2012 NNALSA Awards, Nominations and Election Procedures

Read candidate statements here

Take a look at the bids to host NNALSA 2013 Moot Court Competition:

>>Lewis & Clark<<
>>Oklahoma University<<

Important Documents:

• Nomination Procedures
• Election Procedures
• Proxy Form
• Officer Descriptions

National NALSA Awards

Each year at Fedbar NNALSA awards a Chapter of the Year, 1L of the Year, 2L of the Year, and 3L of the Year award.  Please send your nominations to NNALSA President, Shawn Watts (shawnkwatts@gmail.com) or our NNALSA PR Director, Precious Benally (prdirector@nationalnalsa.org).
The nominations should be a 1 page typed statement detailing why you think the nominee should win the award.  We will stop taking nominations at 11:59pm on April 17th.

Because of the deadline’s proximity to our annual meeting, we will not be able to extend that deadline for any reason.

Critical Information

1. You must be at the NNALSA annual meeting at Fedbar to run for office.
2. You must be at the board transition meeting on Friday to assume your position.
3. You must be a member in good standing with NNALSA.  This is also true if you plan to vote whether you run for a position or not.
4. Candidate speeches will take place at the Candidate Mixer held at 4:30 p.m. on April 19, 2012 at the Federal Bar Association Indian Law Conference (Room Location TBD).

Nomination Procedures

Nominations will open on March 19, 2012 via electronic mail. Candidates may self- nominate at this time. Please email all nominations to secretary@nationalnalsa.org. Online nominations will close on April 12, 2012 at 11:59 p.m., Pacific Standard Time.

Verbal nominations may be made thereafter at the NNALSA Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012, and may only be made by another NNALSA Member in good standing. Associate members may only be nominated at the NNALSA Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012.

CANDIDATE INFORMATION

Eligibility:

• General Members: Any general member of NNALSA in good standing* is eligible for election to the Board of Directors. Members must be present at the NNALSA Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012 in order to be eligible for office.
• Associate Members: Associate members may only be nominated at the annual NNALSA meeting on April 19, 2012. An associate member in good standing is eligible if a majority of the membership present at the NNALSA Annual Meeting votes to waive the general membership requirement for that particular associate member (NNALSA Bylaws Article V, Section 2).
*A NNALSA member in “good standing” is one who has paid his/her individual membership dues online by 3:00 p.m. on April 19, 2012.

Campaign Procedures

• Candidates may prepare a one page (12 point font) candidate statement to be posted on the NNALSA website if received by April 12, 2012.
• Candidates nominated at the Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012 shall submit candidate statements to the NNALSA Secretary no later than 12:00 p.m. on April 19, 2012.
• Candidates may not post their own campaign materials. NNALSA board will have candidate statements on display until elections close at 7:30 p.m. on April 19, 2012.
• Candidate speeches will take place at the Candidate Mixer held at 4:30 p.m. on April 19, 2012 at the Federal Bar Association Indian Law Conference (Room Location TBD).

Current Board Member Campaign Restrictions:
Current NNALSA Board Members may not (1) use their current office to campaign for a future board position or (2) campaign on behalf of other NNALSA board members while acting in their official capacity.

Officer Descriptions

PRESIDENT

The President is the Chief Officer of the NNALSA and generally implements and supervises the business and affairs of NNALSA, subject to the control of the Executive Board and of any duly authorized committee of Officers. The President presides over all meetings of the Executive Board and the membership.

VICE-PRESIDENT

The Vice President presides over all meetings in the absence or disability of the President, serves as the administrator of the Moot Court Competition, and undertakes all other duties as added or defined at the discretion of the Executive Board.

SECRETARY

The Secretary keeps minutes of all Executive Board meetings, sees that all notices are given to the Executive Board and membership in accordance with the Bylaws, maintains a membership list, and in general performs all duties incident to the office of Secretary and other duties as may be assigned by the President or Executive Board.

TREASURER

The Treasurer is responsible for and possession of and all NNALSA funds and maintains accurate records of all transactions, receives and give receipts for money due and payable to the NNALSA, and deposits NNALSA funds in banks, trust companies or other depositories as selected in accordance with the Bylaws. The Treasurer maintains a list of member dues. The Treasurer must also file a yearly corporate report with the New Mexico State Corporation Commission by May of each year.

PUBLIC RELATIONS DIRECTOR

The Public Relations Director is in charge of maintaining the NNALSA website and creating the annual NNALSA Newsletter. The Public Relations Director additionally maintains the alumni data base, spearheads alumni fundraising efforts, advises the President concerning those alumni activities, establishes procedures for communications with and dissemination of NNALSA information to alumni, and serves as the liaison between the Association and the alumni community.

NATIONAL LIAISON

The National Liaison maintains a relationship between NNALSA and national organizations, including the ABA Law Student Division, NNABA, etc., and plans the NNALSA Job Fair. The National Liaison promotes the interests of NNALSA and the Native American legal profession at all times.

AREA REPRESENTATIVES

Area Representatives answer questions and communicate with members or prospective members, maintain local membership lists, and perform other related duties specifically including, but not limited to: contacting each NALSA chapter President within their area at least twice yearly, contributing at least one article to the Newsletter on an event related to their respective area, and providing the Executive Board with an updated contact list within their area for fund-raising purposes.

ELECTION PROCEDURES

The National Native American Law Students Association (NNALSA) annual Board of Directors elections shall be conducted according to the procedures laid out in this document. These procedures are adopted by the National Election Committee (NEC) pursuant to delegated authority from the NNALSA Board of Directors (NNALSA Bylaws Article VI, Section 2).

I. National Election Committee (NEC)

A. Membership

1. The NEC shall be comprised of all current NNALSA Board members who are ineligible to seek office for the subsequent election.
2. In the event there are less than three NNALSA Board members who qualify for the NEC, the NNALSA board may appoint up to three NNALSA members to serve on the NEC. The appointed members must also be ineligible for subsequent office and must be in good standing.

B. Duties

1. The NEC shall adopt election procedures annually. Procedures shall be
deemed adopted by a majority vote of the NEC.
2. The NEC shall elect a chairperson to coordinate the election process.
3. The NEC shall produce and publish an annual report consistent with Article VI of this document.

C. The NEC reserves the right to amend the election procedures by majority vote of the committee to accommodate unforeseen circumstances.

II. Definitions

A. The NNALSA Board of Directors is also referred to as the NNALSA Board.
B. The terms “general member” and “associate member” in this document are consistent with the definitions found in the NNALSA bylaws.
C. To “campaign” means to distribute candidate information to the membership, discuss one’s candidacy with the NNALSA membership, and all other actions taken for the purpose of seeking NNALSA elected office.
D. A NNALSA member in “good standing” is one that has paid their individual membership dues online by 3:00 p.m. on April 19, 2012.

III. Eligibility for Office

A. Any general member of NNALSA in good standing is eligible for election to the board of directors.
B. An associate member in good standing is eligible if a majority of the membership present at the NNALSA Annual Meeting votes to waive the general membership requirement for that particular associate member (NNALSA Bylaws Article V, Section 2). Therefore, associate members may only be nominated at the annual NNALSA meeting.
C. Members must be present at the NNALSA Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012 in order to be eligible for office.
D. Nominations

1. A candidate may self-nominate up until April 12, 2012.
2. Candidates still wishing to run for office at the Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012 shall be nominated by another NALSA member.
3. Nomination methods:

a. Nominations will open on March 19, 2012 via electronic mail. All nominations must be emailed to secretary@nationalnalsa.org.
b. Online nominations will be closed on April 12, 2012.
c. Verbal nominations may be made at the NNALSA Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012.
d. Associate members may only be nominated at the NNALSA Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012.

4. Candidate nominations must be accepted by the NEC in order to be valid.

IV. Campaign Rules

A. Current NNALSA board members may not:

1. Use their current office to campaign for a future board position.
2. Campaign on behalf of other NNALSA board members while acting in their official capacity.
3. Serve on the NEC if eligible to run for subsequent office.

B. Campaign Practices

1. Candidates may prepare a one page (12 point font) candidate statement to be posted on the NNALSA website if received by April 12, 2012.
2. Candidates nominated at the Annual Meeting on April 19, 2012 shall submit candidate statements to the NNALSA Secretary no later than 12:00 p.m. on April 19, 2012.
3. Candidates may not post their own campaign materials. NNALSA board will have candidate statements on display until elections close at 7:30 p.m. on April 19, 2012.
4. Candidate speeches will take place at the Candidate Mixer held on April 19, 2012 at 4:30 p.m.
5. Candidate speeches will be limited to 2 minutes.
6. Candidates are not to be within thirty feet of the booths on Election Day except to cast their own ballots.
7. Candidates may not campaign for office prior to being officially nominated.

C. Candidate Behavior

1. Candidates must conduct themselves in a manner consistent with the objectives and purposes found in the NNALSA bylaws.
2.The NEC has the authority, prior to the polls opening, to rescind acceptance of a candidate nomination for failing to adhere to the rules herein.

a. Rescinding a nomination requires a unanimous vote of the NEC.

V. Voting Procedures

A. Elections for the NNALSA Board of Directors shall be conducted at the NNALSA Annual Meeting held during the annual Federal Bar Association’s Indian Law Conference.
B. The NEC shall establish the exact date and time of the NNALSA elections.
C. Elections will open at 5:30 p.m. and close at 7:30 p.m. on April 19, 2012.
D. Only NNALSA members in good standing may cast votes for the NNALSA Board of Directors.
E. Proxy Voting – proxy voting shall be conducted as follows:

1. A NNALSA member may vote by proxy. For the proxy vote to be valid the official proxy form, created by the NEC, must be completely filled out.
2. For a NNALSA member to vote by proxy, the member must have paid his or her NNALSA dues by 3:00 p.m. on April 19, 2012.
3. Proxy forms must be received by the NEC no later than 7:30 p.m. on April 19, 2012. Proxy forms must be submitted by an attending NNALSA member who is voting. A NEC member must acknowledge receipt for it to be valid.
4. Proxy forms will not be accepted by fax or mail.

F. Write-in candidates otherwise qualified to hold office shall be allowed, provided the individual is not already on the ballot.

VI. Election Results & Reporting

A. An election folder shall be kept on file for two (2) years with the NNALSA Board of Directors that includes: election results, tabulation forms, the election report, proxy forms and any other documents produced for the election.
B. Election results shall be tabulated by the NEC immediately following the close of elections. Votes for each office shall be tabulated independently by at least two (2) separate NEC members. Each of the two (2) NEC members shall count the votes for that particular office no less than three (3) times.
C. The election results shall be released by 10:00 p.m. the day of the election by the NEC.
D. The NEC shall publish an electronic election report within four (4) months of the NNALSA elections. This report shall be published on the NNALSA website.
E. Vacancies shall be filled according to the NNALSA bylaws.

VII. Grievance Procedures

A. Any grievance regarding election results must be submitted in writing to the NEC within twenty-four (24) hours of posted election results.
B. The NEC shall review each grievance in full and make a recommendation to the incoming NNALSA Board as to the action, if any, which may be taken.