Articles of Association – An Excerpt

Articles of Association – An Excerpt

§ 4

Membership

1.         Members may be natural persons or legal entities, partnerships and institutions. Legal entities, partnerships and institutions have one vote each. Legal entities may name a natural person to represent them.

2.         Members must be committed to family therapy and counselling, systemic therapy and consultation or to using systemic working methods.

3.         There are ordinary, associated, supporting and honorary members.

4.         Ordinary members have the full rights and duties of an association member.

a) Anyone who has a qualification in family therapy or counselling, in systemic therapy or consultation, or in systemic work can become an ordinary member.     

b) An ordinary member may become a legal entity, partnership or institution that teaches or provides family therapy or counselling, systemic therapy or consultation, or systemic work, and whose work objectives, articles of association and training guidelines are compatible with the objectives of the DGSF.     

c)         Ordinary members are entitled to vote, and have both an active and a passive right to vote for all functions within the DGSF.

            Applicants who don’t meet these requirements may nevertheless, in exceptional cases, be accepted. Missing prerequisites may be compensated by other qualifications.

5.         Anyone who is taking curricular training in family therapy or counselling, systemic therapy or consultation or systemic work can become an associated member. Associated members have neither an active nor a passive right to vote. They pay a reduced member's contribution and must furnish proof of their educational status every year.

6.         Supporting members provide financial and practical support for the association's goals, but have no right to vote.

7.         Honorary members shall be natural persons, who have merited their status by services rendered to the DSGF or have been appointed as such by the executive board. Honorary members are exempted from paying membership fees.

8.         The executive board takes a decision based on the written membership applications.

9.         With natural persons, membership expires through submission of a written notice of withdrawal six weeks before the end of the financial year or by death; with legal entities, partnerships or institutions, through submission of a written notice of withdrawal six weeks before the end of the financial year or through the respective institution’s dissolution.

10.       A member who has not paid his annual membership fees within three months of those being due, despite having received two written reminders, shall be excluded from membership of the DGSF. A member who has seriously violated the articles of association may, following the involvement of the mediation committee, be excluded from the DGSF. The recommendations of the mediation committee shall be enforced by resolution of the executive board. The decision shall be substantiated in writing and be sent to the member by registered mail with acknowledgement of delivery. Before being excluded, the member shall be given the opportunity to take a stand.

11.       Former DAF members shall be granted the status of an ordinary member in the DGSF. All DFS memberships shall be adopted in their previous form.