The Japan Academy of Home Care

: Articles of the Academy


Part 1. General Provisions Article 1 The name of the organization shall be the Japan Academy of Home Care. Article 2 The secretariat of the Academy shall be specified by the president. Part 2. Purposes and Operations Article 3 The Academy shall engage in the academic development of, education on, and the dissemination of information concerning home care with the purpose of contributing to people's health and wellbeing. Article 4 The Academy shall engage in the following operations to achieve the objectives set forth in Article 3. (1) Holding academic conferences; (2) Issuing newsletters and other publications; (3) Supporting research activities; (4) Holding meetings of the General Assembly; and (5) Other activities necessary for achieving the objectives of the Academy. Part 3. Members Article 5 The members of the Academy shall be as set forth below. (1) Regular members (persons who agree with the objectives of the Academy and pay the specified membership fees, including student members; provided, however, that student members shall not have the right to vote or the right to be voted for in elections of Academy officers). (2) Supporting members (organizations or individuals who agree with the objectives of the Academy and support its operations). (3) Honorary members (members who, in principle, have a history of Academy activities of 15 years or more, have made notable contributions to the Academy, and have extensive experience in the area of home care). Article 6 Regular members may attend and exercise voting rights at meetings of the General Assembly. Regular members may also submit articles to newsletters, give presentations at academic conferences, and receive distribution of newsletters and other publications. Article 7 1. Persons who wish to join the Academy as regular members shall submit to the Board of Directors a recommendation from one regular member and the specified membership application form with the necessary information and obtain approval from the Board of Directors. 2. Persons who wish to join the Academy as supporting members shall submit to the Board of Directors a recommendation from one regular member and the specified application form with the necessary information and obtain approval from the Board of Directors. 3. Honorary members shall be recommended by one or more directors, and following deliberation by the Board of Directors, must be approved by the General Assembly. Article 8 Regular members and supporting members must pay the membership fees specified separately. Membership fees that have been paid shall not be refunded. Honorary members shall be exempt from paying membership fees. Article 9 Regular members and supporting members who wish to withdraw from the Academy must submit a notice of withdrawal stating the reasons. Further, in the case where a member does not pay the membership fees without good cause for three or more years, following the submission of notice, the member shall be considered to have withdrawn; provided, however, that at the time of readmission, membership fees in arrears must be paid in full. Article 10 Members who engage in conduct that harms the reputation of the Academy or is contrary to the objectives of the Academy or who engage in conduct contrary to the regulations of the Academy including its ethical guidelines may be expelled from the Academy with the approval of two-thirds or more of the Board of Directors and the approval of the General Assembly. Part 4. Officers Article 11 The Academy shall have the following officers. (1) President One (2) Vice president One (3) Directors Sixteen (including the president and vice president) (4) Auditors Two Article 12 The directors and auditors shall comprise 12 directors and two auditors elected in an election by the regular members in accordance with separate rules ("Elected Directors"), and the Elected Directors shall recommend four appointed directors from among the regular members approved by the General Assembly. If a vacancy among the directors occurs, the Board of Directors may nominate a director to fill the vacancy for approval by the General Assembly. The term of office of a director so approved shall be the remaining term of the predecessor officer. Article 13 1. The president shall be elected by the Board of Directors from among the directors and shall be approved by the Board of Trustees and the General Assembly. The president shall represent the Academy and oversee the Academy's operations. 2. The term of office of the president shall be three years, and the president may serve a maximum of two consecutive terms. Article 14 The vice president shall be elected from among the directors upon nomination by the president and shall be approved by the Board of Trustees and the General Assembly. The vice president shall assist the president, and if the president is unable to serve or is absent, shall perform the president's duties. Article 15 The directors, president, and vice president shall comprise the Board of Directors. The directors shall adopt these Articles of Association and detailed rules and shall adopt resolutions concerning and implement matters other than those matters concerning which the Board of Trustees or the General Assembly has authority. Article 16 The auditors shall engage in the conduct set forth in the following items relating to the operations and assets of the Academy. (1) Monitor the status of the Academy's assets (2) Monitor the status of performance of duties by the directors. (3) If any improprieties concerning the status of assets or the performance of duties are discovered, report to the Board of Directors and the General Assembly. (4) Convene meetings of the Board of Directors or the General Assembly as necessary to make the reports specified in the preceding item. Article 17 The term of office of officers shall be three years, and officers may be reelected. Part 5. Trustees Article 18 1. The Academy shall have 40 trustees. Trustees shall be elected from among the regular members and must be approved by the General Assembly. 2. The Board of Trustees shall comprise the trustees, and in addition to the matters specified in these Article Association and detailed rules, shall deliberate on important matters relating to maintenance and operation of the Academy. 3. The term of office of the trustees shall be three years, and trustees may be reelected. Part 6. Committee and Other Bodies Article 19 The Academy shall convene meetings of the following committees and other bodies. (1) Academic Assembly; (2) General Assembly; (3) Board of Directors; (4) Board of Trustees; and (5) Other bodies determined to be necessary by the Board of Directors. Article 20 1. The Academic Assembly shall meet once annually. 2. Presentations given at meetings of the Academic Assembly convened by the Academy shall in principle be limited to members. Article 21 The Academy shall appoint an Academic Assembly chairperson, and the Academic Assembly chairperson shall convene meetings of Academic Assembly. The term of office of the Academic Assembly chairperson shall be from the day after the final day of the prior Academic Assembly until the final day of the current Academic Assembly. Article 22 1. The Academic Assembly chairperson shall be recommended by the Board of Directors and shall be approved by the Board of Trustees and the General Assembly. 2. If the Academic Assembly chairperson is unable to serve, the person specified in advance by the Academic Assembly chairperson shall perform the duties of the Academic Assembly chairperson. Article 23 1. The General Assembly shall comprise the regular members. The General Assembly shall approve matters relating to officers, the Board of Trustees, accounting reports, and business reports and shall deliberate on necessary matters. 2. Regular meetings of the General Assembly shall be held each fiscal year, and extraordinary meetings of the General Assembly shall be held as necessary. 3. The president shall convene meetings of the General Assembly. 4. A quorum of the General Assembly shall be one-tenth or more of the regular members; provided, however, that regular members who have expressed their intent in writing and in advance or who have provided a written proxy to another member shall be considered to be in attendance. 5. Resolutions of the General Assembly shall be carried by a majority of the members in attendance, and in the event of a tie vote, the chairperson shall cast the deciding vote. 6. Upon request from one-fifth or more of the regular members, the Board of Directors, or the Board of Trustees, the president must convene an extraordinary meeting of the General Assembly. 7. Resolutions adopted by the General Assembly must be reported in writing to regular members. Article 24 1. The Board of Directors shall comprise the directors and auditors. The Academic Assembly chairperson and honorary members may attend meetings of the Board of Directors and express their opinions. 2. The president shall convene meetings of the Board of Directors, in principle, twice annually; provided, however, that the president may convene extraordinary meetings of the Board of Directors when necessary. 3. Upon request by one-third or more of the directors or the auditors and indication of the purpose of the meeting, the president must promptly convene a meeting of the Board of Directors. 4. When a meeting of the Board of Directors is convened, prior written notice of the purpose of the meeting, the date and time, and the location must be provided to the directors. 5. The president shall serve as chairperson of the Board of Directors. 6. Meetings of the Board of Directors may not be held without two-thirds or more of the directors in attendance; provided, however, that directors who have expressed their intent in writing and in advance or who have provided a written proxy to another director shall be considered to be in attendance. 7. Resolutions of the Board of Directors shall be carried by a majority of the members in attendance, and in the event of a tie vote, the chairperson shall cast the deciding vote. 8. The Board of Directors shall obtain the advice of the Board of Trustees concerning the business report and financial accounts for the current fiscal year, the business plan and financial accounts for the following fiscal year, and other matters determined to be necessary by the Board of Directors and shall attain the approval of the General Assembly. Article 25 1. The Board of Directors may establish various committees necessary for conducting operations in compliance with the objectives of the Academy. 2. Committees must report on their deliberations and decisions to the Board of Directors and must obtain the approval of the Board of Directors. 3. The chairperson of each committee may attend meetings of the Board of Directors and express opinions. Article 26 1. The president shall convene a meeting of the Board of Trustees once annually; provided, however, that extraordinary meetings of the Board of Trustees may be convened when the president determines that a meeting is necessary. 2. Upon request from the Board of Directors or one-fifth or more of the trustees, the president must promptly convene a meeting of the Board of Trustees. 3. When a meeting of the Board of Trustees is convened, prior written notice of the purpose of the meeting the date and time, and the location must be provided to the trustee. 4. The chairperson of the Board of Trustees shall be elected by the trustees from among the trustees. 5. Meetings of the Board of Trustees may not be held without at three-fifths or more of the trustees in attendance; provided, however, that trustees who have expressed their intent in writing and in advance or who have provided a written proxy to another trustee shall be considered to be in attendance. 6. Resolutions of the Board of Trustee shall be carried by a majority of the members in attendance, and in the event of a tie vote, the chairperson shall cast the deciding vote. Part 7. Accounting Article 27 The fiscal year of the Academy shall be from April 1 of each year to March 31 of the following year. Article 28 The expenses of the Academy shall be paid from membership fees, grants, donations, and operating income. Supplementary Provisions Article 29 1. These Articles of Association may be revised by resolution of the Board of Directors and the Board of Trustees and must be approved by the General Assembly. 2. These Articles of Association shall come into effect February 17, 1996. 3. These Articles of Association were revised on March 4, 2007. 4. These Articles of Association were revised on January 24, 2010.