Parliamentary Procedure

I am a regular member of the National Association of Parliamentarians. This means I demonstrated a basic knowledge of parliamentary principles by correctly answering questions drawn from a list of 300 questions related to parliamentary procedure in July 2011.

The National Association of Parliamentarians (NAP), is the largest non-profit association of professional parliamentarians in the world. NAP was organized in 1930. As of April 30, 2012, NAP had a membership of about 3,408 parliamentarians in all 50 U.S. states, Canada, and internationally. The goals of NAP are to:
* Foster educational, scientific, literary and professional purposes of studying, teaching, promoting and disseminating the philosophy and principles underlying the rules of deliberative assemblies;
* Further the growing interest in parliamentary rules in both public and private schools on all levels;
* Create closer cooperation among parliamentarians;
* Inculcate and uphold the general principles of obedience to law and lend moral aid and strength to the parliamentary activities of its members; and
* Award such certification of proficiency as appropriate.

A parliamentarian advises organizations and deliberative assemblies by establishing a commonly accepted way in which a group of people come together, present and discuss possible courses of action, and make decisions. Parliamentary Procedure is used by all types of decision-making bodies on a daily basis: for example, school boards, homeowners’ associations, city councils, and non-profit boards of directors. Parliamentary Procedure also defines what duties people typically have when they are elected the president, secretary, or treasurer of an organization. Fundamentally, parliamentary procedure defines how groups of people, no matter how formal or informal, can most effectively meet and make decisions in a fair, consistent manner—and can help organizations hold more efficient meetings.

Parliamentary procedure
* establishes the purpose and structure of organizations;
* defines membership classifications, rights, and obligations; and
* defines rules and procedures for conducting business.

A Parliamentarian can help an organization write its constitution and/or by-laws. The parliamentarian can also call the attention of the presiding officer to errors in procedure during meetings. However, the advice of a parliamentarian is generally not binding on the presiding officer of an assembly.

The National Association of Parliamentarians bases its opinions and instruction upon Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, the most widely used parliamentary authority in the United States. The first edition of the book, whose full title was Pocket Manual of Rules of Order for Deliberative Assemblies, was published in February 1876 by then U.S. Army Colonel Henry Martyn Robert (1837–1923) with the short title Robert’s Rules of Order placed on its cover. The procedures prescribed by the book were loosely modeled after those used in the United States House of Representatives, with such adaptations as Robert saw fit for use in ordinary societies. Since then, this book (often abbreviated RONR) the book has been expanded and updated several times, incorporating solutions for countless meeting situations and acknowledging both societal and technological changes that affect the way business is conducted. The current edition of this book is Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, 11th edition (2011).

While lawyers can be Parliamentarians, the average law student does not learn Parliamentary Procedure, rather they learn Civil Procedure (the body of law that sets out the rules and standards that courts follow when adjudicating civil lawsuits) and Criminal Procedure (the body of law that sets out the rules and standards that courts follow when adjudicating criminal lawsuits).

State statutes typically do not prescribe a particular parliamentary authority to be used in corporate meetings. Parliamentary procedure in the corporate world may follow traditional parliamentary authorities such as Robert’s Rules of Order or simpler rules of order considered by some commentators to be more appropriate in the corporate setting.

As mentioned above, I demonstrated a basic knowledge of parliamentary principles by correctly answering questions drawn from a list of 300 questions related to parliamentary procedure in July 2011, followed by continuing education at Drake University School of Law and Des Moines Area Community College from June 2011 to December 2012. I am a regular member of the National Association of Parliamentarians, but I am not a lawyer. I can help your organization prepare legal documents such as a constitution and/or by-laws. I can also moderate at organization meetings and advise an organization’s presiding officer during meetings on whether they are following such documents, Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, and other sources of Parliamentary Procedure. However, as mentioned above, the advice of a parliamentarian is generally not binding on the presiding officer of an assembly.

To contact me about preparing documents or serving as a moderator click here. For more information on the National Association of Parliamentarians http://parliamentarians.org/. I will also post one of my favorite basic Parliamentary Procedure guides here as a pdf.