STATUTES OF THE IACL

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.
All those who adhere voluntarily to this Statute hereby found the association of scholars and others concerned with constitutional law from the whole world. Its name shall be the INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CONSTITUTIONAL LAW - IACL ( in the text below referred to as the Association).

Article 2.
The Association acts as an autonomous, scientific and professional organization, under the terms of its Statute and within the framework of UNESCO.

Article 3.
The Associations seat is where the secretary general resides. The Council of the Association may determine another place as the headquarters of the Association.

II. OBJECTIVES AND TASKS OF THE ASSOCIATION

Article 4.
The main objectives of the Association are as follows:

1. to stimulate the development of the study of constitutional law;
2. to contact those concerned with constitutional law and national or regional associations of constitutional law, thus developing among them mutual understanding and goodwill, as well as to enable and promote exchanges of views and of scholarly work;
3. to cooperate and work for realization of the aims of the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to coordinate the activity of those concerned with constitutional law throughout the world, with a view to:

• stimulating, in the field of constitutional law, theoretical and comparative studies and practical realization of democratic principles in conformity with the needs of securing peace and peaceful international cooperation;
• stimulating and giving its contribution to the scholarly study of constitutional problems and of constitutionalism, as well as to respect for law in the world;
• developing constitutional and democratic conscience;
• promoting of the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of man and the citizen through constitutional legislation and practice;
• collaboration with cultural and social forces attached to the promotion of human rights and democracy.

Article 5.
In the realization of its objectives, the Association particularly will:

1. organize international scientific congresses and conferences as well as regional symposia on scientific, political and practical problems within the field of constitutional law and of constitutionalism in general;
2. cooperate with related and other associations, organizations and institutions;
3. stimulate the founding of national and regional associations of constitutional law;
4. bring out publications from scientific meetings and help publication of other scholarly works in the field of constitutional law.
5. stimulate the spread of constitutional science, research and studies especially among young scholars and experts.

III. MEMBERSHIP OF THE ASSOCIATION

Article 6.
The members of the Association are national associations of constitutional law. In addition, scientific institutes and individuals can be members of the Association.
Any association of constitutional law whose activities and objectives are not contrary to the objectives and the statute of the Association may be a member of the Association.
Recognized scholars or scientific institutes active in the field of constitutional law may be admitted as individual members.

Article 7.
Applications for membership in the Association are sent to the Executive Committee which may decide temporarily on the application. The definite decision on admission is taken by the Council of the Association.

Article 8.
The Council may at the proposal of the Executive Committee exclude members who are delinquent in payment of dues over a four-year period or who have otherwise violated the Statute of the Association.

IV. ORGANS OF THE ASSOCIATION

Article 9.
The organs of the Association are the Council, the president, the Executive Committee, the Secretary General, the Scientific council and the commissions.

Article 10.
The Council is the supreme organ of the Association.
The Council is composed of two delegates with the right to vote per national association and one delegate with the right to vote per scientific institute, and of delegates who represent the individual members resorting countries in which no national association exists. The number of these individual delegates may not exceed 10% of the members of the Council. They are appointed by the Executive Committee after an appeal for candidatures among the individual members who are present at the Congress.
Each national association shall nominate its two representatives and each scientific institute its representative and communicate the names to the Executive Committee before the meeting of the Council. The right to vote at the Council meetings is based upon payment of membership fees since the last Council meeting or since joining the IACL whatever is less.
The members of the Executive Committee and the former presidents of the Association are, by virtue of their positions, members of the Council.
The members of the Scientific Council who are not appointed as delegates may attend the Council while having a consultative role.
Individual members who are present and who are not appointed as delegates may attend the Council while having a consultative role.
The Executive Committee may invite other constitutionalists to attend the Council in their capacity as experts.
The Council takes its decisions by a majority of the members present or represented.
The quorum of the majority is necessary for the validity of the deliberations of the Council. In case the quorum is not reached, a second Council is convened within 48 hours and it deliberates validly provided that a tenth of the members are present or represented. If the number of the individual appointed delegates is lower than the number of delegates they are entitled to, only the first number is taken into account for the calculation of the quorum.
Each delegate cannot have more than one power of attorney of another delegate.

Article 11.
The Council of the Association:

1. passes and amends the Statute by two-thirds majority its members, present at the Council;
2. takes principal decisions on behalf of the Association;
3. elects and relieves the president, the first vice-president and vice-presidents of the Association, the Executive Committee, the secretary-general and possibly his deputy and the commissions of their offices by absolute majority of the members present at the Council;
4. discusses and adopts the reports on the activity of all the organs of the Association
   

Article 12.
There shall be a meeting of the Council every four years during the Congress of the Association or between the Congresses on proposal of the Executive Committee.

Article 13.
The president of the Association is at the same time also chairman of the Council and of the Executive Committee. The president is elected for a period of four years and not immediately re-eligible. The first vice-president and the vice-presidents are elected for a period of four years and are re-eligible.
The president represents the Association, convenes the meetings of the Council and of the Executive Committee and presides over them and preforms other duties with which he is entrusted by the Council.
In case the president is absent, the office shall be occupied by the first vice-president or one of the vice-presidents of the Association.

Article 14.
The Executive Committee is the executive organ of the Association.
The Executive Committee organizes the activity of the Association and manages its affairs under the terms of this Statute and in conformity with the decisions of the Council. In addition, the Executive Committee shall have the power to fill vacancies due to death, incapacity to serve, or resignation of the president, first vice-president, vice-presidents, secretary general, deputy secretary general and members of the Executive Committee if and when these occur between meetings of the Council. Any such appointment made by the Executive Committee shall be valid until the next meeting of the Council.
Beside the president, the Executive Committee consists of a first vice-president and 25 to 30 members, some of whom may also be vice-president, elected by the Council, taking into account the different legal systems and a proper geographical distribution. They are only twice eligible for re-election in the Executive Committee in the same function. The secretary general is a member of the Executive Committee by his function.
The Council upon proposal of the Executive Committee can confer the title of president emeritus to former presidents and the title of honorary president to former members of the Executive Committee who have made an outstanding contribution to the IACL. Former presidents and the presidents of the commissions shall be invited to the meetings of the Executive Committee with a consultative vote.
The other members of the Executive Committee are elected for a period of four years, and they may be re-elected.
A majority of a third part of its members constitutes a quorum of the Executive Committee. In exceptional circumstances a member of the Executive Committee may be represented at a meeting by a proxy, following prior agreement of the President and Secretary General.
The Executive Committee shall meet once a year.

Article 15.
The Secretary General carries out the decisions of the Council, of the Executive Committee and of the president and takes care of the activity of the Association. In agreement with the president, he forms the Secretariat, charged with the performances of administrative and accounting tasks.
The Secretary General and his deputy are elected by the Council for a period of four years and are eligible for re-election.

Article 16.
The Council or the Executive Committee may constitute commissions including a Program commission.
The Council sets up an auditing commission from among its members. This commission checks the financial management of the Association and of the Executive Committee and submits a report to the next Council.
The Scientific council of the Association consists of the co-founders of the Association, who are no longer a member of the Executive Committee and the former members of the Executive Committee. The Council is presided by the last president of the Association.
The Scientific council is the Association's consultative commission, which can introduce proposals regarding the developments of the scientific activities of the Association. The Council and the Executive Committee can charge the Scientific council with the research and certain assignments and it must be convened together with the Council of the Association.

V. CONGRESS OF THE ASSOCIATION

Article 17.
The Association organizes a Congress at least every four years.
The Executive Committee, on proposal of the Program commission, states the themes and sets the dates of the organisation of the Congress.
Congresses will be held in different areas of the world in turn.

VI. FINANCES OF THE ASSOCIATION

Article 18.
The revenues of the Association are:

1. annual dues of each member, the amount of which is fixed by the Council;
2. subvention offered by UNESCO and other international organizations;
3. income from sales of publications of the Association;
4. other incomes, grants and gifts.

VII. FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 19.
This Statute will be applied beginning the day when it has been adopted, by a majority vote, by the Initiative Committee for the founding of the International Association of Constitutional Law. The Initiative Committee is constituted as the Founding Convention.
The Statute will be submitted for approval to the first regular meeting of the Council which will be elected under the terms of this Statute.

Article 20.
This Statute will be delivered to all national associations of constitutional law and to all individual members.

Article 21.
The Association may be dissolved if three fourths of the members of the Council so agree.
If the Association is dissolved, its assets shall be given to UNESCO.

Article 22.
For the first period, the Executive Committee shall propose the number of national and regional delegates in the Council. For the following periods, the numbers shall be proposed and determined as provided by Article 10, Section 2, of the Statute.

Article 23.
The Initiative Committee has been constituted into the Founding Convention of the Association by a unanimous decision of the present members of the Initiative Committee, a list of members of which is an integral part of the text of this Statute.
Cheryl Saunders, President
Lidija R. Basta Fleiner, Secretary General
Santiago, 14 January 2004