any such affiliation to be approved by the Club in a standing resolution to be attached to the by-laws hereunder at a later date. 
3. THE AIMS AND OBJECTS: The aims and objects of the Club shall be the encouragement and development of the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel as a breed by: 
   • educating members and the public at large about the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel 
   • studying the Breed Standard and adherence to it 
   • sponsoring events during the year in support of the above.
   • The club shall be operated on a non-profit basis. Any surplus generated by the Club shall not be used for the benefit of any member of the Club. 
4. AREA OF OPERATION: The area of operation of the Club shall be the country of Canada. 
5. REVISION OF THE CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS, OR BREED STANDARD: Amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws or Breed Standard may be made only after 
   • the proposed alterations have been raised for debate in at least two regular meetings of the Club. Copies of the proposed additions, deletions or amendments shall be served on all members prior to such debate. 
   • A mail vote of all eligible voting members will be conducted and must receive the approval of a minimum of two-thirds (2/3) of all ballots received to affirm any such amendment. Pro yxvotes are not allowed. 
   • Amendments may be proposed by the Board or by petition from a member or members. 
   • No amendment to the Constitution and By-Laws, or to the Breed Standard that is adopted by the Club, shall become effective until it has been approved by the Canadian Kennel Club. 
6. DISSOLUTION: The Club may be dissolved at any time by providing to the Canadian Kennel Club written documentation signed by at least two-thirds (2/3) of the members of the Club who are in favour of this decision; proxies are not permitted. In the event of the dissolution of the Club, other than for purposes of reorganization, whether voluntary or involuntary or by operation of law, none of the property of the Club, nor any proceeds thereof nor any assets of the Club shall be distributed to any members of the Club. After payment of the debts of the Club its property and assets shall be distributed as follows:  
   • Bequests, endowments and other financial gifts shall be disbursed in accordance with donors directions.   
   • Club trophies shall be returned to donors.   
   • All remaining assets will be converted to cash and transferred by cheque to the University of Guelph Pet Trust Fund for a project(s) to be designated by Club members. 

1. Any person of sixteen (16) years of age or older shall be eligible to join the Club upon sponsorship by one member in good standing who will supply the sponsorship form along with the application form to the Membership Director. Non-resident applications do not require sponsorship if proof of current membership in an accredited Cavalier King Charles Spaniel breed club in their own country is supplied. 
2. All members shall read and agree to abide by the Constitution, By-Laws and the Code of Ethics, and shall read and acknowledge the breeders’ guidelines. Membership in the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Club of Canada is a privilege and may be revoked by the Board for just cause. 
3. All applications for membership should be sent to the Director (Membership). The Director (Membership) will send new member applications to the Quotes Editor and these will subsequently be reported in the following Publication for the consideration of all Club members. The Board of Directors will normally make the membership decision at its meeting following the publication of the newsletter in which the applications for membership appear. 
4. Any individual rejected for membership in the Club will be provided with a written explanation.

1. The Club membership year is the calendar year, January 1 to December 31. 
2. Membership fees shall be due on the first day of January for the ensuing year. If dues are not paid by March 31, a membership shall be deemed to have terminated. It shall be the duty of the Director (Membership) to prepare and send out a notice of annual renewal and arrange for such notice to be published in the Club’s newsletter, November issue. A second and final notice shall be sent to delinquent Club members by the end of February each year. NSF cheques will be charged at our current Bank rate. 
    
   The Board of Directors shall have the power to review annually and increase, if necessary, the annual membership fees, subject to approval of members at the Annual General Meeting. Such changes are to be effective for the next membership year. 
3. Membership dues payment accepted up to and including the month of September will be for the current year. Membership dues payments accepted from October 1 on shall be valid until the end of December of the following year. 

1. Ordinary Members shall be those who have renewed their memberships by March 31 of the current year in one of the following categories.
   Individual: One Vote
   Fammily: Two Votes
   Senior: One Vote
   Senior Family: Two Votes (1 of which is a Senior) 
2. Associate Members shall be those persons in their first year of membership. Such persons shall become Ordinary members upon their first renewal of membership after the first anniversary of their joining the Club. They shall have all the privileges of Ordinary members except an election vote, a vote on monetary matters, or to be an Officer or Director of the Club. 
3. Non-resident members shall be those persons who are non-resident in Canada. They shall have all the privileges and responsibilities of ordinary members except the right to vote or to be an Officer or Director of the Club. 
4. Honorary Members shall be those persons appointed by unanimous vote of the Board of Directors at any Board meeting. They shall have all the privileges and responsibilities of an Ordinary Member except the right to vote or be an Officer or Director of the Club. 
5. Life Members shall be those persons appointed by unanimous vote of the Board of Directors at any Board meeting. They shall have all the privileges and responsibilities of an Ordinary Member including the right to vote or be an Officer or Director of the Club. All Presidents shall automatically become Life Members at the completion of their full term(s) of office. 
6. Termination of Membership 
   Termination of membership may occur as a result of resignation, failure to renew membership, non-payment of fees, expulsion by the Club as a result of deprivation, suspension, debarment, expulsion or termination of Canadian Kennel Club membership as imposed by the CKC’s Discipline Committee. 

1. The Board of Directors of the Club shall be the Officers of the Club: President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer and the following Directors: Director (Shows), Director (Membership), Director (Performance), Director (Keeper Trophies), Director (West and North)[ to represent British Columbia, Alberta, Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut] Director (Midwest) [to represent Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario west of 85 degrees longitude], Director (Central) [Ontario east of 85 degrees longitude] Director (Quebec), Director (Atlantic) [to represent New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador] and the immediate Past President (non-elected Board position). 
2. All Officers and Directors must be ordinary or life members of the Club, residents of Canada and regular Canadian Kennel Club members in good standing. 
3. No more than three (3) Directors may be elected from any one CKC recognized Region region. Directors representing geographic areas must reside in the area they represent and shall only be elected by members resident in that area. 
4. The President, Secretary, Director (Shows), Director (West and North), Director (Quebec), Director (Atlantic), shall be elected for a two-year term in even-numbered years. The Vice-President, Treasurer, Director (Membership), Director (Performance), Director (Central) and Director (Midwestern) shall be elected for a two-year term in odd-numbered years. Director (Keeper Trophies) shall be elected annually. 

1. Club Officers, their duties and responsibilities. 
    
   President shall Chair all Club general or special meetings – shall Chair the Board of Directors – shall be an ex officio non-voting member of all club committees – shall normally Chair any formal Club discipline hearing. 
    
   Vice-President shall be in charge of all Club Perpetual Awards – shall Chair Club and Board meetings in the absence of the President – shall act as Interim President until the next Club election in the event that the President vacates the position during his/her term of office. 
    
   Secretary shall record the minutes at all Club and Board meetings – shall distribute minutes of Club and Board meetings to all members by mail, through the Club newsletter and/or by email as appropriate – shall attend to all Club correspondence promptly – shall forward correspondence to affected Board members – shall be Club contact with and for the Canadian Kennel Club. 
    
   Treasurer shall keep an account of all financial activity – shall keep a bank account at a Canadian Chartered Bank, Trust Company or Credit Union in the Club’s name – shall issue cheques as may be approved by the Club. 
2. No Club Officer may hold the same office for more than two consecutive elected 2-year terms. Nothing herein stated shall deem an Officer ineligible to seek election to another office. 
3. An Officer of the Club who participates in less than fifty per cent (50%) of the meetings of the Board of Directors held in the Club year may be reprimanded by the Board and asked to resign their position. 

The Chair of any standing or ad hoc committee of the Club may participate in a Board of Directors meeting with the approval of the Board, but does not have voting privileges. 

1. The Club may establish standing committees from time to time to facilitate the work and activities of the Club. These committees will normally operate over a period of time, for as long as they are required. These may include Health and Education, Nominations and Elections, Cavalier Rescue, etc. All standing committee members are appointed annually. 
2. The Club may also establish ad hoc committees from time to time to carry out a specific task of designated duration on behalf of the Club, e.g. review Breed Standard, review Constitution and By-Laws, etc. Ad hoc committee members will normally serve for the duration of the task. 
3. Standing and ad hoc committees may be initiated by the Club members, at a Club meeting or by the Board of Directors. 

The Club shall hold at least five (5) meetings per year. These are usually on the last Saturday of January, March, May and November, and at the National Specialty Championship Show. 

Shall be the regular January meeting.

Shall be the meeting held in conjunction with the annual National Specialty Championship Show.

Special General Meetings may be called by any three members of the Board representing at least three regions of the Club or at the written request of twenty-five (25) members of the Club to deal with a specific matters or matters. All members must be notified of the special meeting and its agenda sent by mail and/or Email four weeks in advance of the meeting date. 

Will be held before every regular and Annual General Meeting of the Club. They may be held in person or electronically. In the event that the business of the Club is not completed at any Board Meeting the President may call an additional Board Meeting at any time. Email votes may be taken on important issues.

Proxy-voting at any Club meeting is not permitted.

The financial year shall commence on the 1st. day of January and conclude on the 31st. day of December next. 

The funds of the Club, except for amounts specified in the Standing Resolutions as authorized to be placed in safe-keeping of certain Officers as Petty Cash, Impress Funds, shall be placed in a separate and independent account in the name of the Club in a branch of any Canadian chartered bank, trust company or Credit Union.

All cheques drawn from the Club account must have the signatures of two (2) of the four (4) Officers of the Club, one of which should normally be the Treasurer.

The signing authorities of the Club shall be the four (4) Officers listed in Article 2, section 2a

Any document requiring the official endorsement of the Club shall be deemed to have been duly signed when it bears the recognized signatures of any two (2) of the Officers, one of which should normally be the President. 

All meetings of the Club and its governing bodies shall operate under the Robert’s Rules of Order. All other matters of practice and procedures not otherwise resolved shall be governed by the practices followed by the Canadian Kennel Club.

If the President vacates this office during the Club year, then the Vice-President shall act as Interim President for the remainder of the year. If any other Officer or Director vacates their position during the Club year, or the position is not filled during the annual Club election, then the Board of Directors may appoint a Club member to the position for the balance of the Club year. Members so appointed shall serve until the following January election meeting.

A quorum shall consist of eight (8) ordinary members of the Club at a general meeting, or four (4) members of the Board of Directors at a Board meeting at least one of which must be an Officer of the Club.

All Club members may participate in the nominations process, but only ordinary or life members in good standing may be nominated as an Officer or Director of the Club. 

In the event of a postal strike occurring during the nomination or election period (see 2a and 3a above) the Board of Directors, or its Executive acting for it, may make reasonable alternate arrangements for that year. 

Any member of the Club who is suspended, debarred, deprived, expelled or whose membership has been terminated by the Canadian Kennel Club Discipline Committee, shall be suspended from the privileges of the Club for a like period.

1. Any person, whether a member of the Club or not, shall have the right to lay a complaint with regard to any matter relating to the by-laws, rules, regulations, procedures and/or policies of the Club, including violation of the code of ethics. A complaint must be made in writing to the Secretary of the CKCSCC before it will be formally considered. 
2. The Board of Directors will request one of its members (e.g. immediate Past President, Regional Director, etc.) to review the complaint and will permit the member in question to respond in writing to the complaint. 
3. If the matter cannot be resolved satisfactorily, a formal discipline hearing will be called by the Board of Directors.

Any member of the Club who is suspended, debarred, deprived, expelled or whose membership has been terminated by the Canadian Kennel Club Discipline Committee, shall be suspended from the privileges of the Club for a like period.

1. (i) If a formal discipline hearing is required, the Board of Directors will appoint a three-person disciplinary committee, a Chair and two other persons, all current full voting Club members who are not Officers or members of the Board of Directors, to form the committee to conduct the hearing. 
   (ii) The hearing should be scheduled within three months of the naming of the discipline committee. 
   (iii) The complainant and defendant will be notified at least 30 days in advance when and where the hearing is to take place. 
   (iv) The President may postpone a scheduled hearing when the principles of natural justice are best served by doing so. 
2. The complainant and the defendant, or their designate, at their own expense have the right to be heard in person at the discipline hearing. 
3. A statement and evidence may be presented in writing by the complainant and defendant. Such written evidence must be delivered in person, by means of registered mail, courier or email to the Chair of the discipline hearing to be received at least one week prior to the scheduled hearing. 
4. The options available to the discipline committee are: 
   – Dismissal of the complaint 
   – Issue a warning, reprimand, suspension, expulsion, debarment, termination of membership. 
5. Any vote on disciplinary action shall be by secret ballot. The Chair is entitled to vote. In the event of a tie, it shall be deemed that the complaint is dismissed. 
6. The Club Secretary will notify the complainant and defendant by registered letter of the decision (and reasons for it) made by the discipline hearing committee. The Secretary must also inform the complainant and the defendant member of the appeal process. 

Any person subject to a decision of the Discipline Committee has the right to appeal the decision to the Board of Directors of the Club who will act as the Appeal Committee. 

1. The complainant or defendant has 30 days from the date of notice of the decision of the discipline committee to inform the Club Secretary in writing of the decision to appeal, and shall provide sufficient information of the grounds for the appeal to permit the appeal hearing to deal properly with the issues raised. 
2. The options available to the Discipline Appeal Committee are: 
   – To allow the appeal in whole or in part 
   – set aside or vary the penalty imposed by the Discipline Committee 
   – dismiss an appeal in whole or in part. 
3. The Board of Directors, when functioning as the Discipline Appeal Committee, will have the appeal(s) as the only item(s) of business for its Meeting Agenda which must be held within two (2) months of receiving the appeal. A Quorum will consist of a majority of eligible members voting. 
4. The complainant and the defendant will be notified promptly by phone of the result of the appeal. The decision will be confirmed subsequently by registered letter from the Club Secretary. 
5. The result of the appeal will be announced at the next Club meeting and published in the next issue of the Club newsletter.