GAMES CANCELLED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
We now participate in The Common Game - results from our games can be found at thecommongame.com. Our monthly Calendar is now on line so you can check out the games ahead.
Game time is always 11:00 for the morning games and 6:30 for the evening games - please sign in by at least 10 minutes before game time to allow a timely start to our games.
BYLAWS
of the
PEORIA DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB
ARTICLE I
NAME; PURPOSES; OFFICES
Section 1.1 Name.The name of this organization shall be the Peoria Duplicate Bridge Club (and referred to in these Bylaws as the “Club”).
Section 1.2 Incorporation. The Club is incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation under the laws of the State of Illinois and shall be governed by the General Not For Profit Corporation Act of 1986, as amended (the “Nonprofit Law”).
Section 1.3 Purposes. The purposes for which the Club is organized are: to foster community welfare in the furtherance of the game of contract bridge in its various forms of competition; to promulgate high standards of conduct and ethics to its members, and to enforce such standards; to provide organized bridge activities and services to satisfy the social, recreational, and competitive needs of the membership and the community; to conduct events as sanctioned by the American Contract Bridge League; and to conduct such other activities as may be in keeping with its principal objectives.
Section 1.4 Registered Office and Registered Agent. The registered office of the corporation shall be located in the State of Illinois at such place as may be fixed from time to time by the Board of Directors upon filing of such notices as may be required by law.
ARTICLE II
AMERICAN CONTRACT BRIDGE LEAGUE; DISTRICT 8; UNIT 208
The Club is a separate legal entity that interacts with the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) through the bridge club sanctioning process and exists for the purposes specified in Article I of these Bylaws. The Club is located within District 8 and Unit 208 of the ACBL. As such, the Club and its members shall be subject to and abide by the Bylaws and regulations of the ACBL, District 8 and Unit 208 thereof as in existence and amended from time to time. No rule, regulation or bylaw adopted by the Club shall be inconsistent with or be in contravention of the rules, regulations and bylaws of the ACBL, District 8 or Unit 208 thereof. The Club shall conduct its affairs in a manner consistent with the rules, regulations, policies, procedures and bylaws of the ACBL, District 8 and Unit 208 thereof.
ARTICLE III
MEMBERSHIP
Section 3.1 Members; Dues. Any person who is a member of the American Contract Bridge League may become a member of the Club upon application and payment of Club dues. No member of the ACBL shall be barred from membership in the Club based upon his or her race, creed, religion, political affiliation, sexual orientation, national origin, physical handicap, or on his or her proficiency at bridge. Dues shall be set from time to time by the Club’s board of directors and shall initially be $3.00 per year.
Section 3.2 Rights and Obligations. The members shall have the voting rights and privileges accorded to members of organizations incorporated under the Nonprofit Act unless otherwise restricted in these Bylaws or the Club’s articles of incorporation. Members of the Club shall be required to abide by, and to conduct themselves in a manner consistent with, the Bylaws, regulations, policies, code of conduct and ethics standards established by the ACBL and the Club.
Section 3.3 Termination of Membership. A member shall remain a member of the Club unless and until he fails to pay dues in a timely manner, ceases to be a member of the ACBL, resigns, or has his membership terminated for disciplinary reasons.
ARTICLE IV
MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS
Section 4.1. Annual Meeting. The Annual Meeting of the Club shall be held in the month of June at such time and place as may from time to time be fixed by the Board of Directors. The agenda of the Annual Meeting shall include election of the Officers and other Board members for the forthcoming year, presentation of annual reports and transaction of such other business as may properly come before the meeting. Failure to hold an annual meeting shall not work a forfeiture or dissolution of the Club or invalidate any action taken by the Board of Directors or Officers of the Club.
Section 4.2. Special Meetings. Special meetings of the membership of the Club may be called by the President or by the Board of Directors. A special meeting shall be called by the President on petition by not less than twenty (20%) percent members entitled to vote.
Section 4.3. Place of Meeting. All membership meetings of the Club shall be held within Peoria County, Illinois at a location designated by the Board of Directors or the person or persons calling a special meeting.
Section 4.4. Notice of Meetings. Notice, written, printed or by electronic transmission, stating the place, day and hour of the annual meeting and, in the case of a special meeting, the purpose or purposes for which the meeting is called, shall be delivered not less than 5 nor more than 60 days before the date of the meeting, by or at the direction of the President, Secretary or officers or persons calling the meeting, to each member entitled to vote at such meeting. Such notice shall be deemed delivered to the membership by, among other means, posting notice of the same at the location of the Club’s sanctioned bridge games.
Section 4.5. Quorum. Ten (10%) percent members in good standing of the Club shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the membership.
Section 4.6. Proxy Voting. No proxy voting shall be permitted at membership meetings.
ARTICLE V
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 5.1. Powers and Duties. The management of all business, property, and interests, and other affairs of the Club shall be vested in its Board of Directors. Among the powers hereby conferred is the power to impose sanctions upon members in accordance with ACBL rules and regulations, to delegate non-policy making authority to members who are not directors, and, in general, to take such other and further actions as may from time to time be necessary to further and implement the purposes and aims of the Club as set forth in Article I.
Section 5.2. Directors’ Fiduciary Duties and Standards of Conduct. Each director is subject to a duty of loyalty to the corporation and a duty of care in the performance of his duties as a director.
Section 5.3. Election of Directors. The members shall elect the requisite number of Directors from among the nominees.
Section 5.4. Number; Qualifications. The Board of Directors shall consist of seven (7) members, four (4) of whom shall be the President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer of the Club. All Directors must be members in good standing of the ACBL as well as members of the Club.
Section 5.5. Term of Office. All of the directors shall be elected each year for terms of office of one year ending at the next annual meeting of the membership. All Board Members shall hold office until their successors are elected and qualified or until their sooner death, resignation or removal.
Section 5.6. Regular and Special Meetings. The Board shall establish a schedule for regular meetings. Regular meetings of the Board of Directors shall be held, with proper notice, not less frequently than once quarterly. Special meetings of the Board may be called at any time by the President, the Board, or upon the written request of 3 or more directors. Members of the Board of Directors may participate in a meeting of such board by means of a conference telephone or similar communications equipment by means of which all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other at the same time and participation by such means shall constitute presence in person at a meeting.
Section 5.7. Notice. Notice of any regular or special meeting stating the place, day and hour of the meeting may be given in writing, verbally or by electronic means not less than 24 hours prior to the date of the meeting.
Section 5.8. Waiver of Notice. Attendance of a director at a meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice of such meeting, except where a director attends for the express purpose of objecting to the transaction of business because the meeting is not lawfully called or convened. A waiver of notice signed by the director or directors, whether before or after the time stated for the meeting, shall be equivalent to the giving of notice.
Section 5.9. Participation in Meeting by Conference Telephone. Members of the Board may participate in a meeting through use of conference telephone or similar communications equipment, as long as members participating in such meeting can hear one another.
Section 5.10. Quorum. A majority of the Board of Directors shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting of the Board of Directors.
Section 5.11. Vacancies. All vacancies in the Board of Directors, whether caused by resignation, death or otherwise, may be filled by the affirmative vote of a majority of the remaining directors. A director elected to fill any vacancy shall hold office for the unexpired term of his predecessor and until a successor is elected and qualified.
ARTICLE VI
OFFICERS
Section 6.1. Designations. The officers of the Club shall be a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, and a Treasurer. The initial officers shall be elected by the initial Board of Directors named in the Club’s articles of incorporation to serve until the first meeting of the members. At the first meeting of the members and thereafter at each annual meeting of the members, the members shall elect the officers. All officers elected by the members shall be elected for terms of one year until the next annual meeting. Officers shall hold office until their successors are elected and qualified.
Section 6.2. President. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Board of Directors, shall have general supervision of the affairs of the corporation and shall perform such other duties as are incident to the office or are properly required of the President by the Board of Directors.
Section 6.3. Vice President. During the absence or disability of the President, the Vice President shall exercise all the functions of the President. The Vice President shall have such powers and discharge such duties as may be assigned to him from time to time by the Board of Directors.
Section 6.4. Secretary. The Secretary shall issue notices for all meetings, shall keep minutes of all meetings, shall have charge of the corporate books, and shall make such reports and perform such other duties as are incident to the office, or are properly required of the Secretary by the Board of Directors.
Section 6.5. Treasurer. The Treasurer shall have the custody of all monies and securities of the corporation and shall keep regular books of account. The Treasurer shall disburse the funds of the corporation in payment of the just demands against the corporation or as may be ordered by the Board of Directors and shall render to the Board of Directors, from time to time as may be required, an account of all transactions undertaken as Treasurer and of the financial condition of the corporation. The Treasurer shall see to the filing of Internal Revenue Service forms to recognize the Club as an organization exempt from federal income tax and to file such annual reports with the IRS as may be needed to comply with the Internal Revenue Code provisions applicable to the Club. The Treasurer shall perform such other duties as are incident to the office or are properly required by the Board of Directors.
Section 6.6. Delegation. If any officer of the corporation is absent or unable to act and no other person is authorized to act in such officer’s place by the provisions of these Bylaws, the Board of Directors may, from time to time, delegate the powers or duties of such officer to any other officer, director or other person it may select.
Section 6.7. Vacancies. In case any office shall become vacant by reason of death, resignation, removal or otherwise, the directors then in office may appoint a successor or successors for the unexpired term.
ARTICLE VII
CLUB MANAGER
Section 7.1. Appointment of Manager; Term. The Board of Directors shall designate an active ACBL member as the Club’s manager (the “Manager”), who shall serve at the pleasure of the Board of Directors.
Section 7.2. Duties. The Manager shall be accountable to the ACBL for enforcement of ACBL rules and regulations in all sanctioned bridge games that the Club conducts. The Manager shall supervise (a) the preparation and filing of the monthly financial and master point reports to the ACBL, (b) correspondence with ACBL on Club game matters, and (c) applications for sanction renewals and reporting of any change of Manager or session changes on forms provided by the ACBL.
ARTICLE VIII
COMMITTEES
Section 8.1. Establishment. The President, with the approval of the Board of Directors, shall have the power to create and appoint the members of such standing and special committees as he may deem necessary or appropriate, designate the chairs thereof and assign functions thereto. The members of committees need not be members of the Board of Directors.
Section 8.2 Executive Committee. The Board may designate, from among its directors, an Executive Committee. This committee shall have powers as provided by resolution of the Board of Directors except as prohibited by the Nonprofit Law. Rules governing meetings of the executive committee shall be as established by the Board of Directors, or in the absence thereof, by the committee itself.
Section 8.3 Other Committees. Other committees shall be established at the discretion of the President. Each committee may adopt rules for its meetings which are not inconsistent with these bylaws.
Section 8.4. Term of Office. Each member of a committee shall serve for one year and until a successor is appointed unless the committee is sooner dissolved.
ARTICLE IX
AMENDMENT OF THE BYLAWS
These bylaws may be amended, altered or repealed and new bylaws may be adopted by a vote of a majority of the members present at any meeting of the members at which a quorum is present, and not otherwise.
ARTICLE X
MISCELLANEOUS
Section 10.1. Inoperative Portion. If any portion of the Bylaws shall be invalid or inoperative, then, to the extent reasonable and possible, the remainder shall be valid and operative, and effect shall be given to the intent that portion held invalid or inoperative manifests.
Section 10.2. Interpretation. Whenever the context indicates, the masculine gender shall encompass the feminine and neuter, and the singular shall encompass the plural or vice versa. The headings are solely for organization, convenience and clarity. They do not define, limit or describe the scope of these bylaws or the intent in any of the provisions.
Section 10.3 Fiscal Year. The fiscal year for the Corporation shall run from June 1 to May 31.
ARTICLE XI
DISSOLUTION and NONPROFIT STATUS
This Corporation is not organized, nor shall it be operated, for pecuniary gain or profit, and it does not contemplate the distribution of gains, profits or dividends to its members. It is organized solely for nonprofit purposes. On the dissolution or winding up of this Corporation, assets remaining after payment of, or provision for payment of, all debts and liabilities of this Corporation shall be distributed according to the regulations and policies of the ACBL but in no event shall the assets be distributed for other than one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(c)(4) or section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding sections of any future federal tax code . If this Corporation holds any assets in trust, they shall be disposed of in such a manner as may be directed by judgment of a court of appropriate jurisdiction.
Adopted: May 22, 2012.
DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES FOR THE PEORIA DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB
Background. The Peoria DBC, as an ACBL sanctioned club, is not subject to the rules of the ACBL Code of Disciplinary Procedures, except in the instances of discrimination, ethical violation and the barring of members from playing because of high skill levels. In all cases of Club discipline under these procedures, no Peoria DBC-imposed discipline may apply to any sanctioned events other than the Club’s itself.
The Peoria DBC desires to assure fairness to players and the Club and to reduce the likelihood of a successful court action after any discipline under these procedures is taken.
Notice. Disciplinary action may be taken by the Club Manager or by a game director against any player violating the ACBL zero tolerance policy. If a disciplinary action, such as temporary or permanent banning of a player from the Club, is taken by the Club Manager or a director, it shall, within three (3) days thereafter, be stated in writing, indicating the reason for the discipline and the length of discipline, and given, emailed, or sent via first-class US mail postage prepaid, to the disciplined player.
Appeal. The disciplined player shall have the opportunity to appeal the action by giving written notice of the appeal to the Club Manager or a director within a seven days after notice of the discipline is given or sent. Pending the appeal, the disciplinary action shall be suspended. The appeal will be heard within 14 days thereafter before an impartial hearing committee, consisting of a chair (who shall be a Club member) and at least two other Club members, appointed by the Club Manager, or in his absence by the President of the Club. Neither the Club Manager nor the director of the game (if any) that resulted in the disciplinary action being taken, shall sit on this committee.
Challenges. The disciplined party shall be allowed to present challenges to the appointment of the hearing committee members based on cause, such as bias. The hearing chair may rule on such challenges.
Recording. The proceedings shall be recorded and the recording be maintained by the Club for a period of not less than one year.
Evidence. The disciplined party may introduce written evidence, introduce witnesses and make a written statement on his or her behalf. Because the disciplined party is appealing the discipline, he or she shall present evidence first, followed by the Club representative. The burden of proof shall be on the disciplined party. The committee need not be bound by legal rules of evidence and may admit evidence, even hearsay, if such evidence is deemed by the committee to be reliable and applicable to the case at hand.
Limitation of Evidence. The chair may limit the introduction of evidence as long as such limitation does not prevent a fair process to either party.
Legal Representation. No attorney representing either party be allowed in the hearing room.
Decision. A written decision shall be made by the committee chair and presented to the Club Manager and the disciplined party, who will both be bound thereby.