Rules of Procedure

(Adopted by the International Committee of the IAHR on August 9, 2000 in Durban, South Africa; revised to accommodate constitutional changes adopted by the General Assembly of the IAHR on August 12, 2000; revised by the International Committee of the IAHR on May 10, 2003 in Bergen, Norway; revised to accommodate a new agreement with Brill on Numen by the International Committee of the IAHR on September 10, 2008 in Brno, Czech Republic; revised by the International Committee of the IAHR on August 18, 2010 in Toronto and, as regards constitutional changes, adopted by the General Assembly of the IAHR following the adoption of a revised constitution on August 21, 2010 in Toronto; revised by the International Committee and and, as regards constitutional changes, adopted by the General Assembly of the IAHR following the adoption of a revised constitution on August 29, 2015 in Erfurt)

I. Membership

Rule 1.

1.a. Constituent member societies and associations are national and regional bodies with provisional or full membership of the IAHR (Article 3A of the Constitution) and whose membership has not lapsed.

1.b. Affiliates are international associations or individuals with provisional or full affiliation to the IAHR and whose affiliation has not lapsed.

1.c. IAHR membership or affiliation will be declared lapsed by the Executive Committee, or the International Committee, or the General Assembly, if any dues remain unpaid after six consecutive notifications within a period of 18 months. Where any dues remain unpaid for three years, the society's name will be struck from the list.

1.d. The General Assembly of the IAHR is composed of "all members of constituent societies and associations present at the congress" [Article 4.a of the Constitution].

1.e. The International Committee is composed of "(i) two representatives from each of the constituent national and regional societies and associations; (ii) the Executive Committee (see below); and (iii) up to four individual members co-opted by the International Committee on the recommendation of the Executive Committee" [Article 4.b of the Constitution].

1.f. "The Executive Committee is composed of a President, two Vice-Presidents, a Secretary General, a Deputy Secretary General, a Treasurer, a Deputy Treasurer, a Publications Officer, and four further members." [Article 4.c of the Constitution].

1.g. Members of the Editorial Board of NUMEN are appointed by the IAHR Executive Committee. As a rule the Editorial Board consists of the IAHR Executive Committee.

The Managing and Reviews Editors are appointed by the Publisher on the recommendation of the IAHR Executive Committee, and the Publisher draws up separate contracts with these editors in conformity with the overall contract between the Publisher and the IAHR.

The duration of the appointment of the Editor(s) will be stipulated in the contracts, but as a rule the period is five years.

The legal relationship between the IAHR and Brill Publishers is stipulated in a contract signed by the parties on December 7, 2007. The contract will be in force for a period of ten years from this date, i.e. until December 6, 2017.

The contract will then be renewed automatically for ten years, unless notice in writing is given by either party at least twelve (12) months before the date of termination of the contract.

II. Sessions

Rule 2. Frequency of Sessions

2.a. The General Assembly shall meet at each quinquennial international congress.

2.b. The International Committee "shall meet once on the occasion of each quinquennial congress between the meeting of the Executive Committee and that of the General Assembly, and once between consecutive quinquennial congresses." [Article 6 of the Constitution].

2.c. "The Executive Committee shall meet normally once a year. [Article 5 of the Constitution]. Decisions made in consultation with Executive Committee members in the interim must be confirmed at the next formal meeting.

2.d. The Editorial Board of NUMEN normally meets in conjunction with the Executive Committee meetings.

Rule 3. Convocation

3a. All sessions shall be convened by the President of the IAHR.

3.b. If for any reason the President is unable to convene a session, one of the Vice-Presidents of the IAHR shall convene it.

3.c. If for any reason the Vice-Presidents are unable to convene a session, the Secretary General or Deputy Secretary General shall convene it.

3.d. The Secretary General shall notify the officers of the constituent societies and/or the members of the Executive Committee concerning the date, place and provisional agenda of each session at the latest one month in advance.

3.e. It is the duty of the officers of the constituent societies to communicate such notification to their members concerning the General Assembly.

3.f. It is the duty of the officers of the constituent societies to communicate such notification to their respective delegates concerning the International Committee meetings.

Rule 4. Date and Place

4.a. The General Assembly meets at the location and time of the quinquennial congress.

4.b. The International Committee meets at the location and time of the quinquennial congress. In addition, the session between consecutive quinquennial congresses shall be held at the location and time of an IAHR conference.

4.c. The Executive Committee will normally meet at the location and time of an IAHR conference.

III. Participants

Rule 5. Delegations

5.a. The General Assembly consists of all individual members of fully paid-up constituent societies and associations of the IAHR present at the quinquennial congress.

5.b. Each constituent national or regional society and association shall provide the Secretary General of the IAHR with a list of paid-up individual members who shall thus be recognized as voting members of the General Assembly. Members of affiliated societies of the IAHR may attend a General Assembly but do not have the right to vote.

5.c. The executive committee of each constituent national or regional society and association appoints no more than two representatives to each International Committee meeting. These are normally, but not necessarily, the president and secretary of the constituent society or association. In addition, each affiliated association may appoint no more than one (non-voting) representative to attend each International Committee meeting.

5.d. Members of the Executive Committee of the IAHR are members of the International Committee but may not serve as representatives for their constituent societies or associations at the International Committee meetings.

5.e. It is the duty of the officers of each constituent or affiliated society and association to notify the Secretary General of the IAHR of the name(s) of the designated representative(s).

5.f. On the recommendation of the Executive Committee, up to four individuals may be co-opted as voting members by the International Committee at the beginning of the session.

Rule 6. Observers and Consultants

On the recommendation of the Executive Committee, the International Committee may allow observers and/or consultants to participate in its sessions. They shall not have the right to vote.

IV. Agenda

Rule 7. Provisional Agenda

The provisional agenda of each session shall be prepared by the Secretary General.

Rule 8. Adoption of the Agenda

The Executive and International Committees and the General Assembly shall adopt their agendas at the beginning of each session.

Rule 9. Amendments, Deletions and New Items

The Executive and International Committees and the General Assembly may amend, delete or add items to the agenda so adopted if so decided by a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting.

 

V. Conduct of Business

Rule 10. Quorum

10.a. "A meeting of the International Committee requires a minimum attendance of ten members from a minimum of seven national or regional societies and associations" [Article 6 of the Constitution].

10.b. "A meeting of the Executive Committee requires a minimum attendance of five of its members" [Article 5 of the Constitution].

10.c. A meeting of the Editorial Board of NUMEN requires a minimum attendance of five of its members.

Rule 11. Consultative Bodies

11.a. The Executive and International Committees and the General Assembly may create such consultative bodies as deemed necessary for the performance of the Committees or General Assembly.

11.b. The Executive and International Committees and the General Assembly shall define the composition and terms of reference of such consultative bodies at the time of their creation, or the Executive and International Committees and the General Assembly may decide to ask the Secretary General to define such composition and terms of reference within a specified period of time.

11.c. The afore-mentioned rule (11.b) does not include the Nominating Committee of the Executive Committee elections (see Rule 16).

11.d. Each consultative body shall elect its Chairman and, if necessary, its Rapporteur.

Rule 12. Order and Time-limit of Speeches

12.a. The presiding officer shall call upon speakers in the order in which they signify their wish to speak.

12.b. The presiding officer may limit the time allowed to each speaker if the circumstances make this desirable.

12.c. Consultants and observers referred to in Rule 6 may address the meeting with the prior consent of the presiding officer.

Rule 13. Points of Order

13.a. During a discussion, any member may raise a point of order. Such point of order shall be immediately decided upon by the presiding officer.

13.b. An appeal may be made against the ruling of the presiding officer. Such appeal shall be put to the vote immediately, and the presiding officer’s ruling shall stand unless overruled by a majority of the members present and voting.

Rule 14. Closure of Debate

14.a. The presiding officer may decide the closure of debate when the important pros and cons have been duly introduced or if there are pressures of time.

14.b. An appeal may be made against the ruling of the presiding officer. Such appeal shall be put to the vote immediately and the presiding officer’s ruling shall stand unless overruled by a majority of the members present and voting.

Rule 15. Voting

15.a. Voting rights at the General Assembly are the privilege of those who are confirmed as members of a fully paid-up constituent member society or association. The Secretary General, in consultation with members of the Executive Committee, shall alone determine whether a constituent society or association is fully paid up at the time of a vote to be taken by the General Assembly. Individual affiliates and members of affiliated associations may be present at the General Assembly, but may not vote.

15.b. Each member of the International Committee shall have one vote. Voting rights at the International Committee are the privilege of representatives of fully paid-up constituent national or regional member societies and associations. The Secretary General, in consultation with members of the Executive Committee, shall alone determine whether a constituent society or association is fully paid up at the time of any vote to be taken by the International Committee. One appointed representative of an affiliate member association may be present at the International Committee, but may not vote.

15.c. Decisions of the committee or General Assembly on matters covered by the provisions of the Constitution of the IAHR shall be taken by a majority of two-thirds of its members present and voting.

15.d. Decisions of the General Assembly to modify the Constitution of the IAHR (on the recommendation of the International Committee as specified in article 8 the constitution) shall be taken by a majority of two-thirds of its members present and voting.

15.e. All other decisions of the committee or the General Assembly shall be taken by a majority of the members present and voting.

15.f. Decisions as to whether a particular matter is covered by the provisions of the Constitution and decisions on any other matters not covered by the present Rules shall be taken by a majority of the members present and voting.

15.g. Voting shall normally be by a show of hands with the exception of electoral procedures (see Rules 16.g & 16.h).

15.h. When the result of a vote by a show of hands is in doubt, the presiding officer may take a second vote by a roll-call. A vote by a a roll-call shall also be taken if it is requested by not less than two members before the voting takes place.

15.i.The results of the vote can be noted by the presiding officer as "an overwhelming majority show of hands" unless the situation warrants specification or unless two or more members request specification.

Rule 16. Electoral Procedures for the Executive Committee

16.a. "A Nominating Committee, appointed by the Executive Committee, shall submit nominations for the next Executive Committee to the members of the International Committee by mail not more than twelve months and not less than nine months prior to each international congress" [Article 4.c of the Constitution].

16.b. "Members of the International Committee may propose alternative nominations not less than three months prior to each quinquennial congress" [Article 4.c of the Constitution].

16.c. The rules and regulations concerning the nominating process are found in Nominating Procedure for Members of the Executive Committee of the IAHR, dated May 24, 1998, revised to accommodate constitutional changes adopted by the General Assembly of the IAHR on August 12, 2000, and by the General Assembly of the IAHR on August 21, 2010.

16.d. "The International Committee, at its meeting just preceding the General Assembly, shall elect the Executive Committee and shall report this to the General Assembly" [Article 4.c of the Constitution].

16.e. The election shall take place in two rounds.

16.f. The first round concerns the election of the eight officers: President, two Vice-Presidents, Secretary General, Deputy Secretary General, Treasurer, Deputy Treasurer, and Publications Officer.

16.g. Those whose candidacy is unopposed shall be declared "elected unopposed". All others are elected by secret ballot.

16.h. The second round concerns the election of the four further members. Election is by secret ballot. In case of a tie for the second place, a second round of ballots shall be cast concerning those candidates with the tie number of votes.

Rule 17. Voting on Amendments

17.a. When an amendment to a proposal is moved, the amendment shall be voted on first. When two or more amendments to a proposal are moved, the committee or General Assembly shall first vote on the amendment deemed by the presiding officer to be furthest removed in substance from the original proposal, and then on the amendment next furthest removed therefrom and so on, until all the amendments have been put to the vote.

17.b. If one or more amendments are adopted, the amended proposal shall then be voted upon as a whole.

17.c. A motion is considered an amendment to a proposal if it merely adds to, deletes from or revises part of that proposal.

Rule 18. Voting on Proposals

If two or more proposals relate to the same question, the committee or General Assembly shall, unless it decides otherwise, vote on the proposals in the order in which they have been submitted. The committee or General Assembly may, after each vote on a proposal, decide whether to vote on the next proposal.

Rule 19. Withdrawal of Proposals

A proposal may be withdrawn by its proposer at any time before voting on it has begun, provided that the proposal has not been amended. A proposal withdrawn may be reintroduced by any member of the committee or General Assembly.

Rule 20. Decisions and Records

20.a. The Executive and International Committees or the General Assembly shall adopt such decisions and recommendations as it may deem appropriate.

20.b. Following the closure of each session, the Secretary General shall prepare the minutes of the International Committee and the General Assembly for publication in the IAHR Bulletin or other means of communication to the officers of the member societies and associations and affiliates no later than 12 months after the session. The minutes shall be adopted at the next convocation.

20.c. The minutes of the Executive Committee shall be circulated only to the members of the Executive Committee.

20.d. The minutes of the Editorial Board of NUMEN shall be circulated only to the members of the Editorial Board, to the Managing and Reviews Editors, and to the Publisher.

VI. Legal Registration of the IAHR

Rule 21. Legal Registration

The IAHR is legally registered in the Hague, the Netherlands

VI. Adoption, Amendment and Suspension of the Rules of Procedure

Rule 22. Adoption

The International Committee shall adopt the Rules of Procedure by a two-thirds majority of members present and voting.

Rule 23. Amendment and/or Suspension
The Rules of Procedure, except where they reproduce provisions of the Constitution of the IAHR, may be amended and/or suspended by the International Committee on recommendation by the Executive Committee, by a decision taken by a simple majority of the members present and voting.