The Complete Guide to Robert's Rules of Order Made Easy: Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply
By Rita Cook
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About this ebook
Robert's Rules of Order have been around since 1876, when Henry Martyn Robert published the first edition of his book, which was then known as the Pocket Manual of Rules of Order for Deliberative Assemblies. The book based its outline on the House of Representatives' meeting procedures and adapted these methods for use in society as a whole. Since these rules debuted, they have become the most commonly adopted parliamentary method in the United States, with approximately 95 percent of all clubs, organizations, and governments practicing them. When the copyrights of the original editions expired, many other Robert's Rules of Order began to surface. Today, many of these books are the same - with one apparent problem: a lack of focus on current trends, specifically the Internet. However, The Complete Guide to Robert's Rules of Order Made Easy emphasizes this fact and stresses how society has changed due to the advent of the Internet. Clubs, organizations, and societies need to know how to meet and communicate online, and this book provides the answer. In this book you will learn about technology, conducting meetings online, communicating online, teleconferences, Web conferences, and Web seminars. You will also learn the proper ways to address and send e-mails, as well as how to communicate using instant messenger software. The Internet has transformed the meeting space, and you need to incorporate these changes into your meetings. Additionally, you will learn about all the more traditional rules, including such things as quorum, abstention votes, votes of no confidence, friendly amendments, proxy votes, executive sessions, points of privilege, parliamentary inquiries, and debates. You will also learn how you can adopt Robert's Rules of Order, how to qualify as a legal meeting, how to follow the standard order of business, how to handle a motion, and how to nominate and elect officers. Also included is a discussion of the various motions, including privileged, incidental, subsidiary, main, and unclassified, as well as the basic by-laws and the required paperwork, such as minutes, treasurer's reports, and committee reports. The Complete Guide to Robert's Rules of Order Made Easy will serve as your guide to conducting orderly and fair meetings in the 21st century. The rules for using the Internet as a meeting and communication space are clearly defined, easy to understand, and simple to apply.
Atlantic Publishing is a small, independent publishing company based in Ocala, Florida. Founded over twenty years ago in the company president’s garage, Atlantic Publishing has grown to become a renowned resource for non-fiction books. Today, over 450 titles are in print covering subjects such as small business, healthy living, management, finance, careers, and real estate. Atlantic Publishing prides itself on producing award winning, high-quality manuals that give readers up-to-date, pertinent information, real-world examples, and case studies with expert advice. Every book has resources, contact information, and web sites of the products or companies discussed.
This Atlantic Publishing eBook was professionally written, edited, fact checked, proofed and designed. The print version of this book is 288 pages and you receive exactly the same content. Over the years our books have won dozens of book awards for content, cover design and interior design including the prestigious Benjamin Franklin award for excellence in publishing. We are proud of the high quality of our books and hope you will enjoy this eBook version.
Rita Cook
Rita Cook is a writer and editor with over 1000 articles to her credit in the past 10 years. She has also written four books.
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The Complete Guide to Robert's Rules of Order Made Easy - Rita Cook
The Complete Guide to Robert’s Rules of Order Made Easy
Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply
By Rita Cook
The Complete Guide to Robert’s Rules of Order Made Easy: Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply
Copyright © 2008 by Atlantic Publishing Group, Inc.
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This publication is protected under the US Copyright Act of 1976 and all other applicable international, federal, state and local laws, and all rights are reserved, including resale rights: you are not allowed to give or sell this ebook to anyone else. If you received this publication from anyone other than an authorized seller you have received a pirated copy. Please contact us via e-mail at sales@atlantic-pub.com and notify us of the situation.
ISBN-13: 978-1-60138-259-7
ISBN-10: 1-60138-259-6
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Cook, Rita, 1964-
The complete guide to Robert’s rules of order made easy : everything
you need to know explained simply / by Rita Cook.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-1-60138-259-7 (alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 1-60138-259-6 (alk. paper)
1. Robert, Henry M. (Henry Martyn), 1837-1923. Robert’s rules of
order. 2. Parliamentary practice. I. Title.
JF515.R66C66 2008
060.4’2--dc22
2008030283
LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an organization or Web site is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the organization or Web site may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet Web sites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read.
This Atlantic Publishing eBook was professionally written, edited, fact checked, proofed and designed. Over the years our books have won dozens of book awards for content, cover design and interior design including the prestigious Benjamin Franklin award for excellence in publishing. We are proud of the high quality of our books and hope you will enjoy this eBook version, which is the same content as the print version.
Table of Contents
Dedication
Introduction
Chapter 1: The History of Robert’s Rules of Order
Chapter 2: Robert’s Rules for Your Organization
Chapter 3: Election of Officers
Chapter 4: Basic Meeting Format
Chapter 5: Doing Business: Understanding Motions & Voting Procedures
Chapter 6: Write this Down: Understanding Necessary Paperwork and Reports
Chapter 7: Fight, Fight, Fight... Understanding and Dealing with Conflict Through Organized Debate
Chapter 8: Robert’s Rules for Everyday Life
Chapter 9: Cross the Ts: Understanding Occasional Usage Rules and Procedures
Chapter 10: Understanding Concluding Procedures and How to End Meetings on Time
Chapter 11: Robert’s Rules in a Wired World
Chapter 12: How to Hold Meetings from Remote Locations
Chapter 13: Etiquette & Netiquette: The Golden Rules
Chapter 14: When There is not a Rule
Appendix I: Notices & Minutes
Appendix II: Sample Bylaws Structure
Appendix III: Sample Committee Report
Appendix IV: Sample Resolution
Appendix V: Sample Ordinance
Appendix VI: Conventions
Appendix VII: Using Robert’s Rules as a Roadmap
Appendix VIII: Motions
Glossary
Author Biography
More Great Titles from Atlantic Publishing
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my husband, Russell William Dandridge.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Robert’s Rules of Order: you have most likely heard the term used if you have ever taken part in a formal meeting. Most people are too embarrassed to say, What are Robert’s Rules of Order?
so this book will explain it to you in easy-to-understand language, and you will never have to ask.
The first chapter will cover this more in detail, but Robert
was a person, General Henry Martyn Robert, and these rules are named after him. He got involved in what is known as parliamentary procedure when he began presiding at meetings and did not know all of the rules involved.
My embarrassment was supreme,
it is noted that he said. I plunged in, trusting to Providence that the Assembly would behave itself.
People who especially have a need to know Robert’s Rules of Order include chairmen of boards, politicians, and higher-ups in corporations. With these rules in place, professionals have the ability to run meetings with ease. The most important thing to remember when leading a meeting is to stay in control of it. How do you do that? Robert’s Rules of Order.
Other key position holders in meetings who use Robert’s Rules of Order are secretaries and treasurers. These positions are present in government meetings such as city councils.
Robert’s Rules of Order have been edited over the years, and the manual is now in its Tenth Edition. Even so, the rules are still difficult to understand without some help.
Indeed, there are many books that have been written on Robert’s Rules of Order, but many are just too long and tedious to get through. For the person who needs the information fast, just the facts
essentially, this book, The Complete Guide to Robert’s Rules of Order Made Easy: Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply will be your best tool. After all, if you are in a position to run a meeting that requires Robert’s Rules of Order, you likely cannot remember every in-depth passage that is written explaining the rules.
Also in this book is information you will need for running an electronic meeting. Indeed, in today’s world, executives live all over the world and increasingly travel; it is not always possible to get everyone in the same room at the same time. Robert’s Rules of Order can still be used no matter how many different parts of the world your coworkers and colleagues are located in during the meeting.
Every meeting, no matter what the company or organization, will get the best results by using Robert’s Rules of Order. These rules require structure and a business-like approach to situations. It is all about majority making the decision but the minority of people still being heard.
Handy definitions of many words you will encounter in this book and when discussing Robert’s Rules of Order with others can be found at the end of this book.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
The History of Robert’s Rules of Order
The Rise of Democracy as a Form of Government
The people
define democracy, as opposed to other forms of government, as government. However, a true democracy would require that all members of the group vote on all actions of the group (or society). Therefore, logistics make a true democracy nearly impossible except in small groups. To this end, the form of democracy most familiar in the modern world is what is called a representative democracy.
This type of democracy employs elections to create a group of representatives who will then make the decisions on behalf of the whole body. This type of governance is not new, though, and has been around since before recorded history. You might be surprised to learn that the ancient Israelites of the Bible used a religious-based representative democracy. Representatives of the 12 tribes made decisions, dating back to as early as the wanderings in the desert with Moses.
In the Americas, the native tribes that now make up the Northeastern states also used a democratic form of government to organize their various tribes into one nation. Today, many of the laws and practices that we use come from a defined and written code of conduct that was used in the Republic of Rome where participation in the public forum was considered the mark of manhood.
In England, democratic forms of government were common among the tribes who lived in and were native to that island. After the Anglo-Saxon invasion in the 5th century, the monarchy was established and became the ruling form of government, with the reagent’s power being derived from a witenagemot, also defined as an Anglo-Saxon advisory council to the king. The witenagemot was created with 100 nobles, prelates, and other important people who took part in the administration on an ongoing basis. With the Norman conquest of England, the government of the land was formalized and the Great Council was formed to unite the various factions and barons under one central government. During this time, the land was administered using a feudal system in which a king was understood to own all the land, and local barons, on swearing fealty to that king, were given a piece of the kingdom to administer.
Local farmers grew crops and sustained themselves through this means. They were permitted to work the land in return for swearing fealty to the barons (and also the king). This gave the nobility a percentage of the workers’ harvest, and in return for these oaths of fealty, the nobility provided protection and administration for the land and kingdom. To organize and authorize protection actions, such as declaring war or removing a fellow baron who was not doing his job, the barons came together to have discussions with each other. These Great Councils morphed into a parliament when King Henry III called the Great Council together to discuss not only his business, but also any concerns about the management of the lands.
Originally, there existed only the House of Lords, which was made up of landed nobility (persons associated with the royal household who actually owned the land) and which was empowered to make decisions for the government of those lands as a whole. Later, the House of Commons, composed of representatives elected by the common people, was added to give the non-nobility a voice in the decision making process.
Parliamentary Procedure
In short, parliamentary procedure makes up the rules that are used to conduct meetings of any kind. Anyone can use these procedures, but not everyone necessarily needs to. It depends on the meeting, the group, and the situation. The group using the procedures might be called a deliberative assembly, and an organized system of making decisions needs to be in place. Parliamentary procedure is a respectful way for everyone to be heard and for meetings to run as smoothly as possible.
For the most part, this type of procedure is used by all governing bodies who operate constitutionally, government or otherwise. Common sense is key in figuring out how to make these practices work, but it is duly noted that these procedures protect everyone involved in the meeting. Parliamentary procedure should be an asset, not a stumbling block, and Robert himself said, The assembly meets to transact business, not to have members exploit their knowledge of parliamentary law.
The development of Rules of Order, which would become the foundation of parliamentary procedure, came about because of a drawn-out internal fight within the English Parliament during the 16th and 17th centuries. Before this time, customs and traditions had been the primary governance in how business was conducted within the body. In varying attempts to handle the conversation, resulting disagreements gave rise to a body of writing on the procedures to be used in the House of Commons. These rules, called common parliamentary law, came to North America with the original colonists. Conversely, because the parliamentary law was being written even as the colonists immigrated to the New World, their knowledge and understanding of these regulations was incomplete.
Even with incomplete, or rather unfinished, knowledge of parliamentary law, though, the colonists still knew the importance of understanding how a deliberative assembly, such as a parliament or an organization, conducted business. These colonists’ lives and livelihoods were based on the individual charters granted to them by their home countries. Companies in their home countries that operated on a for-profit basis owned many of these charters. Once in the New World, the colonists set about creating their own rules and governance. As each colony varied in its charter and customs, so did the resulting rules regarding the procedure of conducting an assembly.
When the colonies rebelled against the English government, it was for the most part concerning the way in which they were being allowed (or rather not allowed) to participate in the representative democracy to which they were required to swear fealty and provide taxes. The revolutionary cry No taxation without representation
refers to the need of the colonies to be represented in the British Parliament on an equal scale with their fellow countrymen back home. When this failed to create change, their solution was a revolution and the establishment of a new state.
After the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress worked to develop a constitution and system of government that would provide representation to all the persons while also allowing for efficient management of the country. In the development of the Senate, the Continental Congress drew heavily on the example of the British two-house system of parliament.
Early Precursors to Robert’s Rules
When Thomas Jefferson presided in the Senate as the vice president, he gained an understanding of how diverse the traditions of government were among the various statesmen. As the presiding officer in the Senate, Jefferson was called on to make rulings on matters of procedure and process that had not yet been clearly defined. Beginning with a few notes, Jefferson went on to create a book of rules to govern the Senate proceedings for his term and later presiding officers. In the years that followed, Jefferson’s publication of the Manual of Parliamentary Practice became the standard for the operations of governmental bodies, although it was still a bit unwieldy for volunteer and civic organizations.
As the new country grew, so did a new culture and new society. People formed business groups, welfare organizations, and political bodies. The need for standard rules to govern the growing number of these societies and groups became apparent. In response to this need, Luther S. Cushing developed a manual that was well received but that left much of the day-to-day functioning for individual assemblies open. Cushing believed that each assembly should develop its own rules of order to govern its activities, and his book was accordingly geared only to regularly accepted customs and practices. It was thought that this would give individual assemblies autonomy and independence. Unfortunately, the task of developing cohesive rules of order proved beyond the capabilities or inclinations of most assemblies.
Who is Robert?
Enter Robert. Henry Martyn Robert was an engineer and eventually a general, and he developed these rules in 1870. Robert gained his first interest in parliamentary procedure when he was unexpectedly called on to lead a church meeting yet had no idea how to do it properly. Recently transferred to New Bedford, Massachusetts, Robert found himself in an awfully embarrassing situation in his attempt to lead the assembly. Without any knowledge of what he was doing, he vowed to learn about parliamentary procedure before he would ever again find himself in such a position. After some research, he found a few books that had some basic rules for legislative assemblies. Carrying these with him on a card, he was at least a little better prepared the next time.
When he and his wife were later transferred to San Francisco, California, they became active members of the community and participated in different organizations locally and from around the country. Once again, Henry Robert found that his rules were not sufficient to the task laid before them. He found that the rules he had learned were not only insufficient, they were also not universally accepted, which caused no end of tension and friction among the societies he was involved in on a regular basis. After further research and growing concern for the societies in which he was involved, he created a pamphlet of rules for these organizations. These pamphlets were well received by the organizations that he was a member of, but he was never able to truly finish the task.
After another transfer, Robert found himself moved again to the study of parliamentary procedures. Having studied Cushing’s manual by this time, Robert became convinced that Cushing’s approach needed revising. Instead of a few broad rules that allowed societies to establish their individual codes of conduct, what was needed was a basic manual that, once learned, would enable a person to move from one society to another with relative ease and understanding. Being deeply convicted of this need, he set about writing a book of rules that would address this problem. This book, which became wildly popular, is what we have come to know as Robert’s Rules.
Basic Principles of Robert’s Rules
The point of Robert’s Rules is to provide support for the rights of many different groups, thereby making sure the majority vote rules but that everyone is heard. Robert’s Rules protect the rights of the majority to prevent a tyranny and also prevent corrupt rule by one person. Anarchy, the opposite of tyranny but the corrupt rule of the masses, is also protected against in Robert’s Rules, with protection of the rights of the dissenting minority. The goal is to ensure that the minority has a chance to say its case and, failing to convert the majority, the opportunity to acquiesce gracefully. Robert’s Rules also protect the rights of individual members, giving them the right to voice their support or dissension equally. Finally, Robert’s Rules protect those who are absent from the assembly and ultimately protects the rights of the deliberative society as a whole.
The basics of these rules are fairly easy to understand, with there being ten main points that make up the bigger picture.
The privileges of the entire group are more important than the privileges