At the Society’s Annual General Meeting, a vote was taken on the proposed Special Resolution to adopt new Articles of Association which would extend the eligibility for full membership from what it is currently (solicitors practising in the Society’s core area) to include barristers, trainee solicitors, CILEx, registered foreign or European lawyer who is regulated by an Approved Regulator, any person holding a judicial appointment or teaching law, patent attorneys, licensed conveyancers, notaries public, trade mark attorneys, pupil barristers, and any person who is in a senior position at an organisation providing legal services which is subject to supervision by an Approved Regulator (according to the Legal Services Act 2007).
The Special Resolution was to be counted on a poll rather than a simple show of hands. Full members attending the AGM were handed a poll card to vote ‘For’ or ‘Against’ the special resolution. In addition, the Society had received a number of valid Proxy Votes by the deadline of Friday 22 November 2019. In error, at the AGM only the poll card votes were counted in respect of the Special Resolution. The proxy votes received by the Society on this motion were omitted from the count.
The result announced at the AGM, based only on the votes cast by those members present at the meeting and omitting the votes cast by proxy, was that the motion had failed. However, this mistake became apparent and all votes, including those cast by proxy we re-counted after the conclusion of the AGM. Following that recount, had all of the votes been counted correctly, the motion would have passed.
On the basis that this is an important resolution, the Officers of the Society are looking into the proper course of action that the Society should now follow. Another announcement will follow.