Recommended rules
While there are only 4 rules that corporations must put in their rule book, there are others that it’s a really good idea to include.
Including these rules will help you tailor your rule book to meet your corporation’s needs. It also makes it easy to refer back to them if there’s a disagreement.
Directors
It’s a good idea to include the duties of directors and other officers in your rule book. Some of the things you might consider are:
- who can become a director of your corporation
- if the directors will all be Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people
- how directors will resign or be removed
- how many directors you will have and for how long they should be appointed
- how directors will be appointed
- what the directors can and can’t do.
Meetings
Your rule book should have rules about meetings, such as:
- when to hold them
- how to give notice
- proposing and agreeing to resolutions
- who will chair them
- how many people are required for a quorum
- how voting will be conducted.
Many of the rules in the CATSI Act about meetings are replaceable or can be exempted by the Registrar so you can change them to suit your corporation’s particular requirements and circumstances.
Members
Under the CATSI Act:
- a corporation must have at least 5 members, unless the Registrar grants an exemption to allow less
- your membership group must be at least 51% Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people (this is higher for corporations with less than 5 members)
- members must be at least 15 years old.
You can add rules in your rule book to make eligibility for membership more specific.
For example, you can:
- set a higher percentage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander members
- set a higher minimum age
- add more eligibility requirements
- have classes of membership
- have corporate membership if needed.