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ONTARIO
INSURANCE ADJUSTERS ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION BY LAW NO. 1 ARTICLE 1 – Name This organization shall be known as the Ontario Insurance Adjusters
Association. The Association shall be a non-partisan,
non-sectarian body. The name of the Association shall not be used
by any of its officers or members in connection with any partisan
interests. ARTICLE 2 – Objects Section 1 – To promote and maintain a high standard of ethics
amongst insurance claims professionals. Section 2 – To secure and promote, in the interests of the
business of insurance and of members of the Association, amicable
relations with government departments and officials, the governing
bodies and members of other organizations, insurance companies,
insurance associations and fraternities and the general public, in
matters connected with the business of insurance and insurance
claims. Section 3 – To deal with issues
affecting the business of insurance claims adjusting as a whole. Section 4 – To hold meetings for the purpose of
maintaining fellowship, networking and education. ARTICLE 3 – Membership Classification of membership is as follows: (a) Active
Members shall be those in good standing and character whose
principal interest and attention is devoted in a duly qualified
manner to adjustment of claims in the province of Ontario
on behalf of or employed by insurance companies, self-insurers or
government agencies excluding adjusters
acting on behalf of the public. They shall be authorized by statute to carry on
the above business in the Province of Ontario. They shall have
full privileges and powers of the membership. (c) Honorary Life Members Shall be
those at any time eligible for Active membership who have rendered
some single service to the Association. They shall have full
privileges of the Association but shall not pay dues. (d) Associate Members shall be all existing Associate
Members holding such designation prior to February 13, 1991 and
who continue to retain that designation by payment of annual
renewal dues. Failure to renew annual membership dues will result
in forfeiture of Associate Members status. The Associate Member
shall not have the power to vote or hold office.
ARTICLE 4 – Admission to Membership Section 1 – Active Membership Applicants shall be admitted to Active Membership under the
following procedure: (a) An application for membership shall be submitted with full
information concerning the applicant upon the form approved by the
Association; (b) Each application shall include the signed recommendation of two
Active Members in good standing; (c) Each application for membership shall be
considered by the Executive Council and if passed by a majority
vote of the Executive Council, such applicant shall be accepted as
a member. (d) The names of applicants approved by the Executive Council shall
be published in the next succeeding issue of the Official Journal; Section 2
– Honorary Life Membership Admission to Honorary Life membership shall be upon the
recommendation of the President and by a three-quarters majority
vote of the Executive Council present and voting, excluding
abstentions at any regular Executive meeting. Section 3 – New Members New Members shall be notified in writing by the Secretary or
his/her designee, of their admission and shall be provided with a
copy of the Constitution, Code of Ethics and Rules of Order of the
Association. ARTICLE 5 – Discipline Section 1 Any Active member being 60 days in arrears in the payment of
his/her dues shall automatically stand suspended. Such member,
upon payment of arrears within 30 days of such suspension, may be
reinstated by the Executive Council. In the absence of payment of
arrears within 30 days, he/she shall be dropped from the
membership. If the conduct of a member shall be in the
opinion of the Executive Council be injurious to the character or
the interest of the association, the member shall be subject to an
expulsion on a three quarters majority vote of the Executive
Council present and voting excluding abstentions. Any person
so expelled shall have the right to appeal with written
notice to the Executive Council within 90 days of the expulsion.
The Executive Council will notify the expelled member of the
appeal date to be held at a regular scheduled meeting of the
Executive Council. The expulsion shall stand unless
overruled by a three quarters majority vote of members present and
voting excluding abstentions at such meeting. Any member so
expelled will forfeit any rights all interest in any funds or
other property belonging to the association. Subsequently, these
members may re-apply for membership provided they still qualify
under Article 3, Section 2(a). Section 2
– Any person whose membership in this Association has been
terminated in any manner shall forfeit all interest in any funds
or other property belonging to the Association and all right to
the use of the Association’s name or any abbreviation thereof,
crest or other insignia. Section
3 - The Executive Council has the right to
remove an Executive Council member by a three quarters majority
vote of the Executive Council members present and voting excluding
abstentions. ARTICLE 6 – Code of Ethics The Code of Ethics of the Association shall be so adopted as
follows: The Adjuster shall so act as to promote public confidence in
insurance companies through fair and conscientious dealing, and
shall refrain from any fraud, deceit, misrepresentation, dishonest
non-disclosure, undue influence or other mischievous practice. The relationship of the adjuster to the company and the
policyholder is one of trust and confidence calling for the
highest degree of good faith in all transactions. The Adjuster Shall ONE – Put interests of the public, employer
and association ahead of your own. TWO – Promptly and appropriately disclose all
information pertinent to the investigation. THREE – Protect and secure all information in
accordance with privacy laws. FOUR – Shall use their full knowledge and
ability to perform their duties. The Adjuster Shall Not ONE
– Act in any way detrimental to the association or the industry. TWO – Profit or acquire any financial interest
in any matter entrusted to him/her. THREE – Knowingly lend themselves, their names
or their services to any unlawful act. FOUR – Act outside the scope of their
employment. FIVE – Advise any claimant to refrain from
seeking legal representation or deal with them directly if they
have legal representation. ARTICLE 7 – Chapters Section 1 – An “Authorized District” shall be a geographical
area so designated from time to time by the Executive Council for
the purpose of adequate regional representation. Section 2 – In any authorized district there may be formed by the
members of the Association residing
or employed
therein, one Chapter of the Association, provided always that the
Executive Council shall, on written application to it, have
approved the formation thereof. The name of such Chapter, in which
it shall conduct all its business, shall be (name of District or
Association) Chapter of the Ontario Insurance Adjusters
Association. Section 3 – All members of every Chapter so formed shall be and
continue to be members of the Association and shall be subject to
and governed by this Constitution. Each Chapter shall enact and be
governed by its own by-laws which (except that any Chapter may
have “Social Members” who are not members of this Association
and who do not have any voting rights) shall not in any way
conflict with but shall conform to the provisions of this
Constitution. A copy of such Chapter By-laws and a copy of any
amendments thereto shall be delivered to the Secretary of this
Association for approval by the Executive Council. Section 4 – Included in all such Chapter By-laws shall be
provision for annual or bi-annual elections
of a President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary of the
Chapter and of such additional members of the Chapter’s
Executive Committee as may be deemed desirable; and they shall
also provide for election of a member of the Chapter to serve on
the Executive Council of this Association. Section 5 – It shall be the duty of every Chapter to collect and
to remit to the Treasurer of the Association any outstanding
annual dues payable to this Association by all members of the
Chapter on request by the association
Treasurer or designee. Section 6 – Each such Chapter shall be autonomous in the
management and expense of its own affairs and shall, in matters
peculiar to the Chapter, have no right to the funds of this
Association nor shall it incur any debt in the name of this
Association without prior written approval of the Executive
Council. Section 7 – Included in all chapter bylaws
shall be a provision for dissolution of the chapter. ARTICLE 8 – Officers – Executive Committee Section 1 – The Officers of the Association shall be the
Immediate Past President, President, First Vice-President, Second
Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary and shall constitute its
Executive Committee. Section 2 – All Officers shall be Active Members in good
standing. Section 3 – All Officers shall enter upon their official duties
as of the first day of July and shall serve for a term of one year
or until their successors shall be duly elected and qualified. Section 4 – The duties of the Officers shall be as follows: (a) The President shall be the Executive Officer of the Association
and shall preside over all meetings of the Association. He/she
shall be an ex-officio member of all standing and special
committees. He/she shall perform such other duties as usually
pertain to the office of the President. (b) The First Vice-President shall be Chair of the Executive
Council and in the absence of the President shall preside at
meetings of the Association. (c) The Second Vice-President shall assume the duties of the First
Vice-President in the event of his/her absence. (d) The Treasurer shall be responsible for receiving and promptly
depositing all funds paid to the Association to its credit in a
duly authorized Chartered Bank. His/her accounts and books shall
at all times be open to the inspection of any member of the
Executive Council and the authorized auditor. He/she shall make a
report at such times as the Executive Council may require. He/she
shall keep the record of membership fees and dues. He/she shall be
responsible for the presentation of all bills to the Executive
Council for approval. He/she shall be responsible for all
correspondence respecting accounts, membership fees and dues and
suspensions and expulsions pertaining to the membership fees and
dues. The report of the Treasurer for the preceding year shall be
presented at the first meeting of the Association following
receipt of the auditor’s report. (e) The Secretary shall keep minutes of the meeting of the
Association and of the Executive Council, and shall be custodian
of the Constitution and of reports of Special Committees. He/she
shall be corresponding Secretary of the Association on all matters
except those pertaining to accounts, membership fees and dues, and
the authorized correspondence of Special Committees. (f) The Officers of the Association shall constitute its Executive
Committee, answerable to the Executive Council and charged with
such duties and powers of day-to-day administration as may be
conferred upon it by that Council. ARTICLE 9 – Executive Council Section 1 – The Executive Council shall consist of the Executive
Committee and in addition the immediate Past President, four
council members elected from Metropolitan Toronto and one council
member elected from each of the authorized Chapters. All members
of the Executive Council shall be active members in good standing.
In the event that the immediate Past President is unable to serve
on this Council, the Executive Council may elect any former
President to do so. Section 2 – The Executive Committee shall hold office for one
year, commencing on the first day of July. The remaining executive
council shall hold office for two years commencing on the first
day of July. Section 3 – The Executive Council shall be charged with the
general administration of the affairs of the Association and the
furtherance of its objects. Section 4 – Special Committees
shall be appointed by the President and they shall perform such
duties as directed. ARTICLE 10 – Meetings
and Quorum Section 1 – Unless otherwise directed by
the Executive Council the association will hold its regular
meetings in the Toronto area, for the coming fiscal year, as
published in the September edition of the Official Journal and on
the Associations official website. Section 2 – Special meetings may be called by the President with
the consent of the Executive Council or by the Secretary upon
written petition of twenty voting members, with the location of
such meeting being at the discretion of the President. Section 3 – The Executive Council, fifty percent of whose members
shall constitute a quorum, shall meet monthly except during the
month of July. A meeting may take
place using appropriate available technology as directed by the
Executive Committee. Section 4 – One meeting per fiscal year
will be held in the pre-designated
chapter location in the province of
Ontario in the month of May unless permission is granted to change
the month by the executive council. Section 5 – Twenty voting members shall be a
quorum for regular meetings of the association. ARTICLE 11 – Election of Officers and Council Members Section 1 – Not later than January 15th of each year the
Executive Council shall appoint a Nominating Committee for the
election of the Executive Committee and the Executive Council. The
Nominating Committee shall consist of the immediate Past President
as Chair and the President and First Vice-President. In the event that one of the above cannot sit on the Nominating
Committee, the President shall appoint another member of the
Executive Committee to serve. Section 2 – The elections of the Association’s Executive
Committee for the upcoming year shall take place by
the Executive Council at the Executive
Council meeting in March. Nominations shall be addressed to
the Chair of the Nominating Committee at any time prior to
elections. The existing members of the Executive Committee shall automatically
stand for office. A vacant position/positions to the Executive
Committee shall be filled by election of a Council Member. Section 3 – (a) Not less than two months before the April
meeting, the Nominating Committee (b) It shall also obtain from the various Council members from each
Chapter a list of nominations for their respective Chapters. (c) The Nomination Committee shall report to the Executive Council
no less than one month prior to the April meeting with its list of
nominations. (d) No other nominations for the Toronto area shall be made or
received as effective unless made in writing and signed by five
active members and delivered to the Secretary of the Association
not less than fourteen days before the April meeting. As
publishing time permits candidates’ names will be published in
the official journal. Section 4 – Each year at the regular O.I.A.A. April meeting held
in Toronto, elections are to be held to elect Council members for
the next term. The nominations, elections and term of office shall
be governed by this Constitution. Section 5 – Every other designated Chapter shall elect at their
May or earlier meeting one member to serve as Council member for
the Association. The nominations, elections shall be governed by
the Chapter’s own bylaws. The
council member once elected shall abide by this Constitution. Section 6 – Voting shall unless otherwise decided by motion
carried at the meeting at which election takes place, be by secret
ballot and in any case a simple majority shall be sufficient to
achieve election. The chair or
his/her designate from the nominating committee shall only vote in
the event of a tie. Section 7 – If after the election there occurs a vacancy in the
Executive Council, the designated Chapter or Toronto
area, as the case may be shall hold a by-election in the
normal process to elect a replacement. In the event of a vacancy
occurring on the Executive Committee, it shall be filled by a
person eligible from Executive Council and shall be appointed by
majority vote at the next Executive Meeting ARTICLE 12 – Auditor and Business
Manager The auditor for the ensuing fiscal year shall be approved by the
Executive Council at each May meeting of the Association. He/she
shall not be a member of the Association. A Business Manager shall be a private
contractor of the Association appointed by the Executive
Council of the Association. Elected officers of the Association
may, with the approval of the Executive Council delegate such
responsibilities as they see fit to the Business Manager but the
elected Officer shall remain responsible for such duties and shall
report to the Executive Council in respect of them. ARTICLE 13 – Revenue Section 1 – The annual dues payable by new
members shall be payable with applications
and thereafter on or before the first of September in each year
with their renewal. Section 2 – Revenue from sources other than those defined in this
article may be raised as recommended and
approved by the Executive Council. Section 3 – The fiscal year of the Association shall begin on the
first day of August in each year. Section 4 – The Association’s books of account shall be audited
at least once a year. Section 5 – The Executive Council shall designate the official
bank. Section 6 – Cheques drawn upon the bank account of the
Association shall be signed by any two of the following –
Treasurer, President, First Vice-President, Second Vice-President. Section 7 – The Executive Council may in any special case waive
the payment of dues by any member. ARTICLE 14 – Official Journal The Official Journal of the Association shall be the magazine,
“Without Prejudice”, with editors appointed by the Executive
Council. It shall record the activities of the Association
and matters of general interest to the members. It shall publish
all notices of motions and notice of all regular meetings. ARTICLE 15 – Crest & Logo The Official crest of the Association shall be as at present in
use, namely: Surmounting a shield on a field azure maple leaf or charged Dexter
chief and sinister base, a bend sinister or; a scroll or bearing
device azure “Justitia Omnibus”, a crested king’s helmet;
the whole superimposed upon crossed lances. The official logo
of the Association shall be a white or blue stylized capital
letter O embracing an outline of the Province of Ontario, coloured
blue or white, horizontally followed by the capital letters I.A.A.
coloured white or blue. No use of or reproduction in any form of the
crest or the official logo of the Association shall be allowed
without written consent of the Executive Council. ARTICLE 16 – Order of Meeting Unless otherwise required. The order of meeting shall be Call to Order. Introduction of Visitors and New Members. Reports of Committees. Unfinished Business. New Business. Adjournment. ARTICLE 17 – Dissolution Section 1 – The Association may be dissolved only after due
Notice of Motion in writing for such dissolution has been given at
a preceding regular meeting and will be
published in the next available issue of the Official Journal.
Section 2 – A vote to consider a motion for
dissolving the Association will be held.
In order for a motion calling for the dissolution of the
Association to pass it must be supported by the majority of the
votes cast at a general meeting called
for that purpose. Section 3 – In event of dissolution of the Association, the
disposal of funds in the Treasury shall be
in accordance with Roberts Rules and the laws of Ontario. Section 4 – In the event of the
dissolution of the Association, the Chapters shall automatically
dissolve one day prior to the effective date of the dissolution of
the Association. ARTICLE 18 – Amendment of Constitution Section 1 – The Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds
majority vote of the members present and
voting excluding abstentions at any regular meeting, provided that
Notice of Motion has been given in writing at a preceding regular
meeting and/or been published in the previous month’s issue of
the Official Journal. Section 2 – The motion to amend the Constitution shall be made at
one of the two regular meetings next
succeeding that at which the Notice of Motion was published in the
Official Journal. ARTICLE
19 - RULES OF ORDER 1. The President or in his/her absence the First
Vice-President or, in the absence of both, the Second
Vice-President, shall open and close the meeting at the time
directed. In the absence of such officers, an interim Chair shall
be chosen by Executive Council. 2. The President shall be privileged to debate
on all subjects on calling any member to the Chair. 3. No motion to amend the minutes shall be
admissible unless there are omissions or errors of fact. 4. Any member who wishes to speak shall identify
themselves address the Chair and await his/her recognition before
proceeding. He/she shall confine himself/herself to the question
under discussion and avoid personalities. 5. If two or more members rise to speak at the
same time, the Chair shall decide who may speak first. 6. No member shall speak more than twice on any
substantive motion and once on each of the amendments to the
motion without first asking and obtaining permission from the
Chair. 7. A motion must be moved, seconded and stated
from the Chair before it is open to debate. 8. When a motion or resolution has been moved,
seconded and stated by the Chair, it may be withdrawn by the mover
only with the consent of the seconder and of the Chair. 9. No person may speak to any motion after the
vote on it has been taken. 10. A motion shall be placed in writing if any
member demands it. 11. No member shall vote on any question which
he/she have a conflict of interest. 12. When a member is called to order he/she
shall sit down until the point of order is decided. 13. An appeal may at all times be made from the
decision of the Chair. The Chair shall then put the question:
“Shall the decision of the Chair stand as the judgment of the
Association?” two-thirds majority being necessary to sustain the
appeal. 14. Members shall be allowed to speak for not
more than ten minutes each. 15. The previous question may be moved on a
substantive motion either before or after it has been amended,
unless it shall appear to the Chair that such motion is an abuse
of the Rules of the Association and an infringement on the rights
of the minority. After the previous question has been stated, no
amendment shall be entertained, all debate shall cease, and the
Association shall proceed forthwith to vote. Should the motion be
defeated, there shall be no further discussion of the original
motion or amendments if any, during that meeting. 16. Any of the above Rules may be suspended for
any length of time not to exceed one meeting, by a two-thirds
majority vote of the members present and voting excluding
abstentions. 17. “Robert’s Rules of Order” shall be the
authority to decide all questions not provided for or if there is
ambiguity in these rules. ARTICLE 20
– Privacy Policy Section 1 – The officers of the association known as the
executive committee shall be the privacy officers for the
association. Section 2 – The Association’s privacy policy shall be made
available to anyone requesting a copy. The privacy policy shall be
displayed on the association’s web site. Amended, 1956 Amended, 2008 29 De Jong
Drive, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 1B9 TEL. (905) 542-0576 FAX: (905)
542-1301 |
