Assembly Rules of Procedure

As amended December 14, 1996
As further amended on December 8, 2007

Rule 1 - Meetings of the Assembly

Rule 1.1. Unless otherwise ordered by the Assembly, the times and places selected for sessions of the Assembly during or in connection with the Annual and Midyear meetings of the Association, shall be determined and announced by the Board of Governors. Notification thereof shall be sent by the Secretary of the Assembly not later than 30 days before the time fixed for the first session, to each member of the Assembly.

Rule 1.2. Notification of the time and place of a meeting of the Assembly, other than those convened during or in connection with the Annual and Midyear meetings of the Association, duly called pursuant to Section 4.2 of the Bylaws, shall be sent by the Secretary of the Assembly not less than 14 days before the time fixed for the first session, to each member of the Assembly. When such a meeting is called the purposes of the meeting shall be set forth at the call of the meeting and the business transacted at such meeting shall be limited by such notice, provided that any Assembly member within five days of the mailing of said notice may require additional items of business to be placed on the agenda, by so advising the executive director of the Association by telephone (with confirmation in writing to follow forthwith), whereupon the Secretary will not later than six days before said meeting furnish each Assembly member in writing with the additional agenda items and name of the member proposing same.

Rule 1.3. Notice of any meeting of the Assembly shall be deemed to be sufficiently given if written notice of the time and place thereof is mailed, postage prepaid, by the Secretary of the Assembly, to all members of the Assembly at their last known address.

Rule 1.4. The Secretary of the Assembly shall include with the notice of any meeting an agenda of the business of the meeting. If such agenda is not available when the notice of the meeting is sent, the Secretary shall send it to the members of the Assembly not less than 14 days prior to the meeting.

Rule 1.5. At all meetings of the Assembly, members of the Assembly shall be seated by circuit. Other members of the Association who are not members of the Assembly shall be seated separately from the members of the Assembly.

Rule 1.6. Members of the Assembly desiring to have a particular matter placed on the agenda of a regular meeting shall notify the executive director of the Illinois State Bar Association in writing thereof not less than 21 days before said regular meeting. Any committee or section has the right to have placed on the next Assembly agenda any item considered by the Board of Governors, by notifying the executive director in the same manner.

Rule 1.7. At any meeting of the Assembly, additional agenda items may be added upon request of 2/3 of the members present, provided a quorum is present.

Rule 1.8. A quorum of the Assembly shall be as set forth in the Bylaws. Upon the initial roll call of an Assembly session, if a quorum is absent, no adjournment motion will be in order for two hours following the scheduled time of the session.

Rule 2 - Roster of Members

Rule 2.1. The executive director of the Association shall maintain a roster of the membership of the Assembly determined in accordance with the provisions of Sections 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.8 and 4.9 of the Bylaws and shall certify such roster to the presiding officer of the Assembly at the opening of each session. Such roster shall be open for examination by any member of the Assembly.

Rule 2.2. A census of the Association’s members shall be taken under the direction of the executive director during each even-numbered year and prior to the Annual Meeting effective December 31 of the preceding odd-numbered year and any change in apportionment of delegates from judicial districts other than the 1st Judicial District as provided under Section 4.4 of the Bylaws shall be reflected in the next following election for the seats to be filled at the beginning of the Association year commencing at the Annual Meeting in even-numbered years.

Rule 3 - Order of Business

The presiding officer shall consult with the Committee on Agenda and Program and determine the order of business and the written agenda, which shall be made available to each member of the Assembly prior to the meeting.

Rule 4 - Debate

Rule 4.1. When members of the Assembly desire to speak, they shall rise and address the presiding officer. Upon being recognized, such members shall state their name and capacity. In sessions of the Assembly a member may speak but once on a subject unless by unanimous leave of the Assembly, provided that the member who proposed the pending proposition shall have the right to close debate. The previous question shall be ordered only by the affirmative vote of 2/3 of the members present. In committee of the whole, a member may speak more than once on a given subject but not more than five minutes at a time and the previous question shall not be in order.

Rule 4.2. No person shall speak more than 10 minutes at a time except in presenting a committee or section report or with the unanimous consent of the Assembly members present.

Rule 4.3. If any matter is or may come before the Assembly, as to which nonmembers of the Assembly desire to submit their views or recommendations to the Assembly, the Assembly may by vote refer such matters to its Committee on Hearings, which shall give a hearing to such nonmembers and report thereon to the Assembly.

Rule 4.4. No nonmember of the Assembly shall be heard by the Assembly except,

  1. those representing committees or sections whose reports are on the Assembly agenda,
  2. those invited by the presiding officer,
  3. those recommended by the Commit-tee on Hearings, and
  4. those invited by a majority of the Assembly present.

Rule 4.5. Wherever practicable, any member intending to present a motion or resolution shall cause it to be distributed in writing to all members of the Assembly prior to or at the meeting. Any pending resolution or motion may be referred by the Assembly to the Com­mittee on Resolutions. The Assembly or the presiding officer may require that copies of any resolution shall be made available to members of the Assembly before a vote is taken thereon.

Rule 4.6. Wherever practicable, copies of each Majority report and, if any, Minority report by a committee or section of the Association or of the Assembly shall be made available to each member of the Assembly before the presentation of such report or before the subject of the report is called for debate.

Rule 4.7. When a question is under debate, no motion shall be received except:

  1. To amend the calendar and agenda.
  2. To fix the time to which to adjourn.
  3. To adjourn.
  4. To take a recess.
  5. To reconsider.
  6. To lay on the table.
  7. To move the previous question.
  8. To suspend any debate.
  9. To postpone to a day certain.
  10. To commit.
  11. To amend.
  12. To postpone indefinitely.

The motions listed in this rule shall take precedence in the order in which they stand arranged and all shall be decided by a majority of those present, except the previous question which requires 2/3 of those present. Upon the passage of a motion to limit debate any member not having been heard at the expiration of the limitation shall have five minutes to speak notwithstanding such limit.

A motion to table (or to postpone indefinitely) shall not be in order with regard to a matter arising on the agenda until the person originally presenting such matter shall have concluded his or her initial presentation or debate.

Motions to reconsider must be made in open meeting on the same session day as the principal action was taken, and must be put to a vote by the presiding officer prior to adjournment of any regular or special meeting.

Rule 4.8. The executive director shall, in connection with each meeting of the As­sembly or its committees, make available sufficient staff, supplies and equipment to carry out the orderly business of the Assembly.

Rule 5 - Voting

Voting will normally be by voice vote. At the discretion of the presiding officer, voting may also be by division of the house or roll call. Any member may request and obtain a division immediately after the result of a voice vote is announced and before it is recorded. A roll call may be requested by 10 percent of the total Assembly membership in office before a vote is taken. A written ballot shall be taken upon the request of 2/3 of the members present.

Rule 6 - Committees of the Assembly

Rule 6.1. The Assembly shall have the following committees:

  1. The Committee on Credentials and Admissions shall have jurisdiction to consider and report on all questions which arise as to the roster of members of the Assembly, and their qualifications, selection and credentials.
  2. The Committee on Rules and Bylaws shall have jurisdiction to consider and report to the Assembly as to proposals to amend the Bylaws of the Association or the Rules of the Assembly, which may have been referred to it by the Assembly, or by its presiding officer when the Assembly is not in session.
  3. The Committee on Hearings shall have the duty upon reference by the Assembly of holding hearings upon any matter upon which nonmembers of the Assembly ask an opportunity to present their views. (Reports of Association committees or sections placed on the agenda by the presiding officer, Board of Governors or Assembly are excluded from this provision.) If the Assembly is in session when the nonmember requests are to be heard, the committee, wherever practicable, shall meet at a time and place designated during an open session of the Assembly and shall report during that session of the Assembly. The committee shall promptly designate the time and place for all other meetings (which may be at any time during the year) at which the committee will hold a requested hearing and shall give notice 14 days in advance thereof to the person or persons requesting that hearing. The committee or those requesting the hearing may invite a reasonable number of persons to attend any hearing conducted by the committee. The committee shall promptly file its report and recommendations on any hearing with the presiding officer of the Assembly. If the Assembly is in session when such report is made, the report shall be distributed to members and calendared for prompt consideration by the Assembly. If the Assembly is not in session when the committee’s report is filed, the presiding officer of the Assembly shall cause copies of such report to be distributed to the members of the Assembly for consideration at its next meeting.
  4. The Committee on Resolutions and Drafting shall have a duty of considering and reporting to the Assembly concerning any resolutions, reports, recommendations or other matters referred to it by the Assembly as promptly as is practicable consistent with the Assembly’s instructions, and shall review each substantive action of the Assembly and draft or correct language and phraseology to the end that the substantive intent of the Assembly is properly expressed and recorded.
  5. The Committee on Finance shall periodically review all financial matters of the Association and make such recommendations to the Assembly as may be appropriate. The committee shall have full access to all books and records of the Association.
  6. The Committee on Agenda and Program shall consult with the presiding officer and Association staff as to the preparation of the agenda and order of business for the meetings and with the various agencies, committees and sections of the Association as to future actions and functions of the Asso­ciation. The responsibility for establishing a meaningful agenda for the Assembly is delegated to the Agen­da and Program Committee which shall designate one or more policy issues of interest to the Association and facilitate the necessary educational background information to support debate on the issue. The Commit­tee is further charged with determining meaningful procedures to stimulate participation and involvement by the members of the Assembly and the Association in designating topics and issues of concern to be placed on the agenda.
    1. The Committee shall consist of five Assembly delegates, none of whom may be officers or members of the Board of Gov­ernors.
    2. Committee members shall be elected by secret ballot at the annual meeting of the Assembly for two-year terms. (Not­with­standing the foregoing, the first elected Committee members shall draw lots for their terms such that three members shall serve two-year terms and two members shall serve one-year terms.)
    3. Committee members are ineligible to serve consecutive terms.
    4. No more than two members may be from Cook County and no more than one member may be from any Board of Governors area.
    5. Candidates for election to the Com­mittee on Agenda and Program may file a written statement of candidacy not less than 21 days before the Annual Assembly meeting. Advance notice of these requirements shall be provided to Assembly delegates.
    6. Nominations may be made from the floor of the Assembly.
    7. The Committee will elect its chair from among its members. In addition to the traditional responsibilities of a chair, the chair of the Committee on Agenda and Program shall monitor the agenda of the Board of Governors for items that may be of interest to the Assembly and shall be reimbursed for expenses when at­tending meetings of the Board of Gover­nors.

Rule 6.2. The Assembly may from time to time create such other standing or special committees as it may deem desirable for the furtherance of its business.

Rule 6.3. Unless otherwise directed by the Assembly as to a particular committee, the presiding officer of the Assembly shall appoint the members of the standing committees and special committees and fill all vacancies. The presiding officer shall appoint at least five members of the Assembly to each standing committee and shall make appointments that are in general geographically representative of the entire state. The presiding officer shall be an ex-officio member of all committees of the Assembly.

Rule 6.4. Unless otherwise directed by the Assembly, all committee members shall serve at the pleasure of the presiding officer.

Rule 6.5. For the purpose of furthering the consideration of a subject at any meeting of the Assembly, the presiding officer may, in his or her discretion and in advance of such meeting, appoint a special committee to con­sider such subject and report to the Assembly concerning it. Unless otherwise ordered by the Assembly, any committee so appointed shall not continue beyond the adjournment of that meeting of the Assembly.

Rule 7 - Persons in Attendance of Sessions of the Assembly

Rule 7.1. Sessions of the Assembly shall be open to the public.

Rule 7.2. The Assembly may at any time rise and resolve itself into a committee of the whole.

Rule 7.3. The Assembly may while sitting as a committee of the whole do so in executive session, during which time all nonmembers (except ISBA members and staff) shall be excluded from the meeting room.

Rule 7.4. Nonmembers of the Assembly (except Association staff) shall not at any time enter that portion of the house reserved for members of the Assembly.

Rule 8 - Parliamentary Authority

The chair of the Rules and Bylaws Committee, or such person as the presiding officer may appoint, shall serve as parliamentarian at all meetings of the Assembly. Such person need not be a member of the Assembly but may have full access to the presiding officer. In instances not covered by these rules, the latest edition of Robert’s Rules of Order shall apply to proceedings of the Assembly.

Rule 9 - Amendment and Suspension of Rules

By a two-thirds vote of the members present at a session of the Assembly, any rule may be suspended. Proposals to amend the rules shall be referred by the Assembly, or when the Assembly is not in session by the presiding officer, to the Committee on Rules and Bylaws for prompt consideration and report.