Article
1 - Name and Object The name of this organization is the
"Comité Maritime International." It is a non-governmental not-for-profit
international organization established in Antwerp in 1897, the object of which
is to contribute by all appropriate means and activities to the unification of
maritime law in all its aspects.
To this end it shall promote the establishment
of national associations of maritime law and shall co-operate with other international
organizations.
Article 2 - Existence
and Domicile
The juridical personality of the Comité
Maritime International is established under the law of Belgium of 25th October
1919, as later amended. The Comité Maritime International is domiciled
in the City of Antwerp, and its registered office is at Everdijstraat 43 B-2000 Antwerp. Its address may be changed by decision
of the Executive Council, and such change shall be published in the Annexes du
Moniteur belge.
Article 3 - Membership
and Liability
| I | a) The voting Members
of the Comité Maritime International are national (or multinational) Associations
of Maritime Law elected to membership by the Assembly, the object of which Associations
must conform to that of the Comité Maritime International and the membership
of which must be fully open to persons (individuals or bodies having juridical
personality in accordance with their national law and custom) who either are involved
in maritime activities or are specialists in maritime law. Member Associations
must be democratically constituted and governed, and must endeavour to present
a balanced view of the interests represented in their Association.
Where in
a State there is no national Association of Maritime Law in existence, and an
organization in that State applies for membership of the Comité Maritime
International, the Assembly may accept such organization as a Member of the Comité
Maritime International if it is satisfied that the object of such organization,
or one of its objects, is the unification of maritime law in all its aspects.
Whenever reference is made in this Constitution to Member Associations, it will
be deemed to include any organization admitted as a Member pursuant to this Article.
Only one organization in each State shall be eligible for membership, unless the
Assembly otherwise decides. A multinational Association is eligible for membership
only if there is no Member Association in any of its constituent States.
The
national (or multinational) Member Associations of the Comité Maritime
International are identified in a list to be published annually. |
| | b) Where a national (or multinational)
Member Association does not possess juridical personality according to the law
of the country where it is established, the members of such Member Association
who are individuals or bodies having juridical personality in accordance with
their national law and custom, acting together in accordance with their national
law, shall be deemed to constitute that Member Association for purposes of its
membership of the Comité Maritime International. |
| | c) Individual members of Member
Associations may be elected by the Assembly as Titulary Members of the Comité
Maritime International upon the proposal of the Association concerned, endorsed
by the Executive Council. Individual persons may also be elected by the Assembly
as Titulary Members upon the proposal of the Executive Council. Titulary Membership
is of an honorary nature and shall be decided having regard to the contributions
of the candidates to the work of the Comité Maritime International and/or
to their services rendered in legal or maritime affairs in furtherance of international
uniformity of maritime law or related commercial practice. The Titulary Members
of the Comité Maritime International are identified in a list to be published
annually.
Titulary Members presently or formerly belonging to an association
which is no longer a member of the Comité Maritime International may remain
individual Titulary Members at large, pending the formation of a new Member Association
in their State. | | | d)
Nationals of States where there is no Member Association in existence and who
have demonstrated an interest in the object of the Comité Maritime International
may upon the proposal of the Executive Council be elected as Provisional Members.
A primary objective of Provisional Membership is to facilitate the organization
and establishment of new Member national or regional Associations of Maritime
Law. Provisional Membership is not normally intended to be permanent, and the
status of each Provisional Member will be reviewed at three-year intervals. However,
individuals who have been Provisional Members for not less than five years may
upon the proposal of the Executive Council be elected by the Assembly as Titulary
Members, to the maximum number of three such Titulary Members from any one State.
The Provisional Members of the Comité Maritime International are identified
in a list to be published annually. | | | e)
The Assembly may elect to Membership honoris causa any individual person who has
rendered exceptional service to the Comité Maritime International or in
the attainment of its object, with all of the rights and privileges of a Titulary
Member but without payment of subscriptions. Members honoris causa may be designated
as honorary officers of the Comité Maritime International if so proposed
by the Executive Council.
Members honoris causa shall not be attributed to
any Member Association or State, but shall be individual members of the Comité
Maritime International as a whole. The Members honoris causa of the Comité
Maritime International are identified in a list to be published annually. |
| | f) International
organizations which are interested in the object of the Comité Maritime
International may be elected as Consultative Members. The Consultative Members
of the Comité Maritime International are identified in a list to be published
annually. | | II | a)
Members may be expelled from the Comité Maritime International by reason:
| (i) | of default in payment of subscriptions; |
| (ii) | of conduct obstructive to the object of the Comité as
expressed in the Constitution; or | | (iii) |
of conduct likely to bring the Comité or its work into disrepute. |
| | | b)
| (i) | A motion to expel a Member may be made:
(A) by any Member
Association or Titulary Member of the Comité; or
(B) by the Executive
Council. | | (ii) | Such motion shall be made
in writing and shall set forth the reason(s) for the motion. |
| (iii) | Such motion must be filed with the Secretary-General or Administrator,
and shall be copied to the Member in question. | |
| | c) A motion to expel made under
sub-paragraph II(b)(i)(A) of this Article shall be forwarded to the Executive
Council for first consideration.
| (i) | If such motion is approved by the Executive
Council, it shall be forwarded to the Assembly for consideration pursuant to Article
7(b). | | (ii) | If such motion is not approved
by the Executive Council, the motion may nevertheless be laid before the Assembly
at its meeting next following the meeting of the Executive Council at which the
motion was considered. | | | |
d) A motion to expel shall not be debated in or acted upon by the Assembly
until at least ninety (90) days have elapsed since the original motion was copied
to the Member in question. If less than ninety (90) days have elapsed, consideration
of the motion shall be deferred to the next succeeding Assembly. |
| | e)
| (i) | The Member in question may offer a written
response to the motion to expel, and/or may address the Assembly for a reasonable
period in debate upon the motion. | | (ii) | In
the case of a motion to expel which is based upon default in payment under paragraph
II(a)(i) of this Article, actual payment in full of all arrears currently owed
by the Member in question shall constitute a complete defence to the motion, and
upon acknowledgment of payment by the Treasurer the motion shall be deemed withdrawn. |
| | | f)
| (i) | In the case of a motion to expel which is
based upon default in payment under paragraph II(a) of this Article, expulsion
shall require the affirmative vote of a simple majority of the Member Associations
present, entitled to vote, and voting. | | (ii) | In
the case of a motion to expel which is based upon paragraph II(a)(ii) and (iii)
of this Article, expulsion shall require the affirmative vote of a two-thirds
majority of the Member Associations present, entitled to vote, and voting. |
| | | g)
Amendments to these provisions may be adopted in compliance with Article 6. Proposals
of amendments shall be made in writing and shall be transmitted to all National
Associations at least sixty (60) days prior to the annual meeting of the Assembly
at which the proposed amendments will be considered. |
| III | The liability of Members for
obligations of the Comité Maritime International shall be limited to the
amounts of their subscriptions paid or currently due and payable to the Comité
Maritime International. | ---------------
* While meeting at Toledo, the Executive Council created on 17 October 2000 a
committee in charge of drafting amendments to the Constitution, in order to comply
with Belgian law so as to obtain juridical personality. This committee, chaired
by Frank Wiswall and with the late Allan Philip, Alexander von Ziegler and Benoît
Goemans as members, prepared the amendments which were sent to the National Member
Associations on 15 December 2000. At Singapore the Assembly, after the adoption
of two further amendments as per the suggestion of Patrice Rembauville-Nicolle
speaking for the French delegation, unanimously approved the new Constitution.
The Singapore Assembly also empowered the Executive Council to adopt any amendments
to the approved text of the Constitution if required by the Belgian government.
Exercising this authority, minor amendments were indeed adopted by the Executive
Council, having no effect on the way in which the Comité Maritime International
functions or is organised. As an example, Article 3 (II) has been expanded to
embody in the Constitution itself the procedure governing the expulsion of Members
rather than in rules adopted by the Assembly. By Decree of 9 November 2003 the
King of Belgium granted juridical personality to the Comité Maritime International.
By virtue of Article 50 of the Belgian Act of 27 June 1921, as incorporated by
Belgian Act of 2 May 2002, juridical personality was acquired at the date of the
Decree, i.e., 9 November 2003, which is also the date of entry into force of the
present Constitution. Since 9 November 2003, the Comité Maritime International
has existed as an International Not-for-Profit Association (AISBL) within the
meaning of the Belgian Act of 27 June 1921. |
