Statutes

Amended September 2004

Statutes of the European Peptide Society

1. The Society is a non-profit association established for the public benefit in order to promote in Europe and in certain neighbouring countries the advancement of education and in particular the scientific study of the chemistry, biochemistry and biology of peptides, which are chemical compounds having important functions for human health and welfare, by the organisation of scientific meetings, by the publication and dissemination of the results of research and in other appropriate ways. The constituent countries are listed in the Schedule. The admission of countries additional to those in the Schedule shall be entirely at the discretion of the Council. The Headquarters of the Society shall be at the place of work of the Treasurer of the Society.

2. Applications for membership of the Society from those engaged in scientific research on peptides shall be considered by the Executive Committee according to rules laid down by Council. The Secretary of the Society shall keep a Register of members. Council may require that all members should provide after a stated period of years satisfactory evidence of their continued interest in the subject. If such evidence satisfactory to the Executive Committee is not received by the required date then the name of that member may be removed from the Register. A member may resign by giving written notice to the Secretary. There shall be no membership fee for ordinary members. In the event of a dispute concerning membership the decision of Council shall be final.

Applications from countries outside Europe may be admitted as Associate Members and their names shall be added to the Society‘s mailing list.
The Council introduced the following rules. For the acceptance of application for membership one full paper published in peer-reviewed journal or two publications in Proceedings of International meetings related to peptide science or one accepted patent are required. Members are receiving the Newsletter and have the right to nominate/elect National Representative of the country. For the acceptance of application for temporary membership no written record in the field is needed, but the applicant must be supported in writing by a member of the Society. Temporary members are receiving the Newsletter. Temporary membership will be automatically cancelled after 3 years or renewed upon written request. For consideration of travel grant application at EPS meetings or at EPS supported meetings there is no EPS membership required.

3. Council may at their absolute discretion admit as sponsors companies, institutes, academies, societies and other bodies or persons who wish to contribute financially or in other ways to the benefit of the Society. Individual sponsors are entitled to attend the scientific meetings of the Society and each corporate sponsor is entitled to send one representative to scientific meetings of the Society on such terms as Council may determine. The privileges of the Sponsors shall be as follows:

The mailing list of the Society shall be available to sponsors on request without charge.
They shall have preference and reduced rates for advertisements and insertions in Society‘s newsletter.
They shall receive Society‘s newsletter free of charge.
The Society will request the organisers of the biennial Symposia to give to sponsors preference and reduced charges for space in any Exhibition arranged for the Symposium, but such financial arrangements are entirely the responsibility of the organisers of the Symposium.

It is customary for the generosity of sponsors to be acknowledged annually in the newsletter.

4. The governing body of the Society is the Council. Each constituent country which has the required minimum number of members on the Register of the Society shall have one representative on the Council who shall be elected from among their number by the members of the Society whose postal address listed in the Register lie in that country. These elections shall be organised by the Secretary of the Society and supervised by the Executive Committee. The required minimum shall be of those members whose names have been on the Society’s register for at least four years before notices of the election are despatched and shall be determined by Council from time to time. In the event of a dispute concerning an election to Council the decision of Council shall be final. Election to the Council shall be for a period of four years and a member may be re-elected for one further period of four years after which a period of four years shall elapse before the member is re- eligible. Council shall have power to co-opt not more than eight members of the Society who shall not have the right to vote. Co-opted members shall serve for a period not exceeding 4 years and shall be re-eligible for one further period not exceeding 4 years.

The required minimum number of members resident in a constituent country on the Register of the Society to qualify for a representative on Council shall be seven.
If no objection to the Minutes of a Meeting of Council or the Executive Committee have been received by the Secretary within four weeks of their despatch to Members of Council or the Committee then the signature of the Chairman shall be sufficient confirmation of the Minutes

5. Council shall elect from ordinary members of the Council or from co- opted members of the Council a Chairman, a Secretary, a Treasurer and a Scientific Affairs Officer each for a period of four years. They shall be eligible for re- election for one further period of four years after which they shall not be immediately re-eligible. Each of these officers shall ex-officio be a full member of the Council with the right to vote.

At least four weeks before the appropriate meeting of Council the Secretary shall circulate to members of Council all nominations proposed by the Executive Committee for vacant Offices and shall state a date by which any alternative nominations should be received by the Secretary from Members of Council. The elected Officers shall take office with effect from the end of the Symposium during which they were elected by Council.

6. Council shall meet at least once in every two year period. Except as expressly provided by these Statutes any decision at a Council meeting shall be by a simple majority of those present and voting. Council may at the absolute discretion of the Chairman also make decisions by postal vote provided that every member of Council is sent the text of the proposed resolutions despatched by first class mail (or equivalent) to the last known address of the member and provided that such postal votes are counted not earlier than four weeks and not later than six weeks after the despatch of the voting paper. The Chairman may alternatively authorise voting by electronic mail in which case the votes may be counted two weeks after the despatch of the request for votes, If no vote is received by the Secretary before the vote is counted then that member of Council shall be deemed to have abstained in the vote.

7. Council shall appoint an Executive Committee consisting of the Chairman of the Council, the Secretary, the Treasurer, the Scientific Affairs Officer and one ordinary member, who shall be appointed for a period not exceeding four years and shall not be immediately re-eligible. In making these appointments Council shall have in mind the importance of the representation of countries of both Eastern and Western Europe . Subject always to the decisions of Council, the administration of the Society shall be vested in the Executive Committee which shall be empowered to act on behalf of the Council and to enter into contracts on its behalf in periods between meetings of the Council.

Each year the Chairman shall send a report to the Council reviewing the activities of the Society. This Report may accompany the accounts presented by the Treasurer.
- (a)The Executive Committee may appoint a Scientific Sub-Committee of which the Scientific Affairs Officer shall be Chairman. The Executive Committee shall appoint members to the Scientific Sub-Committee for such periods as it deems appropriate. In making the appointments the Executive Committee shall endeavour to ensure that specialist knowledge of the main scientific areas of interest to the Society is available on the Sub-Committee.
- (b) The duties of the Scientific Sub-Committee shall be as follows:
  1. To consider nominations for the Josef Rudinger Memorial Lecture and for the Leonidas Zervas Award, and to make recommendations to the Executive Committee
  2. When requested, to advise on the allocation of grants from the Society for the support of small meetings, and for other purposes, in subjects relevant to the Society‘s interests, and to report to the Executive Committee
  3. In collaboration with the organizers of the Society‘s biennial symposia to arrange and supervise the scientific content of the symposia
  4. To assist in other scientific matters at the request of the Executive Committee.
- (c) The duties of the Scientific Officer shall be as follows:
  1. To chair the Scientific Sub-Committee
  2. To liaise with other societies organising scientific meetings in Europe in the peptide and protein field and to make recommendations to the Executive Committee concerning financial assistance to those meetings which will be held under the auspices of the Society.
  3. To report annually in writing to the Executive Committee.

8. Council may appoint from its members such other honorary officers of the Society as it may require. Council may at its absolute discretion make such additional honorary officers full members of Council with the right to vote.

9. There shall be a Central Fund of the Society from which the costs of administration and other expenditure approved by Council or by the Executive Committee shall be financed. The Treasurer shall circulate accounts of the Central Fund audited by an auditor approved by the Council annually to members of the Council. The Chairman and Treasurer of the Society shall be the Trustees of this fund. The fund shall be held in an account in the name of the Society in freely convertible currency in a bank in Europe approved by the Council. The account shall be operated by the signatures jointly of any two of the Chairman, Treasurer and Secretary. No payment from the Central Fund shall be made to any member of the Society except for the reimbursement of expenditure incurred on behalf of the Society and approved by the Executive Committee.

10. Scientific meetings of the Society shall be held at least once in every period of two years. The Executive Committee may accept an invitation from the representative of a constituent country to organise a scientific meeting subject to such conditions as the Executive Committee may determine. The representative of that constituent country on Council shall form a committee which shall be responsible for the organisation of such a meeting including the financial arrangements and no financial obligation in respect of such a meeting shall fall on the Society except with the approval of the Executive Committee communicated in writing to the chairman of the committee organising the meeting. It shall be lawful for scientific meetings to be open to all members or to be restricted in participation by invitation or otherwise. It shall be lawful for Council to require the organisers of meetings to transfer to the Central Fund of the Society from the receipts of the registration fees of meetings such sums as may reasonably be required for the expenses of the Society. Special arrangements in this respect may be made when meetings are held in countries having non-convertible currency. When a constituent country is invited to organise a biennial Symposium on behalf of the Society the Secretary shall send to the proposed organiser a statement approved by the Executive Committee setting out the relationship between the Executive Committee and the Organising Committee for the Symposium. The approved statement is as follows:

Allocation of Responsibility between the Executive Committee and Chairmen of Symposia

It is important that the relationship between those organising our Symposia and the Executive Committee should be close and harmonious, and we must avoid misunderstanding of any kind. The following notes are drawn to the attention of the Chairmen of Symposia.

The main biennial symposia are the "flagship" of the Society; it was primarily to keep control of these and to ensure their continuance that the society was founded. It follows that overall control of general policy must lie with the Society. On the other hand, the organisers are undertaking a major task for the Society; they raise the funds and arrange local support, and expend a very considerable amount of time and energy for credit due to the organisers for a successful meeting. The role of the Executive Committee must be to interfere as little as possible and to help in every possible way retaining the essential control.
The Society relies on a portion of the registration fees from the main Symposium for a contribution to its income. A By-Law to Clause 11 of our Statutes states the contribution required by the Society. The attention of organisers is also drawn to the statement in this Clause that "no financial obligation shall fall on the Society except with the approval of the Executive Committee communicated in writing the approval of the Executive Committee communicated in writing to the Chairman organising the meeting."
Certain activities formerly the responsibility of the Organiser now fall to the Society, particularly the nominations for the Josef Rudinger Lecture and the Leonidas Zervas Award. The Society is also a party to the award of Bachem Travel Grants, but the Chairman of the Organising Committee is the Chairman of the Committee which administers the fund.
The Chairman of the Organising Committee should be invited and expected to attend meeting of the Executive Committee when matters relating to the Symposium are discussed. The Society’s Scientific Sub-Committee will collaborate with the Organising Committee to arrange and supervise the scientific content of the Symposium.
It is difficult to define the matters which should be referred to the Executive Committee, but in case of doubt it is suggested that the Organiser should consult the Chairman of the Executive Committee. Such matters would be expected to include:
1. New award having a connection with a Society meeting
2. "Satellite" Symposia held during a Society meeting
3. Publication of the Proceedings
4. New activities which could have implications for subsequent meeting or which could affect the reputation of the Society
Organisers should consider whether it is advisable to take out insurance against any legal claims which might be made against them by participants or others suffering loss or damage in connection with Symposium.
When accepting an invitation for a main Symposium to be organised on behalf of the Society the Executive Committee should ensure that this basis of operation is understood and accepted in writing by the proposed Organiser.

A variant The sum to be transferred from the Registration Fee of biennial Symposia to the Central Fund of the Society shall be 15 Euro or its equivalent in transferable currency for each student registration and 35 Euro for each full participant or 20,000 Euro whichever is greater.

B variant The sum to be transferred from the Registration Fee of biennial Symposia to the Central Fund of the Society shall be determined by the Executive Committee 4 years before the Symposium takes place.

3. Conditions for Support of Small Meetings

The meeting must be advertised as being held "under the auspices of the European Peptides Society"
Subject to any necessary restriction on total numbers, and to appropriate scientific qualifications, members of the Society and, if appropriate, the representatives of our sponsors, shall be admitted to the meeting irrespective of nationality.
It must be understood that the Society cannot accept any further financial responsibility for the meeting, apart from the initial grant, except with the approval of the Executive Committee communicated in writing.
If for any reason the meeting is not held the Society will require the return of the whole of its grant, unless in special circumstances the Executive Committee decides otherwise.
Before the grant is sent to Organiser, the Treasurer of the Society will require a signed statement that the Organiser accepts these conditions.

Organisers are asked to send an advance announcement of the meeting with any available particulars as soon as possible to the Editor of the Newsletter, and a brief report of the meeting afterwards

11. The Statutes of the Society may be amended rescinded or augmented at any Council meeting by a two-thirds majority of those present and voting. Proposed changes in the Statutes must be notified in writing to the Secretary to be received at least three months before the Council meeting and the Secretary shall despatch such resolutions to all members of Council at least 6 weeks before the meeting. If in the opinion of the Executive Committee it is desirable that amendment of the Statutes should be enacted before the next meeting of the Council it shall be lawful for such amendment to be decided by Council in a postal vote held in accordance with the procedure required by Clause 6 of these Statutes. In a postal vote an amendment of the Statutes shall require a majority of two-thirds of the votes received by the Secretary by the due date.

12. The Society and its Statutes may be dissolved at any meeting of the Council by a vote in favour of such resolution by two-thirds of those members of the Council entitled to vote, provided that notification in writing of such a proposal has been received by the Secretary at least three months before the Council meeting. The Secretary shall despatch notice of the proposal to all members of Council at least two months before the meeting of Council. On the dissolution of the Society any surplus assets of the Society shall be applied in such manner as the Council decides for charitable purposes consistent with the objects of the Society.

13. The Society shall be deemed to be an association governed by the law of England and these Statutes shall be construed and operated in accordance with English law.

Schedule of Constituent Countries

Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Israel
Italy
Latvia
The Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Russian Federation
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom