Upon motion and second of any Officers or Representatives and a majority vote of all voting Board members, the SBA may veto any appointment. In the event of a veto, the President shall appoint a new chair. If the President is unable to appoint a chair two weeks prior to the end of the academic year, the voting Board members may nominate and approve by majority vote a suitable candidate.
B. Budget Committee
To decide the proper allocation of funds each year, the President shall convene a Budget Committee composed of the President, the Treasurer, and one Class Representative from each class.
C. Career Services Office (CSO) Advisory Board
The President shall appoint a 2L or 3L Class Representative to be Chair of a CSO Advisory Board that shall meet with the CSO staff once per month to discuss topics affecting students in the employment process. The Board shall be comprised of the Chair, and at least one member from each class. It is the Chair’s responsibility to recruit members to the Board. The Board shall assist the CSO staff in determining the programs and services needed by students, participate in programs where a student perspective is needed, and generally serve as liaison between students and the CSO staff.
Section Two: Vice President
The Vice President shall support the President, convening and presiding over meetings when the President is not present. The Vice President shall serve as Election Commissioner and appoint members of the full body to assist him with the election process. The Election Commissioner shall follow the By-Laws on Election Guidelines, as well as Article Five of this Constitution, in fulfilling his/her duties.
Section Three: Treasurer
The Treasurer shall support the President and account for all SBA funds, providing periodic accounting reports to its members at appropriate intervals.
Section Four: Secretary
The Secretary shall support the President and keep accurate records of all SBA meetings and activities. The Secretary shall ensure that the SBA provides appropriate comment on its activities to the Student Body. The Secretary is responsible for the maintenance of the SBA webpage and shall ensure that it is current and accurate in providing SBA information, events, and procedures
Section Five: Class Representatives
Three representatives from each class shall serve on the SBA Board as voting members. Class Representatives shall actively seek out and determine the concerns of the students in their class and convey those concerns to the SBA. Class Representatives are charged with the duty to work diligently and to serve the interests of all students.
Section Six: American Bar Association Representatives ("ABA Reps")
The ABA Reps shall serve on the SBA Board as voting members. As the student liaisons to the ABA, the ABA Reps shall inform students of the purpose and benefits of the ABA as well as solicit membership.
Section Seven: Incapacity
Should the President for any reason become unable to fulfill his/her duties, the Vice President shall succeed to the position of President. The President shall then appoint as Vice President one of the officers or class representatives with majority approval of the Board.
Should the Vice President, Treasurer, or Secretary for any reason become unable to fulfill his/her duties, the President shall appoint as a replacement one of the other officers or class representatives with majority approval of the board. Should any class representative for any reason become unable to fulfill his/her duties, the President shall appoint as a replacement a student from that same class with majority approval of the Board.
Section Eight: Removal
An officer or representative may be removed for failure to perform his/her duties upon motion of a voting Board member, second of another voting Board member, and a two-thirds vote of all voting Board members. Appointees may be removed by the President for substantial nonperformance. Appointees may also be removed upon motion of any voting Board member, second of another voting Board member, and a two-thirds majority vote of all voting Board members.
For any removal, following motion and second, the Secretary shall within twenty-four hours give notice to the individual and the Student Body. The vote for removal shall occur no sooner than seven days following delivery of notice.
An officer or representative shall not vote in an action for his/her own removal, and shall be removed upon a two-thirds vote of the remaining officers and representatives.
Article Five: Elections
Section One: First-Year Representatives ("1L Reps")
In September of each year, the SBA shall conduct elections for three First-Year Representative positions. 1L Reps shall serve until their class elects new representatives in April.
Section Two: Officers
In April of each year, the SBA shall conduct elections for the executive offices of President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary. Executive officers shall be elected individually and shall serve terms of one year.
Executive officers must be elected by a majority of students voting in the general election. Should no candidate receive a majority of votes, the Election Commissioner shall conduct a run-off election between the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes.
Section Three: Class Representatives ("Class Reps")
In April of each year, the SBA shall conduct elections for three Second-Year and three Third-Year Class Representatives. Class Reps shall serve terms of one year.
In each Class Representative election, the three candidates receiving the highest number of votes shall be elected. In the event of a tie for the third position in a class, the Vice President shall conduct a run-off election between those two candidates.
Section Four: American Bar Association (ABA) Reps
In April of each year, the SBA shall conduct elections for two ABA Reps. ABA Reps shall serve terms of one year.
In each ABA Reps election, the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes shall be elected. In the event of a tie for the second position in a class, the Vice President shall conduct a run-off election between those two candidates.
Article Six: Amendments
Amendments to this Constitution may be made at any time by a two-thirds majority of the voting Board members. All amendments passed by the SBA will be presented to the Student Body for one week after their promulgation for the purpose of public comment. Students may express opposition to amendments through their elected representatives and during public comments at the weekly SBA meeting.
The President shall submit the amendment/revision in writing to the Student Activities Office and Law School for review/approval.
Article Seven: By-Laws
SBA By-Laws are rules created by members of the SBA that bind the SBA and its members. The SBA may amend the By-Laws at any time upon motion and second of any voting board member and a two thirds majority of all voting board members.
Article Eight: Affiliation with the American Bar Association
SBA is affiliated with the American Bar Association (ABA). When in conflict, University of Notre Dame policy shall supersede the policy of the ABA.
Amendments:
First Amendment
Ratified March 15, 1994
Amending Art. 6 to read:
Amendments to this Constitution may be made at any time by a two-thirds majority of the voting Board members. All amendments passed by the SBA will be presented to the Student Body for one week after their promulgation for the purpose of public comment. Students may express opposition to amendments through their elected representatives and during public comments at the weekly SBA meeting.
Second Amendment
Ratified March 15, 1994
Inserting after Art. 4, § 8:
Resolutions
Any officer or representative may bring a motion for a resolution. Upon second of any other officer or representative the matter shall receive appropriate consideration. Provided a quorum exists, upon motion of any officer or representative and second of another the resolution shall come to a vote. A resolution shall require a majority of officers and representatives present to pass.
A quorum shall exist where the President or Vice President is present and two-thirds of the officers and representatives. The Secretary shall note in the minutes whether a quorum exists at each meeting.
The President can veto any resolution of the SBA within one week after its passage. Any officer or representative may move to over-ride the Presidentís veto, and it shall be over-ridden with a second of any officer or representative and, within one week after the veto, a two-thirds vote of all officers and representatives, save the President.
Third Amendment
Ratified March 15, 1994
Inserting at the end of Art. 6:
The official voting procedures of the SBA are those procedures outlined in Article Six of this Constitution. All other voting procedures enumerated within this Constitution shall apply only to the specific purposes for which they are described within this Constitution. Any document that makes general reference to the voting procedures of this document will be considered to refer to Article Six.
Fourth Amendment
Ratified November 15, 2018
Amending Art. 3, § 2 to read:
Every Elected member of the SBA shall be a Juris Doctor (J.D.), or Master of Laws (L.L.M.), or Juridical Science Doctor (J.S.D) candidate at the Notre Dame Law School in good standing who has never been found guilty of an Honor Code violation.
When an SBA Elected member falls out of good standing as determined by the Law School or is found guilty of an Honor Code violation through appropriate Honor Council proceedings, the individual shall notify the President of his or her resignation from the SBA.
Fifth Amendment
Ratified May 22, 2020
LLM/JSD Class Representatives:
LLM and JSD students will have the ability to elect two (2) students to serve as class representatives, with all rights and responsibilities granted to class representatives in Article Four Section Five. LLM and JSD students are considered one "class" for the purpose of representation.
Sixth Amendment
Ratified May 22, 2020
Presidential Appointment of Unfulfilled Elected Positions:
If an elected position within the SBA receives no candidates, the SBA President may appoint a student in good standing to the position. The student shall be allowed to serve in the position until the next election so long as the presidential appointment is approved by a two-thirds vote of all voting Board members.
