CONSTITUTION AND CODE OF ETHICS


ISLAND & PACIFIC LABRADOR RETRIEVER CLUB
CONSTITUTION

PURPOSE

1. The purpose of the club shall be to promote the Labrador in all its many uses; such as obedience, show, tracking and field work.

2. To hold sanction matches, boosters, speciality shows, sweepstakes or working tests when possible.

3. To work towards the C.K.C. recognizing that Champion must have 10 points and a Working Certificate. Without a Working Certificate a dog will be designated as a Show Champion.

4. To maintain a list of Labrador tattoo combinations to help get lost Labradors back to their owners.

5. To assist members by help and information related to the training, showing and breeding of Labrador Retrievers.

NOTE: For the remainder of this document the Island & Pacific Labrador Retriever Club shall be referred to as I.P.L.R.C..

MEMBERSHIP

1. The members of the I.P.L.R.C. are the applicants for incorporation of the I.P.L.R.C. and those persons who subsequently have become members, in accordance with these bylaws and, in either case, have not ceased to be members.

2. A person may apply to the directors for membership in the I.P.L.R.C. and on acceptance by the directors shall be a member.

3. Every member shall uphold the constitution and comply with these bylaws.

4. The amount of the first annual membership dues shall be determined by the directors and after that the annual membership dues shall be determined at the annual general meeting of the I.P.L.R.C..

5. A person shall cease to be a member of the society:

(1) by delivering his/her resignation in writing to the secretary of the I.P.L.R.C. or by mailing or delivering it to the address of the I.P.L.R.C.;
(2) on his/her death;
(3) on being expelled; or
(4) on having been a member not in good standing for twelve consecutive months.

6.
1. A member may be expelled by a special resolution of the members passed at a general meeting.
2. The notice of special resolution for expulsion shall be accompanied by a brief statement of the reason or reasons for the proposed expulsion.
3. The person who is the subject of the proposed resolution for expulsion shall be given an opportunity to be heard at the general meeting before the special resolution is put to a vote.
7.
All members are in good standing except a member who has failed to pay his current annual membership fee or any other subscription or debt due and owing by him/her to the I.P.L.R.C. and he/she is not in good standing so long as the debt remains unpaid.

MEETINGS OF MEMBERS

1. General meetings of the I.P.L.R.C. shall be held at the time and place, in accordance with the Society Act, that the directors decide.

2. Every general meeting, other than an annual general meeting, is an extraordinary general meeting.

3. The directors may, when they think fit, convene an extraordinary general meeting.

4. (1) Notice of the general meeting shall specify the place, day and hour of the meeting and, in case of special business, the general nature of the business. (2) The accidental omission to give notice of a meeting to, or the non-receipt of a notice by, any of the members entitled to receive notice does not invalidate proceedings at the meeting.

PROCEEDINGS AT GENERAL MEETING


1. Special business is:

a) All business at an extraordinary general meeting except the adaptation of rules of order, and
b) All business transacted at an annual general meeting, except,
i. the adoption of rules of order:
ii. the consideration of the financial statements;
iii. the report of the auditor, if any;
iv. the report of the directors;
v. the election of the directors;
vi. the appointment of the auditor, if required; and
vii. the other business that, under these bylaws, ought to be transacted at an annual general meeting, or business which is brought under consideration by the report of the directors issued with the notice convening the meeting.

2. (1) No business, other than the election of a chairman and the adjournment or
termination of the meeting, shall be conducted at the general meeting at a time
when a quorum is not present.
(2) If at any time during a general meeting there ceases to be a quorum present,
business then in progress shall be suspended until there is a quorum present or
until the meeting is adjourned or terminated.
(3) A quorum is six members present or a greater number that the members may
determine at a general meeting.

3. If within thirty minutes from the time appointed for a general meeting a quorum is not present, the meeting, if convened on the requisition of members, shall be terminated; but in any case, it shall stand adjourned to the same day in the next week, at the same time and place, and if, at the adjourned meeting, a quorum is not present within thirty minutes from the time appointed for the meeting, the members present constitute a quorum.

4. Subject to bylaw 19 of the Society’s Act, the president of the I.P.L.R.C., the vice president or in the absence of both, one of the other directors present, shall preside as chairman of a general meeting.

5. If at a general meeting:
a) there is no president, vice president or other directors present within fifteen minutes after the appointed time for the meeting; or
b) the president and all the other directors present are unwilling to act as chairman, the members present shall choose one of their number to be chairman.

6. (1) A general meeting may be adjourned from time to time and from place to
place, but no business shall be transacted at an adjourned meeting other than
the business left unfinished at the meeting from which the adjournment took
place.
(2) When a meeting is adjourned for ten days or more, notice of the adjourned
meeting shall be given as in the case of the original meeting.
(3) Except as provided in this bylaw, it is not necessary to give notice of an
adjournment or of the business to be transacted at an adjourned general
meeting.

7. (1) No resolution proposed at a meeting need be seconded and the chairman of a
meeting may move or propose a resolution.
(2) In case of an equality of votes the chairman shall not have a casting or second

vote in addition to the vote to which he/she may be entitled as a member and the
proposed resolution shall not pass.

8. (1) A member in good standing present at the meeting of members is entitled to one vote.
(2) Voting is by show of hands.
(3) Voting by proxy is not permitted.


DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS

1. (1) The directors may exercise all the powers and do all the acts and things that
the I.P.L.R.C. may exercise and do, and which are not by these bylaws or statue or otherwise lawfully directed or required to be exercised or done by the I.P.L.R.C. in general meeting, but subject, nevertheless, to
a) all laws affecting the I.P.L.R.C.
b) these bylaws; and
c) rules, not being inconsistent with these bylaws, which are made from time to time by the I.P.L.R.C. in general meeting.

(2) No rule, made by the I.P.L.R.C. in general meeting, invalidates a prior act of
the directors that would have been valid if that rule had not been made.

2. (1) The president, vice president, secretary, treasurer and one or more other
persons shall the directors of the I.P.L.R.C.
(2) The number of directors shall be five or a greater number determined from
time to time at a general meeting.

3. (1) The directors shall retire from office at every second annual general meeting
when their successors shall be elected.
(2) Separate elections shall be held for each office to be filled.
(3) An election may be by acclamation, otherwise it shall be by ballot.
(4) If no successor is elected the person previously elected or appointed continues
to hold office.

4. (1) The directors may at any time and from time to time appoint a member in
good standing as a director to fill a vacancy in the directors.
(2) A director so appointed holds office only until the conclusion of the term of
the officer replaced, but is eligible for re-election at the meeting.

5. (1) If a director resigns his/her office or otherwise ceases to hold office, the
remaining directors shall appoint a member in good standing to take the place
of the former director.
(2) No act or proceeding of the directors is invalid only by reason of there being
less than the prescribed number of directors in office.

6. The members may by special resolution remove a director before the expiration of his/her term of office, and may elect a successor to complete the term of office.

7. No director shall be remunerated for being or acting as a director but a director shall be reimbursed for all expenses necessarily and reasonably incurred by him/her while engaged in the affairs of the I.P.L.R.C..

8. (1) The Executive Committee shall appoint a nominations committee who will
prepare a slate of officers and directors prior to the annual general meeting.
(2) The chairman of the nomination committee will present the report to the
annual general meeting and move its adoption.
(3) Nominations from the floor at the annual general meeting will be permitted
only if a resolution to that effect is adopted by the meeting and then only if the
nominators have the consent in writing of their nominees.
(4) In the event of nominations from the floor, voting will be by ballot.

PROCEEDINGS OF DIRECTORS

1. (1) The directors may meet together at the places they think fit to dispatch
business, adjourn and otherwise regulate their meetings and proceedings, as
they see fit.
(2) The directors may from time to time fix the quorum necessary to transact
business, and unless so fixed the quorum shall be a majority of the directors
then in office.
(3) The president shall be chairman of all meetings of the directors, but if at a
meeting the president is not present within thirty minutes after the time
appointed for holding the meeting, the vice president shall act as chairman;
but if neither is present the directors present may choose one of their number
to be chairman at that meeting.
(4) A director may at any time, and the secretary, on the request of a director,
shall convene a meeting of the directors.

2. (1) The directors may delegate any, but not all, of their powers to committees
consisting of the director or directors as they think fit.
(2) A committee so formed in the exercise of the powers so delegated shall
conform to any rules imposed on it by the directors, and shall report every act
or thing done in exercise of those powers to the earliest meeting of the
directors to be held next after it has been done.

3. A committee shall elect a chairman of its meeting but if no chairman is elected, or if at a meeting the chairman is not present within thirty minutes after the time appointed for holding the meeting, the directors present who are members of the committee shall choose one of their number to be chairman of the meeting.

4. The members of a committee may meet and adjourn as they think proper.

5. For a first meeting of directors held immediately following the appointment or elections of a director at the annual or other general meeting of members, or for a meeting of the directors at which a director is appointed to fill a vacancy in the directors, it is not necessary to give notice of the meeting to the newly elected or appointed director or directors for the meeting to be constituted, if a quorum of directors is present.

6. A director who may be absent temporarily from British Columbia may send or deliver to the address of the I.P.L.R.C. a waiver of notice, which may be by letter, telegram, fax or telex, of any meeting of the directors and may at any time withdraw the waiver, and until the waiver is withdrawn,
a) no notice of meeting of directors shall be sent to that director, and
b) any and all meetings of the directors of the I.P.L.R.C., notice of which has not been given to that director shall, if quorum of the directors is present, be valid and effective.

7. (1) Questions arising at a meeting of the directors and committee of directors
shall be decided by a majority of the votes.
(2) In case of an equality of votes the chairman does not have a second or
casting vote.

8. No resolution proposed at a meeting of directors or committee of directors need be seconded and the chairman of a meeting may move or propose a resolution.

9. A resolution in writing, signed by all the directors and placed with the minutes of the directors is as valid and effective as if regularly passed at a meeting of directors.

DUTIES OF OFFICERS

1. (1) The president shall preside at all meetings of the I.P.L.R.C. and of the
directors.
(2) The president is the chief executive officer of the I.P.L.R.C. and shall
supervise the other officers in the execution of their duties.

2. The vice president shall carry out the duties of the president during his/her absence.

3. The secretary shall:
a) conduct the correspondence of the I.P.L.R.C.;
b) issue notices of meetings of the I.P.L.R.C. and directors;
c) keep minutes of all meetings of the I.P.L.R.C. and directors;
d) have custody of all records and documents of the I.P.L.R.C. except those required to be kept by the treasurer;
e) maintain the register of members.

4. The treasurer shall:
a) keep the financial records, including books of account, necessary to comply with the Society Act; and
b) render financial statements to the directors, members and others when required.

5. (1) The offices of secretary and treasurer may be held by one person who shall
be known as the secretary treasurer,
(2) When a secretary treasurer holds office the total number of directors shall
not be less than five or the greater number that may have been determined
at the general meeting.

6. In the absence of the secretary from a meeting, the directors shall appoint another person to act as secretariat the meeting.


FINANCE

1. (1) All cheques drawn on the bank account of the I.P.L.R.C. must bear the
signature of the treasurer and one of the directors.
(2) Should the I.P.L.R.C. be dissolved, all of the equipment shall be sold, and
together with the net bank balance exclusive of all costs, shall be donated
to a charity of the directors’ choice.

NOTICES TO MEMBERS

1. A notice may be given to a member, either personally or by mail to him/her at his/her registered address.

2. A notice sent by mail shall be deemed to have been given on the second day following that on which the notice is posted, and in proving that notice has been given it is sufficient to prove the notice was properly addressed and put in a Canadian Post Office receptacle.

3. (1) Notice of a general meeting shall be given to:
every member shown on the register of members on the day notice is given.
(2) No other person is entitled to receive a notice of a general meeting.


 
CODE OF ETHICS

The good name and reputation of the I.P.L.R.C. depends to a large extent upon every member taking personal responsibility for maintaining the Code of Ethics of the I.P.L.R.C..

Members who breed Labradors must agree to:

1. Maintain the original purpose of the Labrador as a retriever, breeding only from sound dogs of good temperament who exemplify the breed standard and are able to represent the breed for conformation in the ring, in the field as a willing worker, and/or as hunting companions.

2. Be courteous, co-operative and responsible members of the I.P.L.R.C., respecting and not degrading another member’s dog(s).

3. Breed only to or from stock that, except in a rigorously controlled test breeding must be:
a) X-rayed clear of hip dysplasia, and should be certified by OFA/OVC.
b) Ophthalmologically examined and certified clear of hereditary eye disease when possible.

4. Register all Labradors with the C.K.C. and abide by their rules and regulations. Keep accurate records of matings, pedigrees, sales and transfers and pass on only accurate records and pedigrees to purchasers of stock or services, and not in any circumstances knowingly be a part of, or contribute to, false registration.

5. Not sell, consign, transfer puppies or adults to pet shops, wholesale dealers, contest sponsors, or anyone known to degrade the Labrador breed or purebred dogs, or to individual breeding and/or selling to aforementioned.

6. Sell all pets sold in Canada on no-breeding contracts which can be removed only with hip and eye clearances, and provided they are sound in temperament and their quality is suitable for breeding.

7. Replace once, any pup or dog sold by them which is certified OFA/OVC to have hip dysplasis up to two years of age or who develops PRA, CPRA or congenital cataracts before four years of age. This agreement may be subject to individual breeder’s restrictions.