Constitution and By-Laws
The Queensland Family History Society Inc. is governed by its Constitution (Rules).
Where necessary, the Management Committee of your Society approves By-Laws to cover aspects of the Society's activities. The most recent bylaw was approved by the Management Committee on 8 October 2024, regarding the award of Fellowship (Fellow of the Queensland Family History Society Inc.)
QFHS bylaws
Members' choice: vote on the proposed new constitution
At the members' General Meeting on 24 March 2026, members will be asked to consider and, if they think fit, pass the following resolution as a special resolution:
"That the constitution tabled at the General Meeting (a copy of which has been made available to members), be adopted as the constitution of the Queensland Family History Society Inc."
A notice of the meeting has been distributed to members by email and post. Download a copy here.
Documentation about the proposed constitution can be found below.
Documentation for the members' General Meeting can be found here or by contacting the Secretary at secretary@qfhs.org.au
For members unable to attend, please appoint your proxy to vote on your behalf by using the form here. Completed proxy forms must be with the Secretary no later than 48 hours before the meeting, that is by 7:30 pm on 22 March 2026.
Proposed constitution
The proposed constitution and explanatory documents will be emailed to all members and posted to those without an email address. Click each link to access the documents.
Proposed constitution of the Queensland Family History Society Inc.
Explanatory documents:
The Society's constitution: The need for change
Draft bylaws of the Queensland Family History Society Inc.
The draft bylaws have been developed to show how things would be done under the proposed constitution. They don't need to be approved by members, although they can be set aside by members at a subsequent members' general meeting.
Review of the Society's Constitution 2023-26
The Queensland Family History Society Inc. has been successfully operating as an incorporated association under a set of rules, or constitution, last revised in 1992.
It's wise to ensure that the Society's constitution aligns with and supports how it operates today. There have been significant amendments to the legislation governing such associations since then, with the most recent taking effect from 22 June 2022 and again from 1 July 2024. There have also been significant changes to the industry within which the Society operates.
Advisors
The management committee has established a constitution review subcommittee to develop a revised constitution and accompanying by-laws for the Queensland Family History Society Inc. The subcommittee consists of Charlotte Sale, Chris Schuetz, Kevin Haley and Graeme Drew.
Law firm Mayes Law was engaged to prepare draft documents and give legal advice.
A constitution advisory group provided advice and feedback on the draft documents before distribution to the full membership. This included Ann and Tony Swain, Kevin Haley and Geoff Morgan.
The management committee receives monthly reports from the subcommittee and provides valuable feedback and advice. It approves the final documentation for distribution to members.
Process
The constitution review subcommittee has:
- Reviewed past and existing documents and assessed required changes
- Appointed Mayes Law, a firm that specialises in association law, to advise and assist in developing a revised constitution
- Determined that the Model Rules contained in the Queensland Associations Regulation 1999 are not sufficient for QFHS's needs
- Drafted the initial proposed constitution and bylaws documents
- Obtained advice and feedback from the constitution advisory group, the Management Committee, and Mayes Law
- Refined the proposed constitution and bylaws and developed an explanatory overview of changes
- Held members' consultation meetings on 28 August and on 4 September, 2024
- Agreed updates following further changes to the Act and Regulations
- Agreed on further updates following the final member consultation in November 2025
- Agreed on the final proposed constitution and explanatory documents
The management committee has unanimously agreed on the final documents for distribution to members before the members' General Meeting on 24 March 2026.
Member feedback
Many members have provided feedback, comments, and suggestions for improvement by attending consultation meetings or by emailing the subcommittee regarding the distributed draft documents.
Resources
Some resources relevant to this review include:
- Current rules and by-laws
- Current Queensland State Government legislation
- Queensland Associations Incorporation Act 1981 (Current from 3 November 2022)
- Queensland Associations Regulation 1999 (Current from 1 July 2024) – includes the Model Rules
- relevant advice webpages from Queensland Office of Fair Trading and the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission
- Queensland Office of Fair Trading (OFT) – for example:
- Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC)
Please direct questions and make requests, suggestions, and responses to the subcommittee via email: constitution.review@qfhs.org.au