AIIC Statutes

I. NAME- HEADQUARTERS - DURATION - OBJECT

Article 1

NAME

The International Association of Conference Interpreters (AIIC) is an Association set up in accordance with the French Law of 1 July 1901.

Article 2

HEADQUARTERS

The headquarters of the Association shall be in Paris.

The Secretariat, which shall assist the Association in its internal administration, shall be established in a place to be decided by the Assembly.

Article 3

DURATION

The Association shall be set up for an indefinite period.

Article 4

PURPOSE

The purpose of the Association shall be to define and represent the profession of conference interpreter, to improve it, especially by encouraging training and research, to safeguard the interests of its members and to serve international co-operation by demanding high professional standards of them. It shall promote a spirit of collegiality amongst its members.

To this end it shall adopt a procedure for the admission and language classification of its members. It shall also adopt a Code of Professional Ethics and ensure that it is respected.

The Association shall, moreover, be empowered to fulfil its trade union duties by negotiating (collective) agreements with employers in the national or international public sector or non governmental organisations, covering, in particular, conference interpreters' working conditions, remuneration, team strength and social security.

II. MEMBERSHIP

Article 5

COMPOSITION

The Association shall consist of active, associate and honorary members. It shall include candidates.

The Association shall keep a list of its members and may publish it in the appropriate form or forms.

Article 6

ACTIVE MEMBERS

Active membership shall be open to any member who actually practises the profession of conference interpreter.

Article 7

ASSOCIATE MEMBERS

Associate membership shall be open to any member who practises or has practised the profession as a principal or subsidiary occupation but does not work more than twenty days a year as a conference interpreter.

Article 8

CANDIDATES

Anyone who practises the profession of conference interpreter and who has, without exception, observed the Association's Code of Professional Ethics and its other rules and regulations for at least one hundred fifty working days may become a candidate. The details, especially those regarding sponsorship, shall be established in the Regulation Governing Admissions and Language Classification.

The Association shall keep a list of registered pre-candidates who have not yet completed the period of one hundred fifty days referred to in the preceding paragraph. The details shall be established in the Regulation Governing Admissions and Language Classification.

Article 9

CHANGES IN STATUS

Any active member who wishes to become an associate member shall apply in writing to the Committee on Admissions and Language Classification, stating their reasons.

Any member applying for a change in status to that of associate member must enter into a commitment not to work for more than twenty days a year.

Any associate member who wishes to become an active member shall inform the secretariat.

Article 10

CONDITIONS FOR ADMISSION

Before they may become members of the Association, conference interpreters shall enter into a commitment to respect the Statutes, the Code of Professional Ethics and all of the Association's other rules and regulations as well as the other rules of the profession.

All members shall be bound to pay the appropriate dues within the set time limit.

Article 11

ADMISSION PROCEDURE

Any conference interpreter who, for a period of at least one hundred fifty working days without exception, has been practising the profession, observing the Association's Code of Professional Ethics and all its other rules and regulations as well as the other rules of the profession, may submit an application to become a candidate with a view to becoming an active or associate member.

All candidate applications shall be submitted in writing to the Committee on Admissions and Language Classification, which shall take a decision, subject to an appeal to the Council.

Any interpreter who has been practising the profession for less than one hundred fifty days under the conditions provided for in paragraph 1 above shall only be able to apply for registration on the list of pre-candidates with a view to becoming a candidate.

Article 12

RESIGNATION

Any member wishing to resign from the Association shall inform the secretariat in writing. The secretariat shall send an acknowledgement. Membership shall cease forthwith.

Any member resigning shall, nonetheless, remain liable to meet all her or his commitments towards the Association.

Resignation shall not prevent disciplinary proceedings arising out of any earlier occurrence.

Article 13

SUSPENSION

Any member who fails to pay the established dues within eight months of the commencement of the financial year shall be automatically suspended and struck off the Association's list of members. The period of suspension shall cease and the member shall be included on the list of members again once all arrears of dues have been paid.

Suspension may also be imposed as a penalty in disciplinary proceedings.

Suspended members shall not be dispensed from respecting the rules of the Association, especially that of paying their dues. Suspension leads to the member being stripped of all rights and privileges, particularly voting rights and eligibility to belong to any of the Association's bodies, for its entire duration. The suspended member shall be struck off the Association's list of members. Any elected officer of the Association who has been suspended shall automatically be dismissed and replaced in accordance with the form of election provided for in the Statutes. At the end of the period of suspension the member shall be included on the list of members again. However, if he or she was an elected officer, he or she could only take up those duties again after a new ordinary election had been held.

Article 14

EXPULSION

The following shall lose their membership in the Association:

any member who is expelled as a result of disciplinary proceedings;
any member who no longer satisfies the conditions laid down in articles 6 and 7;

The Council takes a decision on the expulsion of a member once that member has had the opportunity to state her or his case orally or in writing to it.

Within a period of ninety days following written notification of expulsion, the member concerned shall have the right to appeal to the Assembly against the decision. The right to appeal has suspensive effect. However, its beneficiary is considered to have been suspended until such time as the Assembly reaches its decision.

Any former member wishing to join the Association again shall submit a full application for membership. Any member expelled for disciplinary reasons shall not be entitled to apply for membership again within a period of five years from the date on which the expulsion took effect;

any member who is two years in arrears with the payment of dues. These members will automatically lose their membership in the Association, without right of appeal.

Article 15

HONORARY MEMBERS

The Assembly may confer honorary membership on members who have rendered valuable services to the Association.

Article 16

HONORARY PRESIDENTS

The Assembly may bestow the title of Honorary President upon any former President who has rendered valuable services to the Association.

III. STATUTORY BODIES

A) ASSEMBLY

Article 17

COMPOSITION

The supreme statutory body of the Association shall be the Assembly. It shall consist of all members of the Association.

Article 18

FUNCTIONS

The following functions shall be the exclusive competence of the Ordinary Assembly:

to approve the records of Assembly proceedings,
to elect the President, the Treasurer and the other members of the Council,
to elect the Budget Committee and the Committee on Admissions and Language Classification,
to approve the financial framework, the accounts, the Council's and the Treasurer's management reports as well as the report of the Budget Committee and to give discharge to the Treasurer,
to establish the dues to be paid annually by each category of member,
to elect Honorary Presidents and confer honorary membership.

The following functions shall be the competence of either the Ordinary or the Extraordinary Assembly:

to define the Association's general policy
to adopt and amend the Statutes, its own Rules of Procedure, the Code of Professional Ethics, the Professional Standards, the Regulation governing Admissions and Language Classification and the Staff Interpreters' Charter.
to adjudicate on appeals against:

expulsion
Council decisions regarding the rules of procedure of a region or sector.

to remove elected officers from office, without prejudice to any automatic dismissal by virtue of articles 13 and 23 of the present Statutes and of article 2 of the Regulation Governing Admissions and Language Classification.

Article 19

CONVENING THE ASSEMBLY

The Ordinary Assembly shall be convened once every three years. The Council shall notify the members at least five months before the scheduled date, informing them of the preliminary draft agenda.

The Extraordinary Assembly shall meet either if convened by the Council, or if so decided by the Assembly or at the request of one-third of the active members, who shall send their request in writing to the secretariat, together with the proposed agenda.

Article 20

VALIDITY OF DECISIONS

Except for the adoption of its agenda and the minutes of any preceding Assembly, the Assembly shall not take any valid decision until such time as more than half the active members are present or represented.

If this quorum is not attained, the vote shall be postponed. If there is no quorum for a vote already postponed once for lack of quorum, the Council shall convene the Assembly again within a period of ninety days. The Assembly's decisions shall then be valid regardless of the number of active members present or represented.

Article 21

RIGHT TO VOTE

Each active member shall have one vote.

Members of all other categories shall have the right to speak but not to vote.

B) COUNCIL

Article 22

COMPOSITION

The Council shall consist of the President, the Treasurer and one representative from each region. Regions which have at least ten percent of the active members of the Association shall be entitled to two seats. Only active members may be members of Council.

The Council shall elect three of its members as Vice-Presidents of the Association.
In the event of the resignation, permanent incapacity or death of the President, the Vice-President who is the longest-standing member of the Association shall replace her or him.

If one of the posts of Vice-President falls vacant, the Council shall elect a replacement from amongst its members to serve until the next ordinary Assembly.

If the post of Treasurer falls vacant, the Council shall elect an acting Treasurer upon recommendation of the Budget Committee.

If the post of a member of Council other than the President or Treasurer falls vacant, the region that member represents shall elect a replacement to serve until the next ordinary Assembly. The same shall apply if a member of the Council changes her/his professional address to one outside the region that she/he represents; the region may, however, decide otherwise.

A representative of the Budget Committee, the Committee on Admissions and Language Classification as well as the delegations of sectors shall be invited to attend for those items on the agenda that fall within their competence.
Honorary Presidents may attend the meetings of the Council and shall have the right to speak but not to vote.

Article 23

FUNCTIONS

The Council shall manage and represent the Association between sessions of the Assembly. To this end, it shall meet at least once a year or when convened by the President or at the request of at least one-third of its members. The Council shall take all appropriate steps to achieve the Purpose of the Association and to ensure that its rules are respected.

It shall, in particular, have the following functions:

to adopt any measure necessary to implement the Assembly's decisions,
to adopt any rules and regulations not falling within the purview of the Assembly, in particular, to adopt its own Rules of Procedure,
to convene the Assembly and to submit its management report and proposals to it,
to edit and draft any proposal it deems wise to submit to the Assembly with a view to amending the Statutes, the Code of Professional Ethics or any of the other Association's rules and regulations, the amendment of which falls within the purview of the Assembly,
to establish the financial framework and to submit it to the Assembly; to adopt the annual budget,
to impose penalties, in accordance with the Council Regulation on Disciplinary Procedure, on any member found to have infringed the Statutes, the Code of Professional Ethics or any other rules and regulations of the Association,
to rule on any dispute arising between members of the Association, except for disputes of a commercial nature,
to adjudicate appeals against decisions of the Committee on Admissions and Language Classification or of the Directory of Consultant Interpreters Compliance Committee,
to enter litigation on behalf of the Association; in such event, to empower the President or one of the Vice-Presidents to represent the Association,
to approve the membership and remits of sector delegations, to co-ordinate their work and to approve the agreements negotiated by them, taking due account of the opinion of the sector concerned,
to arbitrate in any unresolved disagreement between the statutory bodies of the Association, except where the Assembly is involved,
to organise symposia, congresses and interregional or intersectoral meetings,
to elect a replacement for a member of the Budget Committee or the Committee on Admissions and Language Classification if a post falls vacant, upon the committee's proposal, to serve for the period up to the next ordinary Assembly.
if a member of the Council is repeatedly absent, to declare that a post is vacant and to call on the region that the member represents to elect a replacement until the next ordinary Assembly, in accordance with the provisions of the Council's Rules of Procedure.

The Council may set up committees and working parties.

Article 24

TERM OF OFFICE

The term of office of members of the Council shall be the period between two ordinary Assemblies.

Members of Council may be re-elected. The President and the Treasurer shall not, however, serve for more than two consecutive terms in office.

Members of Council shall not serve for more than two consecutive terms in office as representatives of a region.

At all events, no member of Council shall hold more than four consecutive periods of office.

C) BUREAU

Article 25

COMPOSITION

The Bureau shall comprise the President, the three Vice-Presidents and the Treasurer. It shall be the Bureau's duty to consult a representative of the Budget Committee, the Committee on Admissions and Language Classification as well as the sectors on any subject falling within their competence.

Article 26

FUNCTIONS AND POWERS

The Bureau shall, ex officio, also be the Bureau of the Assembly.

The Bureau shall exercise the Council's functions under its supervision and according to its instructions.

Article 27

NON-REMUNERATION OF OFFICE-HOLDERS

The members of the Council and the Bureau shall not receive any remuneration.

The travel costs and certain other expenses of members of the Council and the Bureau shall be refunded to those concerned in accordance with procedures established by the Council and the Financial Regulations.

D) BUDGET COMMITTEE

Article 28

COMPOSITION

The Budget Committee shall consist of five active members of the Association, who shall not be members of the Council.

Article 29

FUNCTIONS

The Budget Committee shall ensure compliance with the Financial Regulations.

Its functions shall, in particular, be the following:

to submit to the Council the draft multi-annual financial framework and the draft annual budget;
to report to the Assembly;
to examine such financial matters as may be submitted to it by the Assembly or the Council or raised on its own initiative.

E) COMMITTEE ON ADMISSIONS AND LANGUAGE CLASSIFICATION

Article 30

COMPOSITION

The Committee on Admissions and Language Classification shall consist of seven active members, who shall not be members of the Council.

Article 31

FUNCTIONS

The committee shall have the following functions:

to apply the Regulation Governing Admissions and Language Classification and to submit proposals for amending it to the Assembly;
to examine applications for admission and for changes in language classification. The committee shall take a decision on the application and authorise publication of the relevant lists, without prejudice to any automatic admission by virtue of article 17 of the Regulation Governing Admissions and Language Classification. It may grant waivers where justified by particular circumstances;
to examine challenges. The committee rules on the admissibility and, after an enquiry, on the merit of the challenges.
to strike from the appropriate list the name of any candidate or pre-candidate who has infringed the Association's rules;
to decide on requests for changes in membership status as provided for in Article 9.

F) POWERS OF REPRESENTATION

Article 32

SIGNATURES

The Association shall be bound by the joint signature of three members of the Bureau, including that of the President.

IV. REGIONS

Article 33

COMPOSITION

The members of the Association may form regions.

Any country or group of countries having at least twenty-five members may form a region, provided that at least two-thirds of the members who have their professional address in the proposed region agree.

A region loses its status as a region when the number of its members is less than 15.

Two regions may not be formed in the same country.

Any member whose professional address is in a given region is a member of that region and may not be a member of another region.

Regions may constitute themselves in the form of separate legal entities. Those regions made up of several countries may create a national legal entity for each country. Every member of the Association having her or his professional address in a region will become a member of the regional legal entity with its coming into existence, new members with their admission to the Association.

Article 34

FUNCTIONS

The regions shall submit their Rules of Procedure, which must be in conformity with these Statutes, for approval by the Council. Any decision taken by the Council may be the subject of an appeal by the region(s) concerned to the Assembly, which must be submitted within one-hundred-and-twenty days of notification of the decision. The Council's decision shall apply pending the outcome of the appeal.

Before each meeting of the Assembly of the Association, each region shall hold a preparatory regional meeting, which shall be called a statutory meeting.

At these meetings each region shall elect its candidate or candidates for the Council by secret ballot. Unless the region decides otherwise, any candidate must have her or his professional address in the region concerned.

At the same meetings, regions shall also elect their Regional Secretary and Regional Treasurer.

The regions may express their views on the questions on the Assembly's agenda.

If the post of a member of Council other than the President or Treasurer falls vacant, the region that member represents shall elect a replacement to serve until the next ordinary Assembly. The same shall apply if a member of the Council changes her or his professional address to one outside the region that she/he represents. The region may, however, decide otherwise.

Article 35

REGIONAL BUREAU

The Regional Bureau shall comprise at least the member(s) of Council elected to the seat(s) reserved for that region, as well as the Regional Secretary and Regional Treasurer.

V. SECTORS

Article 36

COMPOSITION

Members who have professional interests in common may form sectors.

Article 37

FUNCTIONS

The sectors shall submit their Rules of Procedure, which must be in conformity with the Association's Statutes and rules and regulations, for approval by the Council. Any decision taken by the Council may be the subject of an appeal to the Assembly by the sector concerned. This must be submitted within one-hundred-and-twenty days of notification of the decision. The Council's decision shall apply pending the outcome of the appeal.

The sectors shall propose a delegation for the Council to approve. This delegation shall be responsible for ensuring liaison between the sector concerned and the Council and, with the Council's approval, for representing the sector vis-à-vis third parties.

VI. RESOURCES - FINANCIAL YEAR

Article 38

FINANCIAL RESOURCES

The Association's resources shall be the following:

Annual membership dues;
Manual donations, as provided for in the applicable laws and regulations.

Article 39

FINANCIAL YEAR

The financial year shall begin on 1 February and end on 31 January.

VII. DISSOLUTION

Article 40

DISSOLUTION

The dissolution may only be decided at an Extraordinary Assembly convened for that purpose thirty days beforehand with three-quarters of the active members present and represented.

If this quorum is not attained at this first Assembly, a second Assembly shall be convened within a period of thirty days. The Assembly's decisions shall then be valid regardless of the number of active members present or represented.

The decision to dissolve the Association shall require a two-thirds majority of votes cast.

Article 41

LIQUIDATION OF ASSETS

The Assembly shall decide on the disposal of the Association's remaining assets.

VIII. APPLICATION

Article 42

The provisions of these Statutes and the other basic texts of the Association only apply in so far as they do not infringe the laws in force.

IX. AMENDMENT PROCEDURE

Article 43

These Statutes may be amended by a decision of the Assembly taken with a two-thirds majority of votes cast provided a legal opinion has been sought on the proposals.

2009 Version