Constitution

Constitution of The Swedish Society for the Study of English

1. Name and Domicile

(i) The Association shall be known as the Swedish Society for the Study of English.
(ii) It shall be domiciled in Göteborg and the area of its activities shall extend to all of Sweden.

2. Purpose and Activities of the Association

(i) The purpose of the Association shall be:

(a) to advance research and study in Sweden of English language, literature, and civilization;
(b) To maintain contacts with like-minded organizations in Europe and overseas.

(ii) The purpose of the Association shall be carried out by:

(a) arranging conferences of English studies;
(b) arranging meetings and symposia;
(c) any other appropriate means as may be decided by the Association.

(iii) The necessary funds shall be derived primarily from:

(a) membership fees
(b) proceeds from conferences and of other events.

3. Membership

(i) Individual voting membership in the Association is open to any person working in the field of English Studies in Departments of English at university level in Sweden. Membership is open to other scholars at the discretion of the Executive Committee.

(ii) The Executive Committee shall have the right of final decision on the admission of members.

4. Termination of Membership

(i) A member may terminate his/her membership by notifying the Executive Committee in writing.

(ii) The Executive Committee may terminate membership if a member has failed to pay his/her membership dues for more than two years in spite of two reminders.

5. Admission fees and membership dues

The amount of admission fees and membership dues is fixed by the Executive Committee.

6, Executive Committee

(i) There shall be an Executive Committee consisting of seven members: a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and three other members of the Association.

(ii) The election of the members of the Executive Committee takes place at the General Meeting of the Association, or alternatively, by mail. Only members of the Association may vote and hold office.

(iii) The members of the Executive Committee shall be elected for a period of one year or the interval between two General Meetings.

(iv) Meetings of the Executive Committee are convened by the President, or in his/her absence, by the Vice-President when such meeting is deemed to be necessary or when the majority of the members demand it. The Executive Committee shall be quorate if four of its members, including either the President or the Vice-President, are present.

(v) The Executive Committee shall take its decisions by simple majority votes; in the case of equal division, the President shall have the casting vote.

7. Association’s Signature

The name of the Association shall be signed by any two of the following: the President, the Vice-President, the Secretary or the Treasurer.

8. Audition

(i) The association elects two auditors, following the same procedure as in electing the members of the Executive Committee.

(ii) The accounting period of the Association shall be one year.

(iii) The accounts of the Association along with all necessary documents must be handed to the auditors by the end of February each year. The auditors shall report to the Executive Committee and the General Meeting on the result of their audit.

9 General Meeting

(i) An ordinary General Meeting shall be convened every year at a date decided upon by the Executive Committee.

(ii) An extraordinary General Meeting shall be convened upon the decision of the Executive Committee, taken upon written request,. substantiated by at least ten members.

(iii) All members shall be invited to ordinary and extraordinary General Meetings either by individual letter or through the department of the member’s affiliation at the latest four weeks before the date of such meeting. The letter of invitation shall include the agenda of the meeting.

(iv) All members shall be entitled to participate in the General Meeting. Each member shall have one vote.

(v) As a rule, a majority of votes shall be required in elections and decisions of the General Meeting. In the case of an equal division, the chairman of the meeting shall have the casting vote, except in elections, in which case the result is decided by lot.

10. Amendment to the Constitution and Dissolution of the Association

(i) A decision to amend the Constitution of the Association or to dissolve the Association voluntarily may be taken only by a three-fourths majority of the valid votes.

(ii) Should there be any assets of the Association left, the same General Meeting shall decide upon the disposal of such assets. Such assets should, as far as possible and lawful, go to an organization that pursues the same or similar purpose as this Association.