Article 1. General Information
1.1 The Greater Toronto Chess League, hereinafter referred to as GTCL, is a non-profit organization.
1.2 GTCL is one of the member organizations in the Ontario Chess Association (OCA).
1.3 The area of GTCL is defined by the Ontario Chess Association. It currently defines the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) for GTCL purposes as being Toronto, York Region, Simcoe Region, Peel Region, Halton Region and Durham Region.
1.4 This Constitution includes 10 Articles. It was adopted in March 2011 by the GTCL Executive and it was subsequently ratified by the 2011 GTCL AGM. The previous version was approved at the April 2007 AGM and published on the GTCL website.
Article 2. The Objectives
The Objectives of GTCL shall be:
2.1 To promote interest and participation in chess at all levels for the purpose of increasing the popularity of the game.
2.2 To co-ordinate and harmonize chess activities in the league area.
2.3 To be the sanctioning and administrative body for the annual organizing of the chess events and tournaments listed in By-law #1.
2.4 To aid and co-operate with other chess organizations whose interest is to promote chess in this region.
Article 3. The Membership
3.1 Individuals are the GTCL members provided:
3.1.1 they are members in good standing of the Chess Federation of Canada (CFC);
3.1.2 they live or work in the GTA, as defined in this Constitution.
Article 4. The Board
4.1 The Board consists of the following:
4.1.1 Six GTCL Executive officers;
4.1.2 Accredited club representatives;
4.1.3 Accredited chess organization representatives; and
4.1.4 Three at large members.
4.2 Chess clubs, which have regularly scheduled meetings and chess organizations operating in the GTCL area, may propose a representative as a member of the Board, when authorized by the club/organization executive. The term of office shall run from the date the Board accepts credentials (presented in person by the nominee) till the next following Annual Meeting of the League. The Board may establish conditions under which a club may nominate more than one representative.
4.3 The three at large members shall be appointed at the Annual General Meeting from among applicants, who are GTCL members. They shall not be current executive nor accredited club/chess organization representatives. The term of office runs from the incoming Annual General Meeting to the next outgoing Annual General Meeting.
4.4 The Board shall make all major decisions concerning the running of the GTCL. The Executive, where possible, will make recommendations to the board with respect to major decisions.
4.5 Conduct of Board Meetings
4.5.1 Quorum for a meeting is three executive members of which one shall be the President or Vice-President, and one non-executive board member.
4.5.2 Any GTCL member may attend a GTCL Board Meeting.
4.5.3 Non-Board members of the GTCL shall be given the opportunity to speak on all matters appearing on the GTCL agenda, and any additional matters regarding GTCL business.
4.5.4 The public may attend GTCL Board Meetings, but shall not address the meeting unless at the invitation of the chair, and shall have no vote.
4.5.5 At Board Meetings the President has a vote plus a second tie-breaking vote, when required.
4.5.6 The Board shall have the power to amend the Constitution temporarily, provided that the notification of proposed amendments is presented to the members of the Board at a previous meeting or by e-mail at least one week before the vote. Any motions which are constitutional amendments must have two-thirds majority of the votes cast to pass, and must later be ratified at the Annual General Meeting.
4.5.7 Board Meeting could be conducted by e-mail, including the entire process of making/seconding motions, debating and finally voting on the motions.
Article 5. The Executive
5.1 The officers of GTCL, constituting the Executive shall be: President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary, Director of Communications, and Tournament Coordinator.
5.2 The Executive shall conduct the affairs of the League between Annual General Meetings and make all day-to-day operational decisions.
5.3 The term of office shall be approximately one year (between AGM’s of the League).
Article 6. Duties of the Executive
6.1 The duties of the President shall be:
6.1.1 To give leadership and to administer within the laws of this Constitution the affairs of GTCL.
6.1.2 To act as the Chair at all meetings of the Board and Executive.
6.1.3 To convene all meetings of the Board, the Executive and the Annual Meeting.
6.2 The duties of the Vice-President shall be:
6.2.1 To assist the President in the discharge of his duties, whenever requested by the President.
6.2.2 The Vice-President shall be the first Acting President.
6.3 The duties of the Treasurer shall be
To budget the finances and prepare and present a financial statement on a quarterly basis and at the Annual General Meeting.
6.4 The duties of the Secretary shall be:
6.4.1 To record the minutes of all meetings, including all decisions, and:
6.4.1.1 for the Executive Meetings – distribute the minutes to the Board;
6.4.1.2 for the Board Meetings – post the minutes on the GTCL Website; and
6.4.1.3 for the Annual General Meeting – post the minutes on the GTCL Website.
6.5 The duties of the Director of Communications shall be:
6.5.1 To maintain an up-to-date list of all chess clubs/organizations, with addresses and contact information, within the GTA, both those with representatives on the Board, and those without. It shall note which clubs/organizations have a representative on the Board.
6.5.2 To communicate with chess clubs/organizations and the public on GTCL matters.
6.5.3 To maintain the GTCL website.
6.6 The duties of the Tournament Coordinator shall be:
6.6.1 To solicit bids for GTCL tournaments, as listed in By-law #1.
6.6.2 To organize the Greater Toronto Chess League Team Competitions annually.
6.6.3 To maintain and distribute results of all GTCL team events.
Article 7. Financial Structure
7.1 GTCL is funded by proceeds from the collection of OCA dues, rebates from CFC memberships collected in GTCL sanctioned tournaments, sponsorship and donations.
7.2 The Board of the GTCL, including the Executive members, shall not be paid by the organization.
Article 8. The Annual General Meeting
8.1 All GTCL members in good standing may attend this meeting.
8.2 All GTCL members in good standing shall be able to nominate for, stand for, and vote in the election of executive officers, which shall be held at the Annual General Meeting. The election of the executive shall be by secret ballot if there is more than one nominee for an executive position.
8.3 All GTCL members in good standing shall be entitled to vote on any motions referred to the Annual General Meeting by the Board.
8.4 Once the Executive have been elected, GTCL members shall appoint the three Board members at large, and make a decision on all applications by club/organization representatives for accreditation to the Board.
8.5 The Annual General Meeting shall be held within two months of the end of the fiscal year. The GTCL fiscal year is from April 01 to March 31.
8.6 Notification of the meeting shall be published on the GTCL Website at least ten days prior to the meeting. It shall include the text of all motions, noting which ones are constitutional amendments and that they will require a two-thirds majority.
8.7 A quorum at the Annual General Meeting shall consist of seven members, of whom at least three should be members of the Outgoing Executive.
8.8 The executive officers of GTCL shall present a report of their activities during the year.
8.9 Only the GTCL members who are also CFC members in good standing, shall stand for, nominate and elect the CFC governors for the GTCL, and the OCA Governors for the GTCL, pursuant to the OCA Constitution/Bylaws. The election shall be by secret ballot if there are more nominees than governor positions.
Article 9. Proxies
9.1 A proxy is valid, if signed by the grantor and witnessed by someone, other than the grantee or grantor.
9.2 At a Board Meetings a maximum of two votes (self vote plus discretionary proxy vote) may be cast by any individual. At the Annual General Meetings a maximum of three votes (self and two discretionary proxies, or three discretionary proxies) may be cast by any individual. Directed proxies (i.e. calling for a particular opinion on a particular issue) are passed to the Secretary and voted by the Secretary.
9.3 Whether a proxy may be voted or not, the grantee may express the views of the grantor.
Article 10. Amendments and By-laws
10.1 The Executive may, whenever required, amend the Constitution. These amendments must be ratified at the Annual General Meeting by two-thirds majority of the votes cast.
10.2 Amendments to the Constitution may also be brought by a GTCL Board member, and voted on, at the Annual General Meeting, provided that a notice of motion has been presented to the Secretary or President at least 30 days prior to the Annual General Meeting. The posting and notice of such motions shall be dealt with in the same way as for constitutional amendments requiring AGM ratification.
10.3 The Executive may, whenever required, create and/or amend specific by-laws, which will define the GTCL’s policy in handling specific issues. These by-laws, (which cannot contravene any Article of the Constitution), become effective upon approval by a simple majority of the Executive, but require ratification at the next AGM by two-thirds majority of the votes cast.
10.4 This is the last paragraph of the last Article of the GTCL Constitution.
By-law # 1. Annual Tournaments sponsored by GTCL.
· The Toronto Closed and Reserves Championships (January-March)
· The Toronto Open Championship (April)
· The Toronto Active Championship (May)
· The Toronto Blitz Championship (June)
· The Toronto Women’s Championship (September-December)
· The Toronto Junior Championship (September-December)
· The Toronto Senior Championship (September-December)
· GTCL Team Competitions (September to June)
· Other tournaments, matches, exhibitions and lectures for the benefit of chess players in the GTCL area.