Virginia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers |
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE VACDL BY-LAWS
For presentation and proposed adoption by the VACDL membership at the Annual Meeting to be held on November 12, 2020.
ARTICLE III: MEMBERSHIP
a. Regular Members. Members of the Virginia State Bar in good standing who subscribe to the purposes of the VACDL and devote a substantial portion of their time to the practice of criminal defense shall qualify as Regular Members of this Association. Public Defenders and their assistants are eligible to become Regular Members.
b. Associate Members. Any member of a bar of any state or territory of the United States in good standing who subscribes to the purposes of the VACDL, but does not qualify for Regular Membership shall qualify as an Associate member. Associate members shall not have the right to vote, to serve as an Officer or Director of the VACDL, or the privilege of receiving referrals from the Lawyer Referral Service, but shall have all other rights, privileges, and responsibilities of Regular Membership. The responsibility of demonstrating membership in good standing of the bar of a state or territory of the United States may be satisfied by a photocopy of a current bar membership card, having an established expiration date, or a certificate of good standing issued not more than ninety (90) calendar days prior to the date of the membership application.
c. Student Members. Any non-lawyer who is (i) currently enrolled in and attending a school of law or (ii) who has graduated from a school of law within the prior year and is actively planning to take and is studying for the Virginia State Bar examination or (iii) who is currently enrolled in and pursuing a program of reading for the bar examination, approved in accordance with the rules of the Virginia State Bar, is eligible for Student Membership. Student members shall have such rights and the Board of Directors shall determine privileges from time to time.
d. Sustaining and Life Membership: Any regular member shall be confirmed as a sustaining or life member who, in lieu of the payment of the established regular membership dues, pays dues to the VACDL in an amount established by the Board of Directors. A sustaining member may vote in all general membership matters and hold any office in the organization, and shall be a sustaining member for a period of ten (10) years. A life member may vote in all general membership matters and hold any office in the organization.
e. Ex-Officio Membership: Ex-Officio members shall have all of the rights and privileges of regular membership except that they shall not have any voting rights, unless expressly provided for elsewhere in the by-laws.
f. Special Membership: The Board of Directors shall determine on a case-by-case basis the qualification of special members. The Board of Directors shall determine voting rights of such members and their dues.
ARTICLE VI: DIRECTORS
The Board of Directors shall be determined by majority vote of the membership as follows:
a. One member from each of the eleven Virginia Congressional Districts. Only voting members from that Congressional District may vote for the director from the Congressional District;
b. The Commonwealth of Virginia shall be divided into five (5) regions defined by judicial districts, and one (1) director shall be from each of the five (5) regions without regard to the Director's Congressional District;
i. Region A - Northern Virginia, including Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax and surrounding areas including the 17th (Arlington), 18th (Alexandria), 19th (Fairfax, Fairfax City), and 31st (Prince William, Manassas, Manassas Park) Judicial Districts.
ii. Region B - Northern Shenandoah Valley, including Front Royal, Staunton, Harrisonburg, Winchester, Loudon and Fauquier Counties, and surrounding areas, including the 16th (Charlottesville, Albemarle, Culpeper, Fluvanna, Goochland, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Orange), 20th (Loudoun and Fauquier), 25th ( Buena Vista, Covington, Lexington, Staunton, Waynesboro, Alleghany, Augusta, Bath, Botetourt, Craig, Highland and Rockbridge), and 26th, (Harrisonburg, Winchester, Clarke, Frederick, Page, Shenandoah, Rockingham & Warren) Judicial Districts
iii. Region C - Central Virginia, including Richmond, Petersburg, Farmville, South Boston, and surrounding areas including the 10th, (Appomattox, Buckingham, Charlotte, Cumberland, Halifax, Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Prince Edward), 11th, Petersburg, Amelia, Dinwiddie, Nottoway, Powhatan), 12th, (Colonial Heights, Chesterfield), 13th (Richmond), 14th (Henrico), and 15th (Fredericksburg, Caroline, Essex, Hanover, King George, Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, Spotsylvania, Stafford and Westmoreland) Judicial Districts.
iv. Region D - Tidewater Virginia, including Norfolk, Portsmouth, Newport News, Virginia Beach, and surrounding areas 1st (Chesapeake), 2nd (Virginia Beach, Accomack, Northampton), 3rd Portsmouth, 4th (Norfolk), 5th (Franklin, Suffolk), 6th, Emporia, Hopewell, Brunswick, Greensville, Prince George, Surry, Sussex), 7th (Newport News), 8th, (Hampton), 9th (Williamsburg, Charles City, Gloucester, James City, King & Queen, King William, Mathews, Middlesex, New Kent, York) Judicial Districts
v. Region E - Western Virginia, including Charlottesville, Martinsville, Roanoke, Lynchburg, Blacksburg and surrounding areas including the 16th (Charlottesville, Albemarle, Culpeper, Fluvanna, Goochland, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Orange), 21st, Martinsville, Henry, Patrick), 22nd (Danville, Franklin, Pittsylvania), 23rd, Roanoke, Salem, Roanoke County), 24th (Bedford, Lynchburg, Amherst, Bedford County, Campbell, Nelson), 27th (Galax, Radford, Bland, Carroll, Floyd, Giles, Grayson, Montgomery, Pulaski, Wythe), 28th (Bristol, Smyth, Washington), 29th (Buchanan, Dickerson, Russell, Tazewell), 30th (Norton, Lee, Scott, Wise) Judicial Districts
c. Five (5) at large members of the Board without regard to Congressional District or Region.
d. The Current President of VACDL
e. The Current President-Elect of VACDL
f. The Immediate Past-President of VACDL.
g. The Executive Director of the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission, or his or her designee upon notice to the Current President of VACDL, shall also be a member of the Board as an ex-officio member, with full voting rights as a regular member of the Board of Directors.
h. Staggered Terms: The three year terms of Directors shall be staggered to the extent possible so that approximately one-third of the Director seats became vacant each year. The Board of Directors may from time to time adjust terms at their expiration, but not during the terms of any Directors, to insure appropriate term rotation.
a. Except as hereinafter provided, any vacancy in the Board of Directors occurring during the year may be filled for the unexpired portion of the term by the Directors then serving, although they be less than a quorum, by affirmative vote of the majority thereof.
b. Upon election to and assumption of the office of President-Elect, that member’s prior position on the Board of Directors shall be deemed as vacant and filled pursuant to the procedure set forth in Article VI, Paragraph 5(a) above.
c. If a vacancy occurs in the office of President-Elect, such a vacancy shall be filled by an election at a special meeting of the VACDL to be held as soon as possible upon proper notice after such vacancy occurs.
ARTICLE VIII: EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE