Constitution

Article 1. NAME
The name of this organization shall be the International Forensics Association.

Article 2. PURPOSE
The purpose of the International Forensics Association is to bolster forensic education (Speech and Debate), train students to enhance their public speaking skills, and promote the activity of forensic competition in countries other than the United States.

Article 3. MEMBERSHIP
Persons committed to the purpose of the organization and those interested in advancing forensics education and scholarship shall be eligible for membership.  Membership shall be effective upon the payment of annual dues for the annual tournament and/or participation in the IFA convention.

Article 4. OFFICERS
Section 1.    Officers.  The elected officers of the association shall be:  President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Convention Planner/Secretary, and International Liaison, each of whom will be elected by mail ballot from among the membership and will assume office on the date following the national tournament at which their election is announced.  Each officer will serve for a period of three years.
Section 2.    President.  The President shall preside over all business meetings of the organization and shall assume all duties of the chief executive officer.  The President shall be ex-officio member of all standing committees.
Section 3.    Vice President.  The Vice President will assume any duties the President is unable to carry out.  In addition, Vice-President will serve as the Tournament Director who shall also be responsible for maintaining the archives of the organization.
Section 4.    Treasurer.  The Treasurer shall collect any fees, keep official count of all funds of the association, pay bills and accounts from the existing funds of the association, and make financial reports at the annual meetings.  The Treasurer shall distribute and tabulate election ballots. In addition, the Treasurer shall pay the annual state tax and file all necessary paperwork to the I.R.S. with the annual accounting period ending May 15th of every year.
Section 5.    Convention Planner/Secretary.  The Convention Planner/Secretary shall serve as the convener of the annual IFA convention and coordinate annual meeting plans and convention programs for the National Communication Association. The Convention Planner/Secretary shall also record and archive minutes at every meeting.
Section 6.    International Liaison.  The International Liaison shall work with the host country in establishing arrangements to make each year’s tournament a culturally enriching experience for the participants.

Article 5. EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
Section 1.    The Executive Council of this association shall be comprised of the President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Convention Planner/Secretary, and International Liaison.
Section 2.    It shall be the duty of the Executive Council to carry out the expressed wishes of the membership, to determine the tournament location and to select any additional committees for special duties and projects of the association and to act on behalf of the association between annual meetings.

Article 6. MEETINGS
Section 1.    The regular meetings, which are the semi-annual business meetings, shall be held at the time and place of the IFA Tournament/Convention and in conjunction with the National Communication Association Convention of which IFA is an affiliate member.
Section 2.    Special meetings may be called by the President with the approval of the Executive Council upon notification of all members of the association.
Section 3.    A quorum shall consist of the active members in attendance at the semi-annual meetings.

Article 7. AMENDMENTS
This constitution may be amended by the three-fourths vote of the voting membership present at the regular meetings.  Amendments may be proposed by any member provided such proposal is submitted to the President at least sixty days before the date of a meeting, and provided that a copy of the proposed amendment(s) has/have been distributed to the membership at least thirty days before the date of the meeting.

Article 8. DISSOLUTION CLAUSE
Upon dissolution of the International Forensics Association, the National Communication Association will receive any remaining funds to be used for a Forensics Division student to attend the National Communication Association convention.

BY-LAWS

  1. Parliamentary Authority. The Parliamentary of this association shall be Robert’s Rules of Order, Revised.
  2. Tournament Procedures. Tournaments will use the current NFA policies on event rules.  If the membership wishes to deviate from NFA policies, they may do so by a vote on each item at an organizational business meeting.
  3. Tournament Qualifications.  Tournament participants in all events other than tournament nuance events must be undergraduate college students in good standing at their respective institution.  Students are allowed to participate in a maximum of four IFA tournaments as a student.