rules

The following Rules were passed at the Annual General Meeting of The Sussex Magic Circle held at Lewes on the March 2011 and supersede all other existing rules. RULES 1. NAME The name of the Society shall be ‘THE SUSSEX MAGIC CIRCLE’, referred to in these rules as ‘the Society’. 2. OBJECT The object of the Society shall be to work for the promotion of the Art of Magic. 3. MEMBERS Subject to the provisions given in the Grades of Membership below, application for membership may be made by any person who is interested in the Art of Magic. New members shall apply for membership on the appropriate form, which shall be signed by a proposer and a seconder both being Members of the Society. GRADES OF MEMBERSHIP 3.1 PROSPECTIVE FULL MEMBERS must be at least 18 years of age and shall be accepted at the discretion of the Council. Their membership shall run for a maximum of 12 (twelve) calendar months, during which time they must satisfy the Council by audition or examination as to their performing ability in, or knowledge of, the Art of Magic. Prospective Full Members shall pay a subscription at the Full Member’s rate. On passing their audition or examination, Prospective Full Members must pay the Entrance Fee as specified in Rule 5 and will then be deemed to be a Full Member. Prospective Full Members may attend all meetings except the Annual General Meeting or an Extraordinary General Meeting. They shall have no voting powers. Prospective Full Members must not use the Name or the Emblem of The Sussex Magic Circle for any purpose. Any who do may be liable for expulsion under Rule 19. 3.2 FULL MEMBERS must be at least 18 years of age. They must satisfy the Council by audition or examination as to their performing ability in, or knowledge of, the Art of Magic. Full Members shall be entitled to attend, speak and vote at General Meetings. 3.3 ASSOCIATE MEMBERS may be admitted but such membership shall be restricted to persons who are the spouses of Members, or other persons who in the opinion of the Council have special qualifications to become an Associate Member. Associate Members shall be entitled to attend and speak at General Meetings, but shall not be eligible to vote. 3.4 JUNIOR MEMBERS must be at least 14 years of age and under 18 years of age. They must satisfy the Council by audition or examination as to their performing ability in, or knowledge of, the Art of Magic. Junior Members shall be entitled to attend and speak at General Meetings, but shall not be eligible to vote. On attaining the age of 18 years Junior Members may apply for Full Membership. 4. ELECTION OF MEMBERS The election of all members shall be by a majority of the Council. 5. ENTRANCE FEE The Entrance Fee for all Grades of Membership shall be as determined at a Annual General Meeting. 6. ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION The Annual Subscription for each Grade of Membership shall be as agreed at a General Meeting payable in advance on the 1st March in each year. Those elected on or after the 1st September in any year, shall pay in respect of that year one-half of the Annual Subscription. Any member whose subscription is six months in arrears shall forfeit the benefits of membership and shall at the end of a further month from that date cease to be a member of the Society. 7. PRESIDENT The President of the Society shall be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting. The Presidency shall be an Honorary position and shall be awarded to a person who has made a significant contribution towards the success of the Society or to the Art of Magic in general. The President need not be a member of the Society. No person shall hold the post of President for more than three consecutive years. At least one year shall elapse before being re-elected to that post. 8. OFFICERS The Officers of the Society shall be the Chairman, the Honorary Secretary and the Honorary Treasurer. 9. AUDITOR An Honorary Auditor for the Society who will be responsible for auditing the Financial Accounts of the Society at the end of each financial year shall be appointed at the Annual General Meeting. The Honorary Appointed Auditor shall not hold the position of President or be an Officer of the Society. 10. MANAGEMENT The affairs of the society shall be managed by a COUNCIL elected at the Annual General Meeting and composed of the President (provided he is a Member of the Society), the Officers of the Society and a number of Councilors not exceeding six, one of whom may be an Associate Member. Two-thirds of the Council shall form a quorum, and the Council shall meet at least four times a year. The Council may co-opt members to the Council up to the maximum permitted number. The President, Officers and Councilors shall retire at the end of the year at the Annual General Meeting. 11. NOMINATIONS Nominations for election of President, Officer or Councilor should be in writing signed by two Members of the Society. Such nominations should be in the hands of the Honorary Secretary at least fourteen days prior to the Annual General Meeting. In the event of insufficient nominations being received, additional nominations may be accepted at the Annual General Meeting at the discretion of the Chairman. 12. FINANCE The Society’s Financial Year shall be from the 1st March. Accounts shall be kept by the Honorary Treasurer and all payments from funds shall be made under the authority of the Council. Accounts shall be audited annually by the Honorary Appointed Auditor. The Honorary Treasurer shall at each meeting of the Council submit a statement of the financial position made up to date. 13. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING The Annual General Meeting shall be held during the month of March each year to receive the Accounts and the Report from the Council and to elect the President, Officers, Councilors and the Auditor for the coming year. Other business of which notice has been given in writing to the Honorary Secretary fourteen days prior to the Annual General Meeting may be transacted. The Honorary Secretary shall give due notice to all members of date, time and meeting place of Annual General Meeting and business to be transacted. One-third of those entitled to attend and vote shall form a quorum. 14. EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING The Council may convene an Extraordinary General Meeting at its discretion and shall do so upon receipt of written request signed by not less than one-fourth of the membership. Such a meeting shall be called within thirty days of the receipt of the request. Seven days notice shall be given of date, time, meeting place and business (with proposition, if any). No business other than that for which the meeting has been called shall be transacted. One-third of those entitled to attend and vote shall form a quorum. 15. VOTING Voting at all General Meetings shall be in accordance with Rule 3. In the event of any equality the Chairman shall have a casting vote. Proxy votes will not be allowed. 16. VISITORS Visitors will be admitted to meetings at the discretion of the Chairman. 17. ALTERATION OF THE RULES The Rules may be added to or amended, only by resolution passed at the Annual General Meeting or at an Extra General Meeting by a majority of two-thirds of the members present and entitled to vote. All proposals for Alteration of the Rules shall be given in writing to the Honorary Secretary fourteen days prior to the meeting. Any Alteration to the Rules shall become effective only after the close of the meeting at which such alteration was passed. 16. RESIGNATION A member ceasing to belong to the Society by resignation or otherwise shall have no claim upon the funds and assets of the Society. 19. EXPULSION In the event of the conduct of any member being considered by the Council to be prejudicial to the interests and objects of the Society, the Council shall call upon the member to give an explanation of such conduct in writing. In the event of a member failing to give an explanation within fourteen days of the request being made, or such explanation being considered unsatisfactory by the Council, the Council shall by simple majority expel such a member. The expelled member shall have no claim upon the funds and assets of the Society. 20. INTERPRETATION OF RULES The Council shall have the power to give decisions as to the interpretation of any Rule should the occasion arise. COMPETITION RULES 1. COMPETITIONS There are five Annual Competitions held by THE SUSSEX MAGIC CIRCLE for members. 1.1 Close-up Magic Competition 1.2 Stage/Cabaret Magic Competition 1.3 Card Magic Competition 1.4 Children’s Magic Competition 1.5 Magic of the Mind Competition 2. COMPETITORS Only Full Members of The Sussex Magic Circle may enter for Senior Competitions, except as set out in Rule 3 below. Prospective Full Members and Associate Members will not be allowed to compete in any of the competitions but are permitted to act as assistants to the competitor. A competition act can be used as an audition if agreed by the council and the prospective member has paid their subs. The Grade of Membership is that held by the competitor at the time of the competition. 3. COMPETITION ENTRY Notice of intention to enter a competition should be given either in writing or verbally to the Chairman at the meeting prior to the date of the competition. If less than three entries are received then the competition will not be held. Entries can be made on the day of the competition at the Chairmans discression. 4. JUDGES All competitors shall be judged by the fully paid-up Members of the Society in the audience. 5. MARKING The Judges shall simply vote for the competitor that has presented the best act. 6. DURATION OF ACT The maximum permitted time for any competitor is fifteen minutes. A warning signal will be given when 13 minutes have elapsed from the commencement of the act. A further final warning signal will be given when 15 minutes have elapsed from the commencement of the act. In any competition the competitor will be disqualified if the act exceeds the maximum permitted time. 7. DEFINITIONS 7.1 CLOSE-UP MAGIC Magic will be such as would be performed ‘Close-up’ at a table for five or six spectators, It may be performed standing or sitting but must exclude obvious platform items. The act may need to be performed several times at different tables. The act must not include more than one effect with playing card stock. 7.2 STAGE/CABARET MAGIC COMPETITION The act shall comprise a routine suitable for presentation on a stage or in cabaret. 7.3 CLOSE-UP CARD MAGIC COMPETITION Magic will be such as would be performed ‘Close-up’ at a table for five or six spectators, It may be performed standing or sitting but must exclude obvious platform items. The act must comprise effects using playing card stock. Any other items used must be ancillary to the card effect. 7.4 CHILDREN'S MAGIC COMPETITION The act shall comprise a routine suitable for presentation to children. If possible the competitors will perform before an audience of children so that the judges may accurately assess the entertainment value to the children of the performance. 7.5 MAGIC OF THE MIND The act shall comprise a routine suitable for presentation on a stage or in cabaret. 7.6 PLAYING CARDS For the purpose of these rules ‘playing cards’ shall mean cards of any back or face design and of any size, manufactured from playing card stock. 8. DISQUALIFICATION Failure to observe the rules for any competition will result in disqualification. 9. QUERIES Any member who has a query arising from the competition rules should consult a member of the Council for clarification before the competition commences and if possible, prior to the day of the competition itself.