Ask the Expert

Q. We’re a small professional society with 11 board members. The president just asked me if we need to have an attorney in our executive committee and board meetings. We really don’t have a budget to hire an attorney to sit in. Is this mandatory?

A. The simple answer is no, it is not mandatory to have an attorney present for Board or Executive Committee meetings.  However, to help your leadership, where an attorney is not present it is a best practice to have a staff member designated to review the association’s antitrust policy and to be responsible for recording the minutes.  It is always important for the organization to avoid any appearance of impropriety.

 

Ralph Vasami, Esq
President, Kellen

Ralph has a broad background in engineering, business management, operations, finance, strategic planning and law. He is regularly called upon to facilitate client strategic planning meetings. Ralph received a Bachelor of Science degree from New York University and a law degree from Pace University. He is a member of the New York State Bar.