Section 1.

The name of the Club shall be Cavalier Doberman Pinscher Club.

Section 2.

The objectives of the Club shall be:

  1. To promote the public’s knowledge and appreciation of dogs in general and Doberman Pinschers in particular;
  1. To produce, publish, and distribute to the general public educational materials about the proper care, treatment, breeding, health, development and training of Doberman Pinschers;
  1. To support and promote study and research on the history, character, breeding, genetics and particular health problems of the Doberman Pinscher;
  1. To further understanding of the disease, defects, injuries and other ailments that afflict dogs in general and the Doberman Pinscher in particular;
  1. To acknowledge and advance the critical role of an AKC recognized chapter club in providing education, health research and support of rescue and reduction of overpopulation for the benefit of the general public, purebred dogs and Doberman Pinschers in particular;
  1. To conduct activities including sporting events, sanctioned matches, specialty shows, obedience and tracking trials, Working Aptitude Tests, and other such activities and events as may be held under the rules of the American Kennel Club and the Doberman Pinscher Club of America, in furtherance of the above purposes;
  1. To otherwise preserve and protect the Doberman Pinscher and to do all things possible to bring its natural qualities to perfection;
  1. To urge members and breeders to accept the standard of the breed as approved by the American Kennel Club as the only standard of excellence by which the Doberman Pinscher shall be judged.

Section 3.

  1. The club is organized exclusively for charitable, religious, educational, and scientific purposes, including, for such purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code.
  1. No part of the net earnings of the organization shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the organization shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forth in the purpose clause hereof. No substantial part of the activities of the organization shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the organization shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this document, the organization shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by an organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or (b) by an organization, contributions to which are deductible under section 170(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code.

Section 4.

The members of the Club shall adopt and may from time to time revise such by‑laws as may be required to carry out these objectives.

BY-LAWS

ARTICLE I

MEMBERSHIP

Section 1 – ELIGIBILITY

Membership shall be Regular Members or Honorary Members and open to all persons eighteen years of age and older who are in good standing with the American Kennel Club and who subscribe to the purposes of this club.  While membership is to be unrestricted as to residence, the club’s primary purpose is to be representative of the breeders and exhibitors in its immediate area.

  1. Regular Members – Members who shall take an active part in the activities of the Club, shall be entitled to vote and to hold office.   Regular members are required to attend two club meetings, either in person or via conference call, and work 10 volunteer hours at Cavalier Doberman Pinscher Club trials or events.  Effective September 30th, 2022, club member discounts on holter monitor rentals and cardio clinics will only be provided to members who meet the meeting and volunteer hours requirements.
  2. Honorary Members ‑ Pay no dues, and are not eligible to vote. However, such members can maintain regular membership if they pay dues.

Section 2 – DUES

Yearly dues shall be set by the Board of Directors, not to exceed twenty ($20.00) Dollars per year and shall be due and payable the first (1st) day of October of each year. New members who are voted in AFTER May 31 of the current fiscal year shall not be required to pay dues for the following fiscal year.

Right to Vote: No member may vote whose dues are not paid for the current year.  During the month of September, the Secretary shall send to each member a statement of his dues for the ensuing year.

Section 3 – ELECTION TO MEMBERSHIP

Each prospective member must attend two (2) meetings within the preceding six months prior to submission of their application.  Each applicant for membership shall apply on a form as approved by the Board of Directors and which shall provide that the applicant agrees to abide to this Constitution and By‑Laws, the rules of the American Kennel Club and the Constitution and By‑Laws of the Doberman Pinscher Club of America.  The application shall state name, address, and occupation of the applicant and it shall carry the endorsement of two members who are in good standing.  Accompanying the application, the prospective member shall submit dues payment for the current year.

Applicants may be elected at any meeting of the club or of the Board of Directors; and each application shall be acted upon at the first such meeting to occur after the filing of said application with the Secretary, provided however, that no application shall be voted upon within ten (10) days after its receipt by the Secretary.  Any applications received by the Secretary within ten (10) days immediately preceding any meeting shall be read at that meeting and voted upon at the next occurring meeting.

Majority votes of the members in attendance at a meeting of the Club shall be required to elect an applicant.  Favorable votes of all but one of the Directors present at a meeting of the Board shall be required to elect an applicant.  Applications that have received an unfavorable action at a Board meeting may be presented by one of the applicant’s endorsees at the next meeting of the Club and the Club may elect such applicant.  Otherwise, no applicant who has been rejected at any such meeting may again be considered at any meeting held within twelve (12) months after the date of the last such rejection.

Section 4 – TERMINATION OF MEMBERSHIP

Membership may be terminated by:

  1. Resignation: Any member in good standing may resign from the Club upon written notice to the Secretary, but no member may resign when in debt to the Club. Dues obligations are considered a debt to the Club and they become incurred on the first (1st) day of October of each year.
  2. Lapsing: A membership will be considered as lapsed and automatically terminated if such member’s dues remain unpaid thirty (30) days after the first (1st) day of October, however, the Board may grant an additional thirty (30) days of grace to such delinquent members in meritorious cases. In no case may a person be entitled to vote at any Club meeting whose dues are unpaid as of the date of that meeting.
  3. Expulsion: A membership may be terminated by expulsion as provided in Article VI of these bylaws.

ARTICLE II

MEETINGS

Section 1 – CLUB MEETINGS

Bi-monthly meetings (odd numbered months) of the Club shall be held in the Tidewater Virginia area, at such date, hour, and place as may be designated by the Board of Directors.  Notification of such meetings shall be made by the Secretary at least seven (7) days prior to the date of the meeting.  The quorum for the meetings shall be twenty percent (20%) of the members in good standing.

Section 2 – SPECIAL CLUB MEETINGS

Special Club meetings may be called by the President, or by a majority of the members of the Board who are present and voting at any regular or special meeting of the Board, or by the Secretary upon receipt of a petition signed by five (5) members of the Club who are in good standing.  Such Special meetings shall be held in Tidewater, Virginia, at such hour and place as may be designated by the person or persons authorized herein to call such meetings.  Written notice of such meetings shall be sent by the Secretary at least five (5) days and not more than fifteen (15) days prior to the date of the meeting; and said notice shall state the purpose of the meeting and no other Club business may be transacted thereat.  The quorum for such a meeting shall be twenty percent (20%) of the members in good standing.

Section 3 – BOARD MEETINGS

Bi-monthly meetings (even numbered months) of the Board of Directors shall be held in the Tidewater Virginia area, at such a date, hour, and place as may be designated by the Board of Directors.  The notification of such a meeting shall be made by the Secretary at least five (5) days prior to the date of the meeting.  The quorum for such a meeting shall be a majority of the board.  The Board of Directors may conduct its business by mail, facsimile transmission, and electronic process or by telephone conference call by the President.  The Recording Secretary shall attest to the results of balloting by conference call. In the event that the Recording Secretary is unavailable, the President shall appoint an acting secretary for the conference call.  As a condition precedent to the conduct of business through electronic process, the Board shall adopt procedures, which shall be set for in an Administrative Procedures Manual, to ensure the following with respect to the conduct of such business:

  1. That every Board member shall be enabled to participate in the electronic conduct of such business;
  2. The verification of the identity of the participants in such electronic conduct of such business to determine that the participant is a Board member eligible to participate in the electronic conduct of such business;
  3. The verification that the Board members eligible to participate in the electronic conduct of such business are receiving all data and information that is disseminated through the electronic process;
  4. That all Board members have agreed to the conduct of such business through electronic process.

Section 4 – SPECIAL BOARD MEETINGS

Special meetings of the Board may be called by the President, or by the Secretary upon receipt of a written request signed by at least three (3) members of the Board.  Such Special meetings shall be held in Tidewater Virginia, at such hour and place as may be designated by the person authorized herein to call such meeting.  Written notice of such meeting shall be sent by the Secretary at least five (5) days and not more than ten (10) days prior to the date of the meeting.  Any such notice shall state the purpose of the meeting and no other business shall be transacted thereat.  A quorum for such meeting shall be a majority of the board.

Section 5 – VOTING

Each member in good standing whose dues are paid for the current year shall be entitled to vote at any meeting of the Club at which he/she is present.  Proxy voting will not be permitted at any Club meeting or election.

ARTICLE III

DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS

Section 1 – BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The Board shall be comprised of the President, Vice‑President, Secretary, Treasurer, and three persons, all of whom shall be members in good standing and all of whom shall be elected for one year terms at the Club’s Annual Meeting as provided in ARTICLE IV.  General management of the Club’s affairs shall be entrusted to the Board of Directors.

Section 2 – OFFICERS

The Club’s officers, consisting of: the President, Vice‑President, Secretary, and Treasurer shall serve in their respective capacities both with regard to the Club and its meetings and the Board and its meetings.

  1. President: The President shall preside at all meetings of the Club and of the Board and shall have the duties and powers normally appurtenant to the office of President in addition to those particularly specified in these Constitution and By‑Laws.
  2. Vice‑President: The Vice‑President shall have the powers and exercise the duties of the President in case of the President’s death, absence or incapacity;
  3. Secretary: The Secretary shall keep a record of all meetings of the Club and of all matters of which a record shall be ordered by the Club.  He shall have charge of the correspondence, notify officers and directors of their election to office, keep a roll of the members of the Club with their addresses and carry out such other duties as are prescribed in this Constitution and By‑Laws;
  4. Treasurer: The Treasurer shall collect and receive all monies due or belonging to the Club and receipt therefore.  He shall deposit the same in the bank satisfactory to the Board, in the name of the Club.  His books shall at all times be open to inspection of the Board and he shall report to them at every meeting the condition of the Club’s finances and every item of receipt or payment not before reported; and at the Annual Meeting shall render and account of all monies received and expended during the previous year;

Section 3 – DPCA DELEGATE

The DPCA Delegate shall attend all Board meetings in a non‑voting capacity unless he is already a voting member of the Board.

Section 4 – VACANCIES

Any vacancies occurring on the board or among the offices during the year shall be filled until the next annual election by a majority vote of all the then members of the board at its first regular meeting following the creation of such vacancy, or at a special board meeting called for that purpose; except that a vacancy in the office of President shall be filled automatically by the Vice President and the resulting vacancy in the office of Vice President shall be filled by the board.

ARTICLE IV

THE CLUB YEAR, VOTING, NOMINATIONS, ELECTIONS

Section 1 – CLUB YEAR

The club’s fiscal year shall begin on the first day of October and end on the 30th day of September.

Section 2 – ANNUAL MEETING

The annual meeting shall be held in the month of September at which officers and directors for the ensuing year shall be elected by secret, written ballots from among those nominated in accordance with Section 5 of this article.  They shall take office immediately upon conclusion of the election and each retiring officer shall turn over to his successor in office all properties and records relating to that office within 30 days after the election.

Section 3 – VOTING

Each regular member in good standing whose dues are pair for the current year shall be entitled to vote at any meeting of the Club at which he/she is present.  Proxy voting will not be permitted at any Club meeting or election.

Section 4 – ELECTIONS

The nominated candidate receiving the greatest number of votes for each office shall be declared elected.  The three nominated candidates for other positions on the Board who received the greatest number of votes for such positions shall be declared elected.

Section 5 – NOMINATIONS

No person may be a candidate in a Club election who has not been nominated.  During the first week of July, the Board may select a nominating committee consisting of five (5) members and two alternates, not more than one who shall be a member of the Board. The Secretary shall immediately notify the committeemen and alternates of their selection.  The Board shall name a Chairman for the committee and it shall be his duty to call a committee meeting, which shall be held within two (2) weeks after the committee is notified of its selection.

  1. The committee shall nominate one candidate for each office and three candidates for the three other positions on the Board and after securing the consent of each person so nominated shall immediately report their nominations to the Secretary in writing.
  2. Upon receipt of the Nominating Committee’s report, the secretary shall forthwith notify each member in writing of the candidates so nominated.
  3. Additional nominations may be made at the August meeting by written petition to the Secretary signed by five (5) members and endorsed by each additional nominee, signifying his willingness to be a candidate. No person may be a candidate for more than one office.  The additional nominations which are provided herein may be made only from among those members who were not nominated by the Nominating Committee.
  4. On or before the first (1st) of September the Secretary shall notify each member in writing of all such additional nominations.
  5. Nominations cannot be made at the Annual Meeting or in any manner other than as provided in this Section.

Section 6 – ELECTION OF DELEGATE TO DPCA

At the Club Annual meeting, the Club shall elect from its membership one (1) active member of the Club who is a member of the DPCA to serve as Delegate to DPCA for the ensuing year; and one (1) active member of the Club to serve as alternative representative to DPCA for the ensuing year.  The Delegate position will be determined by the highest number of votes of those members nominated and the alternate position will be determined by the second highest number of votes cast.

In the event of a vacancy occurring by loss of the Delegate from the Club, such vacancy shall be filled for the unexpired term by the Alternate.  In the event of the loss of the Alternate, such vacancy shall be filled for the unexpired term by an election held by the Club at its next meeting after the vacancy occurs.

ARTICLE V

COMMITTEES

Section 1 – COMMITTEE APPOINTMENT

The board may each year appoint standing committees to advance the work of the Club in such matters as specialty shows, obedience trials (field trials), trophies, annual prizes, membership and other fields which may well be served by committees.  Such committees shall always be subject to the final authority of the board.  Special committees may also be appointed by the board to aid it on particular projects.

Section 2 – COMMITTEE TERMINATION

Any committee appointment may be terminated by a majority vote of the full membership of the board upon written notice to the appointee; and the board may appoint successors to those persons whose services have been terminated.

ARTICLE VI

DISCIPLINE

Section 1 – AMERICAN KENNEL CLUB SUSPENSION

Any member who is suspended from the privileges of The American Kennel Club automatically shall be suspended from the privileges of this Club for a like period.

Section 2 – CHARGES

Any member may prefer charges against a member for alleged misconduct prejudicial to the best interests of the Club or the breed.  Written charges with specifications must be filed in duplicate with the Secretary together with a deposit of $10.00, which shall be forfeited if such charges are not sustained by the board following a hearing.  The Secretary shall promptly send a copy of the charges to each member of the board or present them at a board meeting, and the board shall first consider whether the actions alleged in the charges, if proven, might constitute conduct prejudicial to the best interests of the club.  If the board considers that the charges do not allege conduct which would be prejudicial to the best interests of the club, it may refuse to entertain jurisdiction.  If the board entertains jurisdiction of the charges, it shall fix a date for a hearing by the board not less than three weeks nor more than six weeks thereafter.  The Secretary shall promptly send one copy of the charges to the accused member by registered mail together with a notice of the hearing and an assurance that the defendant may personally appear in his own defense and bring witnesses if he wishes.

Section 3 – BOARD HEARING

The board shall have complete authority to decide whether counsel may attend the hearing, but both complainant and defendant shall be treated uniformly in that regard.  Should the charges be sustained, after hearing all the evidence and testimony presented by complainant and defendant, the board may by a majority vote of those present suspend the defendant from all privileges of the club for not more than six (6) months from the date of the hearing.  And, if it deems that punishment insufficient, it may also recommend to the membership that the penalty will be expulsion.  In such case the suspension shall not restrict the defendant’s right to appear before this fellow‑members at the ensuing club meeting which considers the board’s recommendation.  Immediately after the board has reached a decision, its findings shall be put in written form and filed with the Secretary.  The Secretary in turn, shall notify each of the parties of the Board’s decision and penalty, if any.

Section 4 – EXPULSION

Expulsion of a member from the club may be accomplished only at a meeting of the club following a board hearing and upon the Board’s recommendation as provided in Section 3 of this ARTICLE.  Such a proceeding may occur at a regular or special meeting of the club, to be held within sixty (60) days but not earlier than thirty (30) days after the date of the board’s recommendation of expulsion.  The defendant shall have the privilege of appearing in his own behalf, though no evidence shall be taken at this meeting.  The President shall read the charges and the board’s finding and recommendation, and shall invite the defendant, if present, to speak in his own behalf if he wishes.  The members shall then vote by secret ballot on the proposed expulsion.  A 2/3 vote of those present and voting at the meeting shall be necessary for expulsion.  If expulsion is not so voted, the board’s suspension shall stand.

ARTICLE VII

AMENDMENTS

Section 1 – AMENDMENT PROPOSALS

Amendments to the constitution and bylaws may be proposed by the board of directors or by written petition addressed to the Secretary signed by 20 percent of the membership in good standing. Amendments proposed by such petition shall be promptly considered by the board of directors and must be submitted to the members with recommendations of the board by the Secretary for a vote within three months of the date when the petition was received by the Secretary.

Section 2 – VOTING

The constitution and bylaws may be amended by a 2/3 vote of the members present and voting at any regular or special meeting called for the purpose, provided the proposed amendments have been included in the notice of the meeting and mailed to each member at least two weeks prior to the date of the meeting.

ARTICLE VIII

ORDER OF BUSINESS

Section 1 – CLUB MEETINGS

At meetings of the club, the order of business, so far as the character and the nature of the meeting may permit, shall be as follows:

  • Roll Call
  • Minutes of last meeting
  • Report of President
  • Report of Secretary
  • Report of Treasurer
  • Report of Committees
  • Election of Officers & Board (Annual Meeting)
  • Election of New Members
  • Unfinished Business
  • New Business
  • Adjournment

Section 2 – BOARD MEETINGS

At meetings of the Board, the order of business, unless otherwise directed by the majority vote of those present,

  • Reading of Minutes
  • Report of Secretary
  • Report of Treasurer
  • Report of Committees
  • Unfinished Business
  • New Business
  • Adjournment

Section 3 – RULES

The rules contained in the current edition of “Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised,” shall govern the club in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and any other special rules of order the club may adopt.

ARTICLE IX

DPCA CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS

Section 1 – DPCA GOVERNANCE

The members of this Club are also subject to and regulated by the provisions of the Constitution and bylaws of the Doberman Pinscher Club of America. Anything to the contrary in this Constitution and bylaws not withstanding.

Section 2 – DPCA 501(c) (3) STATUS

In as much as our parent organization, Doberman Pinscher Club of America, has included us in a 501(c) 3) group exemption recognition before the IRS, we acknowledge our responsibility to make annual information reports pertaining to our continued good standing.  We further agree to adhere to their specific policies related to the 501(c)(3) status that in their judgment keeps this status well maintained.  While we reserve the right to challenge any such policy that may be established, we will inform them of such action in writing 30 days prior to any implementation on our part.

ARTICLE X

DISSOLUTION

Section 1 – DISSOLUTION

The club may be dissolved at any time by the written consent of not less than 2/3 of the members.  Upon the dissolution of the organization, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose.  Any such assets not disposed of shall be disposed of by the Court of Common Pleas of the county in which the principal office of the organization is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organization or organizations, as said Court shall determine, which are organized and operated exclusively for such purposes.