King County Bar Association Expectations for Trustees and Officers
Trustees are elected to three-year terms, beginning July 1 and ending June 30. The Treasurer serves a two-year term and Secretary/Trustee serves as Secretary only the first year of the three-year term. The Second Vice-President becomes First Vice-President the following year and President the year after that, as set out in the bylaws.
President
From the bylaws: “The President shall be the chief executive officer of the Association, and, subject to the exercise of power by the Board of Trustees, shall have general control and direction of its affairs. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Association and of the Board of Trustees. The President shall, subject to the approval of the Board, appoint all standing and special committees and shall perform all duties ordinarily incident to the office, and shall recommend such action as the President deems proper.”
These requirements have developed over the years into the following expectations of the President:
serving as chief spokesperson for the Association, although the communication of Association positions can be delegated to others as appropriate;
attending semi-monthly Board meetings and semi-monthly Officers meetings, acting as chair for those meetings
proposing agendas for Board meetings, which are reviewed and refined by the Officers;
insuring follow-up on Board decisions, e.g. correspondence regarding a position taken;
signing of contracts, agreements on behalf of the Board;
planning for and chairing the annual (and usually a mid-year) planning session; and developing a draft of the annual work plan for approval and use by the Board;
attending Superior Court Bench/Bar Liaison Committee meetings monthly;
preside or host other meetings or events of the Association, such as the Annual Awards Dinner, and Martin Luther King, Jr., Lunch;
writing a monthly article on topics of his/her choice for the Bar Bulletin;
responding to members’ inquiries as needed;
appointing Board liaisons to KCBA committees and sections, the KCB Foundation, the Young Lawyers Division, and the WSBA Board of Governors;
appointing all committee chairs in advance of committee sign-up in July (section chairs are elected by members of each section);
conducting an orientation for committee and section chairs;
attending the February and August meetings of the National Conference of Bar Presidents in conjunction with annual and mid-year meetings of the ABA;
assisting the Finance Committee in developing an annual budget for the following year for Board approval, in consultation with other officers and committee chairs;
securing a keynote speaker or making other plans for the annual awards dinner and serving as the Master of Ceremonies of the dinner in June; along with
performing the usual duties of a Trustee.
First Vice-President
From the bylaws: “The First Vice President shall act as President in the absence of the President and shall perform such other duties as may be assigned to him or her by the President of the Board of Trustees.”
Typically a First Vice President has been expected to:
prepare him- or herself for future leadership and their role as President the following year;
attend and participate in semi-monthly Officers meetings, thinking through with other officers the Board agendas and problem-solving issues as they arise;
assist the Finance Committee in developing an annual budget for the following year for Board approval, in consultation with other officers;
participate in the annual (and usually a mid-year) planning session; and comment on a draft of the annual work plan for approval and use by the Board;
during term of First or Second Vice-President, attend an ABA Bar Leadership Institute held in Chicago in March, which is intended as a training seminar for incoming presidents;
chair the Membership Committee through the middle of the year, when the Second Vice-President becomes chair;
chair meetings in the absence of the President; and
perform the usual duties of a Trustee.
Second Vice President
From the bylaws: “The Second Vice President shall act as President and the First Vice President and shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the President or the Board of Trustees.
prepare him- or herself for future leadership and their role as President two years hence;
attend and participate in semi-monthly Officers meetings, thinking through with other officers the Board agendas and problem-solving issues as they arise;
assist the Finance Committee in developing an annual budget for the following year for Board approval, in consultation with other officers;
participate in the Membership Committee and chair it beginning mid-year;
chair the Personnel Committee;
during term of First or Second Vice-President, attend an ABA Bar Leadership Institute held in Chicago in March, which is intended as a training seminar for incoming presidents;
participate in the annual (and often a mid-year) planning session; and comment on a draft of the annual work plan for approval and use by the Board;
chair the Management, Operations and Planning Committee, which has met only as needed in recent years;
chair meetings in the absence of the President and First Vice President; and
perform the usual duties of a Trustee
Secretary/Trustee
From the bylaws: “The Secretary shall keep a minutes of all Board of Trustees meetings and membership meetings. The Secretary shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the President or the Board.” The trustee in this position serves as Secretary the first year of a three-year term and has only the regular duties of a trustee the second and third years of the term.
Typically we expect of a Secretary:
minute-taking at Board meetings;
signing of contracts, agreements on behalf of the Board;
attending and participating in Officers meetings, thinking through with other officers the Board agendas and problem-solving issues as they arise; and
performing the usual duties of a trustee.
Treasurer
From the Bylaws: “Subject to Article VIII, the Treasurer shall be responsible for the receipt, deposit or investment of all funds of the Association; provided, however, the Treasurer of any section or division shall be responsible for the receipt, deposit, disbursement of investment of funds of any section or division established under Article VII, Section 2, to the extent, and according to policies approved by the Board of Trustees. The Treasurer shall submit annually in the official publication of the Association a report of the moneys received and expended, amounts due the Association and an estimate of the resources and expenditures for the ensuing year. The accounts of the Association shall be reviewed or audited annually by a Certified Public Accountant at the expense of the Association.”
“Article VIII. Appropriations and Expenses.
“Section 1. Appropriations - Generally. Except as provided in Article IV, Section 6, appropriations of the Association’s funds for officer, committee, section, division or other expenses shall be made by the Board of Trustees.
“Section 2. Check Signing. The Board of Trustees may by resolution make provision for the signing and countersigning of checks and notes. Unless the resolution provides otherwise, checks shall be signed by any two officers.*
Section 3. Unauthorized Liabilities. Any liability incurred by any officer, division, section or committee of the Association in excess of the appropriation authorized by the Board of Trustees, or any other duly constituted governing body shall be the personal liability of the person or persons responsible for incurring or authorizing the same.”
We have typically expected of the Treasurer that he or she:
present monthly financial reports to the Board;
determine how reserves should be invested, in accord with the Board’s reserve policies;
advise the Board about the advisability of approving any requests for expenditures not authorized in the approved annual budget;
chair the Finance Committee monthly to review staff-prepared financial reports and through April to develop the proposed budget for the following year;
attend and participate in Officers meetings, thinking through with other officers the Board agendas and problem-solving issues as they arise; and
perform the usual duties of a trustee.
Trustee
Trustees are expected to:
Attend semi-monthly meetings of the Board of Trustees or phone the Executive Director in advance, requesting he/she be excused. (Bylaws state: “If any Trustee misses three regularly scheduled Board meetings out of six consecutive meetings, the Board, by majority vote, after notice and opportunity to be heard has been provided, may ask the Trustee to resign. If the Board makes such a request, the request shall be deemed to create a vacancy on the Board, and the Trustee shall be removed from the Board.”)
Be prepared to participate in Board meetings by reading the meeting materials sent with each meeting notice, and following up on tasks assigned at Board meetings;
Ensure the financial integrity of the Association through receiving regular monthly reports from the Treasurer and acting responsibly on fiscal matters;
Attend annual planning sessions and participate in developing the Board’s annual work plan;
Serve as liaison to at least one committee, attending occasional meetings of the committee, keeping the Board apprised of their work and any problems they may be encountering; and keeping the committee aware of the Board’s work as it affects the committee; and
Undertake at least one project per year on behalf of the Board that advances the work of the Association.
