Holding meetings

Meetings are an important part of the operations of any effective not-for-profit community organisation. Depending on the size and structure of your community organisation, there are a number of different meetings that may be held including:

• meetings of the organisation's management committee or board;
• meetings of members of your community organisation;
• management meetings;
• an annual general meeting.

There are quite a few legal issues that can arise out of the holding of a meeting! It is important for your organisation to conduct meetings in accordance with the requirements set out in any legislation (for example, incorporated associations must comply with the Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (Vic) and companies limited by guarantee must comply with the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)). However, for many organisations, much of the detail of the requirements for holding valid meetings will be set out in an organisation's rules or constitution. 

The main legal issues that can arise around meetings involve:  

• requirements to hold meetings and rights to call a meeting 
• proper notice of the meeting (time periods, content of notice) 
• quorum (minimum number of people present to make meeting valid)
• adjournments
• voting rights (and proxy rights)
• resolutions
• minutes

In addition to complying with the legal requirements for running a meeting, there are also a number of 'best practice' procedures that can be followed. These are designed to ensure meetings are run efficiently, and in a way that assists the organisation to achieve its objects! 

For information about holding an Annual General Meeting, see Running the organisation > Holding Annual General Meetings.

For information about holding General Meetings of for Victorian incorporated associations, see PilchConnect's Guide for Public Officers and Secretaries of Victoiran Incorporated Associations.

Additional information on how to conduct meetings can be found by following the below links.