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A Wrap-Up of the LSS SGM

21/5/2021

 
Volume 19, Issue 11

The LSS Special General Meeting (SGM) was on the 5th of May. De Minimis has written this short account of what went down, if you couldn’t make it on the night. A number of proposals were voted on. A copy of all proposed changes will be appended to the end of this article. 

The meeting barely maintained quorum throughout, at one point having to be briefly paused when a poor internet connection saw attendance drop below the minimum-required thirty Members present.  The motion to change membership requirements passed easily, despite it coming out that the Masters Last Students’ Association had not been consulted about the change. However, the proposal to merge the Environments portfolio with Equity and Social Justice (ESJ) failed to get up. It was obvious that the Leadership Team (LT) had thought carefully about the change, but it still faced significant questions regarding the effects it would have on service delivery, including from a current ESJ Director.
Of course, the proposed transparency clause was always going to be the biggest battle of the evening. The proposer’s initial pitch stressed cognizance of the need to balance the transparency interests of members with the Committee’s need for operational flexibility. They also reminded the meeting that every LT member who ran in the 2021 elections had promised voters greater transparency.

Despite that pointed reminder, in a meeting dominated by Committee and former Committee members, the proposal seemed likely doomed from the outset. After all, corporate boards are not known for voting for more oversight of their activities. The ‘culture of transparency’ espoused by the proposer has been promised by Committee candidates for years, and yet has never materialised.

Nevertheless, the proposal received a vital lifeline from the Secretary, who said in response to a question that she was happy with the sections that pertained to her role. Indeed, she had a hand in drafting the proposal, which did not go far beyond placing an onus on the Committee to proactively pursue their existing passive obligations.

Other speakers were far less generous. Indeed, the 2020 President seemed to impugn the proposer personally, when he called their attitude ‘telling’.* The current Treasurer voiced his own concerns, particularly on providing members with unaudited financial information. 

When it was pointed out to the Treasurer that he is already required to provide such information to Members under the current Constitution, he persisted in suggesting that he wouldn’t be comfortable doing so. He also noted that he intended to do a ‘final tally’ of the books prior to the AGM and, concerningly, suggested that the financial records of the Association might not be accurate until that time. 

After a long exchange explaining the existing duties of the LSS Committee, as well as fielding confused interjections from other Directors, the proposer conceded that they would not be able to change the doubtful minds, and the matter was called to a vote. It failed with only six votes in favour.

De Minimis has requested the financial records of the LSS, at the Treasurer’s earliest convenience. 

*In the interests of full disclosure, in September last year, I personally accused the former President of being involved in a cover-up regarding non-compliance with the Associations Incorporation Reform Act 2012. I do not believe this has affected my reporting on this issue.

Max Ferguson is a Third-Year JD Student.

Note: in response to a request, we have referred to all parties by title, rather than by name.

The opportunity to provide comment on this article was extended to all parties involved.
Mr Sn....rub (yes, that’ll do)
21/5/2021 11:11:52 am

Lol fairly sure I was the one that dropped out because mum called me about dinner and I accidentally disconnected. Wog mums amirite?

Hear Hear
21/5/2021 11:19:48 am

Well said Max. It is about time those on the executive team understand that their life will peak in positions of false power on the LSS. For them, it looks like it is all downhill from here.

careful...
21/5/2021 02:01:05 pm

...the chip on your shoulder is showing xx

LinkedIn Peacock
21/5/2021 11:53:20 am

Seeing as the current treasurer, according to his LinkedIn at the time of writing, took four months to complete a ‘Virtual Internship’ at KWM, I don’t expect that you’ll receive LSS financials any time soon

Gross.
21/5/2021 12:40:27 pm

With all due disrespect, this is a gross comment. It feeds into a pervasive narrative of ableism and is above and beyond elitist. Even if disability is not the relevant circumstance here this is still an ableist attitude. How long people take to do things and WHY is none of your business and is NOT something for someone to be judged on. Shame on you. Learn from this.

Agreed
21/5/2021 12:51:03 pm

100% agreed. It’s such a weird, mean, and unnecessary attack on the MLS Treasurer (who is also like, the nicest guy in the entire law school). The commenter’s point is what, he took a long time to do a self-paced online internship? Based on stalking his LinkedIn? Who cares?

Stuff like this is one of the reasons people hate De Minimis, it’s functioning as a forum to anonymously bully other students.

Yikes
21/5/2021 01:57:21 pm

This is straight up bullying. DM should remove this comment.

Max Ferguson
21/5/2021 02:04:10 pm

Per the De Minimis comment policy, the removal of a comment which identifies an individual is the sole discretion of that person.

We are in contact with the individual in question.

That's a stupid policy
21/5/2021 02:43:18 pm

Ok so according to that policy if I wanted to bully someone in a De Min comment all I have to do is name them, and then not only will De Min NOT remove the comment, they'll actually contact the person and go "Hey here's what someone said about you do you want us to remove it".

Jesus Christ I thought you just didn't care but you're actually actively helping students cyberbully other students.

names and games
22/5/2021 08:48:08 pm

all in the name of encouraging, and having regard to, uNfEtt3red pUbl!c deb@t3.

Delete
21/5/2021 02:55:52 pm

This

Thematics
21/5/2021 03:28:56 pm

Seems to be a consistent theme of Lss executive committees over the years being utterly useless at anything other than schmoozing and being the type of person you cross the road to avoid.

Read the room
21/5/2021 04:23:14 pm

Jeez, the first comment was bad enough, and then you come along and double down?

Honestly, where do you people get off being so nasty

shameful
21/5/2021 05:05:40 pm

how much of a pathetic bully do you have to be to sift through someone's linkedin and pull this garbage comment out of your rear end? yes, it's ableist.

it's also pretty transparent what de min is trying to do by requesting financial records right near exams. no one else needs to study! no one else's time matters!

Deranged Conspiracy Theory
21/5/2021 05:14:53 pm

Seek help.

LSS President Asprirant
21/5/2021 11:58:53 am

in my dreams

I am the president of the lss

they all respect

ME

because in my dreams

I am the king

because in my dreams

my will is enacted into executive fiat of the LSS. i rule the facebook groups and i write the lss newsletter. in my dream my bio is on the lss website in my dreams i see the LSS financials whenever i want in my dreams in my dreams i dream

This is my dream

HAHAHAHAHA
21/5/2021 12:03:52 pm

Love it

De Minimis
21/5/2021 12:00:38 pm

Special General Resolution, as provided to members:

It is proposed, by special resolution, that the MULSS Constitution be amended in the following ways:

Rule 4

Change definition of 'member' to:
member means a student pursuing a Juris Doctor or a Masters within the Melbourne Law School who signs up to join the Association.
i. A member is a member of the Association.
ii. There shall be no entrance fee or subscription fee for membership.

Rule 7

Change r 7(1) to the following:
The Committee shall make regulations where required by this Constitution.

Change r 7(2) to the following:
The Committee may make regulations on any subject matter provided that such regulations are not inconsistent with the Rules of this Constitution.

Rule 31

Change r 31(1) to the following:
The Committee shall consist of all Elected Committee Members constituted under r 39 and all Coopted Committee Members.

Change r 31(1)(d) to the following:
A Treasurer;

Change r 31(1)(e) to the following:
A Director of Sponsorship;

Change r 31(3)(l) to the following:
An Equity & Wellbeing Director;

Remove the following from r 31(3)(m):
Not more than two First Year Representatives who are enrolled as first year Members and shall be elected by Members who are first year Members. The First Year Representatives shall be elected by a ballot of first year Members as close as is practicable to the fourth week of the first semester of the academic year;

Change r 31(3)(r) to the following:
A Social Justice & Environment Director or Directors. The position can be held solely or jointly by not more than two Members;

Rule 36

Change r 36(3) to the following:
The Treasurer must ensure that at least one other member of the Leadership Team has access to the account and financial records of the Association.

Change r 36(4) to the following:
The accounts and books referred to in r 57 shall be available for inspection by Members.

Rule 61A

Add new rule:
61A Transparency
(1) The Committee must take proactive measures to ensure the transparency of the Association and its activities to members.
(2) In addition to any other measures it deems fit, the Committee must publish, in a location accessible to members without request --
(a) the dates of all future Committee meetings for which notice has been given; and
(b) the minutes of all Committee meetings at least three business days prior to the following meeting; and
(c) the annual budget and any subsequent amendments; and
(d) quarterly profit and loss summaries detailing revenue and per-portfolio
expenditure.
(3) For the avoidance of doubt there is no requirement that the documents in sub-cl (2)
but audited or otherwise approved prior to publication, and the Committee may include a note to this effect.

whether de min has standing
21/5/2021 12:01:35 pm

I raise point of order

article reads ' De min has requested LSS financials'

Question - whether De Min is a member of the LSS - whether De Min requested the materials personally - whether member of De Min requested the materials personally on De Min's behalf - whether member of De Min requested the materials in his capacity as member of LSS in his capacity as member of De Min

Does the juridical entity known as De Minimis have a personal right to request documents from the juridical entity known as the LSS?

Zero self awareness huh
21/5/2021 12:01:44 pm

"In the interests of full disclosure, in September last year, I personally accused the former President of being involved in a cover-up regarding non-compliance with the Associations Incorporation Reform Act 2012. I do not believe this has affected my reporting on this issue."

I think you maaaaaay have forgot to mention that you made those accusations while also running for LSS President, on the platform of "The LSS needs reform", while using De Min to publish unsubstantiated hit pieces on the LSS and on the portfolios being run by your opponents.

LSS RISE UP
21/5/2021 12:06:21 pm

They targeted the LSS.

The LSS.

We're a group of people who will sit for hours, days, even weeks on end performing some of the hardest, most mentally demanding tasks. Over, and over, and over all for nothing more than a little digital token saying we did.

We'll punish our selfs doing things others would consider torture, because we think it's fun.

We'll spend most if not all of our free time min maxing the stats of our CVs all to draw out a single extra point in our pursuit of a clerkship at Allens.

Many of us have made our livelihoods out of doing just these things: slogging through the grind, all day, the same emails to stakeholders over and over, hundreds of times to the point where we know every little detail such that some have attained such LSS nirvana that they can literally recite the LinkedIn bios of KWM partners blindfolded.

Do these people have any idea how many pages of Arlen's books have been highlighted, word documents freezing, disks and carts destroyed in frustration? All to latter be referred to as bragging rights?

These people honestly think this is a battle they can win? They try to hold us accountable for our actions as elected representatives? We're already building a new law society without them. They make fun of our events? The LSS gang aren't shy about throwing their money else where, or even making events only for ourselves.

They think calling us boring, elitist, hypocrites is going to change us? We've been called worse things by prepubescent 14 year olds when we were house prefects at Melbourne's most prestigious schools. They picked a fight against a group that's already grown desensitised to their strategies and methods. Who enjoy the battle of attrition they've threatened us with. Who take it as a challenge when they tell us we no longer matter. Our obsession with proving we can after being told we can't is so deeply ingrained from years of dealing with peers and friends laughing at how pathetic we used to be that proving you people wrong has become a very real need; a honed reflex.

The LSS members are competitive and hardcore, by nature. We love a challenge. The worst thing you did in all of this was to challenge us. You're not special, you're not original, you're not the first; this is just another clerkship application.

Mad dog Murdoch
21/5/2021 03:27:15 pm

Max didn't write any 'unsubstantiated hit pieces' and recused himself from all LSS matters while the election was ongoing. But keep it up with the anonymous 'unsubstantiated hit pieces' in the comments section sweetie

Pavey and Matthew and Paul and Mann and Paterson
21/5/2021 03:40:14 pm

Yes, I understand everything you just said, but I am still confused as to whether there is a unifying theory of unjust enrichment in this country?

For example, A is contracted to paint B's house. He paints C's by mistake.

C returns to find his house, gleaming anew with still-drying paint, and an expectant A awaiting payment for his services. Can C resist A's claim?

Discuss.

Hypo Draft 1
21/5/2021 04:53:22 pm

That’s actually criminal trespass, which is unconstitutional.

Sure
21/5/2021 05:18:38 pm

Oh cool so we're just pretending that De Min didn't publish an anonymous article directly criticising the MULSS Women's directors a couple of weeks before Max ran against one of the Women's directors for president.

(https://www.deminimis.com.au/home/am-i-allowed-to-join-the-mulss-womens-portfolio-facebook-group)

Correct me if I'm wrong, but at the time this article came out Max hadn't recused himself.

Even if Max didn't have any involvement in writing the article he still said "Yeah I see no problem with publishing this now, rather than a month from now when all the points will still be totally valid but there won't be a conflict of interest". Either that didn't occur to him (in which case he's incompetent) or it did and he ignored it (in which case he's unethical).

@sure
22/5/2021 01:45:47 pm

That article doesn't even criticise the women's directors though - perhaps you should check your comprehension.

anyway
21/5/2021 07:47:11 pm

stream Sour by Olivia Rodrigo

haha
21/5/2021 07:49:39 pm

Bump


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