Rules of the
INTERNATIONAL l4 ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED KINGDOM
Revised and effective from 1st February, 1996 (Incorporating amendments to the 1st August 2004)
1 NAME
The Association shall be called “The International l4 Association of the United Kingdom”
2 OBJECTS
The objects of the Association shall be:
- To promote and foster the interest and spirit of the International l4 Class in the United Kingdom and abroad.
- To control and manage the affairs of the Class generally in the United Kingdom by co-ordinating the wishes of its members.
- To make such recommendations regarding the Class as may be desirable and necessary to the International l4 World Association through the Association Committee.
3 MEMBERSHIP
There shall be the following classes of membership: Ordinary, Associate, Honorary, Junior & Life.
Ordinary Membership of the Association is a requirement of any owner of an International l4 that is registered in Great Britain (see Rule 9). In the case of joint owners, at least one of them must be an Ordinary Member. The Committee, at its discretion, may elect to Ordinary Membership potential and past owners of International l4s and those who have or have had a close association with the Class.
Associate Membership shall be available to those who have a close association with the Class.
Life Membership. An ordinary member may, on application, be elected to Life Membership at the discretion of the Committee and on payment of a Life Membership subscription and shall, on election, have all the rights of an Ordinary Member.
Junior Membership shall be open to those who have not reached their 21st birthday or are in full time education and shall have all the rights of an Ordinary Member except so far as voting is concerned.
Honorary Membership. The Committee may propose to the members in General Meeting a person for Honorary Membership on such terms and conditions as the Committee may agree.
Application for membership shall be made to l4 Secretariat.
4 VOTING POWERS
Voting shall be conducted at a General Meeting of the Association or in a postal ballot of all Ordinary Members
Ordinary and Life Members shall have one vote each, except that boat owners shall have one additional vote subject to the limitation that only one such extra vote shall be cast per boat. For the purposes of this rule, a boat owner is someone who owns or part owns an International l4 having a valid certificate of registration, in his/her name, issued in the name of the ISAF.
Owners of Penultimates (defined as conforming to Class Rules after 1st January 1984 and prior to 1996) get a vote as an ordinary member but do not get a boat vote.
Owners of Classic l4s (defined as conforming to the class rules prior to 1st January 1984) get a vote as an Ordinary Member but do not get a boat vote.
Associate and Junior Members shall have no voting rights.
5 OFFICERS OF THE ASSOCIATION
These shall consist of a Chairman, up to two Vice Chairmen, Hon. Treasurer, Hon. Secretary, Hon. Sailing Secretary, Hon. Publicity Officer and a Chief Measurer. Any of the Honorary posts may be combined in one person.
6 COMMITTEE
The affairs of the Association shall be managed by a Committee consisting of the Officers and not more than ten Ordinary Members who shall be elected by the Members at the AGM, their names having been circulated on the notice convening the Meeting.
The President and Secretary of the World Association and Class Captains shall be members ex-officio.
Except in the case of members nominated by the Committee, nominations to fill vacancies on the Committee shall be sent to the Hon. Secretary not less than twenty one days before the AGM. Nominations should include a confirmation that the person concerned is willing to serve, if elected, for three years.
If there are more nominations than vacancies, election shall be by ballot at the AGM.
The Committee shall have the power to co-opt additional members and to appoint technical advisers for a period not extending after the next AGM.
The Committee shall have the power to form sub-committees to advise and report on specific questions and members of such sub-committees need not necessarily be members of the Association.
Six Committee Members shall form a quorum and decisions shall be reached by a majority of votes of those present, each Member having one vote and the Chairman a casting vote in the event of there being no majority.
The Committee shall, annually, appoint one of its members to be its representative on the World Association Council. He or she shall keep the Committee informed of the activities of the World Association, shall represent the Committee on the World Council, and shall vote in accordance with the wishes of the Committee, the limits of his or her authority to act being determined by the Committee.
7 GENERAL MEETINGS
The Annual General Meeting of the Association shall be held each year on a date to be decided by the Committee.
An informal meeting of the Association may be held during Prince of Wales Cup Week.
A Special General Meeting may be called at any time by the Committee and shall be called upon written request to the Hon. Secretary by not less than twelve Members.
At any General meeting twenty Members present shall form a quorum and matters shall (unless a Poll is demanded) be decided on a show of cards by a majority of votes of those Ordinary Members present at the meeting and entitled to vote, each such Member voting in accordance with Rule 4, but matters seeking to change the rules of the Association or the rules of the Class shall require a two-thirds majority of votes. A Poll may be demanded by the Chairman or by not less than three Ordinary Members present at the meeting.
Any Member wishing to bring matters to the attention of the Association in Annual General Meeting shall give written notice of the matter to the Hon. Secretary not later than one month preceding the AGM.
At least fourteen days before a General Meeting, the Hon. Secretary shall circulate to all Members a notice convening the meetings and an agenda of the business to be attended to at the meeting.
A postal vote of all Members on any issue may be demanded by the Committee or not less than twelve Ordinary Members and the matter at issue shall be decided in the same way as if it were a Poll at a General Meeting.
8 LIAISON AND CORRESPONDENCE
Members wishing to bring any matter before the Committee should communicate with the Hon Secretary whose name and address shall be notified to all Members. Alternatively they may bring forward matters through the medium of any Committee Member should it be more expedient to do so.
9 CERTIFICATES
No boat may race in Open Class races unless its owner is a fully paid up Member of this Association and holds a valid Class certificate endorsed with a current buoyancy certificate where appropriate. No UK registered boat (other than those temporarily chartered or borrowed by Overseas Entrants) may race in the Prince of Wales Cup or Prince of Wales Cup Week races unless both members of its crew are Members of the Association.
10 SUBSCRIPTIONS
The annual subscription shall fall due upon election and subsequently upon 1st March each year, except that any person elected to membership after the 1st October in a year shall not be liable to pay another subscription until 1st March of the second year following. Members who have not paid their subscriptions by the 1st May in any year shall, if the Committee so decides, cease to be Members of the Association and may not apply for membership in that year unless an additional fee of £10 for full members (£5 for other categories) is paid. Subscriptions shall be made payable to the International l4 Association and addressed to l4 Secretariat. The subscription rates shall be determined by the Members in a poll or ballot.
11 ACCOUNTS
The accounts of the Association shall be kept by the Hon. Treasurer. The Associations Financial Year shall end on the 30th September and a Balance Sheet, drawn up by the Hon. Treasurer and audited by at least one other member of the Committee, shall be presented to the Committee at the next Committee Meeting. After acceptance by the Committee, the Balance Sheet shall be distributed to all Members and shall be presented for adoption at the next AGM.
12 TIES AND BROOCHES
The Association tie or, in the case of ladies, the approved brooch, may be worn by all Members of the Association. The Replica Tie (or in the case of ladies a Replica Brooch) may be worn by helmsmen or crews who have won a replica of the Prince of Wales Cup.
13 ADDRESSES
Members shall keep l4 Secretariat informed of any change of address, or change of boat.
14 ALTERATION OF RULES
The Rules of the Association may be altered by a resolution passed at a General Meeting or in a postal or secure online ballot, by a majority of not less than two thirds of the votes cast.
15 DATA PROTECTION ACT 1984
Membership of the Class and acceptance of these rules by the Member shall be deemed to constitute consent by the Member to holding by the Class of any personal information properly declared in writing to the Class, as personal data for the purposes of the Data Protection Act 1984.