Club Rules

1. The Club shall be called the Everton Supporters Club Northern Ireland (ESCNI). 2. The object of the Club shall be to provide an association for persons wishing to give support to, or show favour towards Everton Football Club. 3. The Club shall be affiliated to the Official Everton Supporters Club and all members will be registered with the Official Everton Supporters Club as required by Everton FC. 4. A banking account shall be opened in the name of the Everton Supporters Club Northern Ireland and all aspects of the financial business of the Club shall be recorded through this account. All payments made by cheque from the Club account shall be signed by the Treasurer and either the Chairman or the Secretary. 5. The Club shall meet on the last Tuesday of each month at 8.00 pm on the premises of the Duke of York Public House, Commercial Court, Belfast, or as otherwise agreed at a previous meeting. 6. The Annual General Meeting (AGM) shall be held on the last Tuesday in June each year, at which meeting the Secretary and Treasurer shall each submit their reports. 7. Members shall receive by post, at least seven days prior to the AGM, an official notice convening the meeting. Accompanying each notice shall be a list of the names of those members nominated for the principal offices of the Club. 8. An Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) of members shall be convened by the Secretary when directed by the Committee or on receiving a requisition signed by at least 33% of the members. A notice convening the meeting shall be delivered by post to each member at least seven days prior to the date of the meeting. 9. No business shall be transacted at the AGM or an EGM other than that specified in the notice convening the meeting. 10. Postal votes in respect of business to be transacted at the AGM or an EGM must be received by the Secretary or Membership Secretary prior to the meeting and must be submitted at the meeting to be valid. 11. A Notice of Motion relating to any addition, omission or change to Club rules must be submitted in writing to the Secretary at least fourteen days prior to the date of the meeting. Such a Notice of Motion must be included by the Secretary in the official notice convening the meeting. 12. A resolution can only be passed with the support of at least 75% of the total of votes cast by members present at the meeting and postal votes received. 13. Two members of the Club, excluding principal office bearers, shall be elected during the AGM to act as auditors in respect of the financial report presented at the AGM. 14. The Secretary shall keep a Club minute book and shall enter therein a record of the proceedings during Club meetings. This record, when signed by the Chairman, shall be deemed to be a true record of the related matters. 15. Each Club member is entitled to nominate their Everton Player of the Season, the number of votes cast for each player being announced at the AGM. 16. Club membership shall be within the categories of Adult, Youth, Junior or Senior Citizen. A Youth Member shall be under 18 years, a Junior Member shall be under 14 years and a Senior Citizen shall have reached state retirement age before 31st December. 17. The annual membership fee for each category of membership will be determined by the members of the Club at the AGM. 18. Membership cards shall be issued after the receipt of the annual membership fee. 19. Existing members must renew their membership to continue to avail of the Club's facilities. 20. Only persons holding membership in the categories of Adult Member or Senior Citizen shall be entitled to vote at the AGM. 21. Candidates for membership shall complete a membership application form and submit this form, together with the appropriate fee, to the Membership Secretary. In the event of a candidate's suitability being questioned, the decision of the Committee shall be final. 22. A roll of the members, together with their addresses, shall be kept by the Secretary and Membership Secretary. Members should notify the Membership Secretary of any change of address in writing and any communications sent to the last known address shall be deemed sufficient. 23. Decisions concerning Club membership shall be made by the Committee on a majority vote basis. 24. Only fully paid up members shall be eligible to avail themselves of the Club's library facilities. No item shall be removed from the Club's library without the member first completing the library register. 25. Members shall return borrowed library items on the first Club night following the date of borrowing. Failure to do so may result in a fine for each month the item is withheld. 26. The principal offices of the Club shall be those of Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Membership Secretary, Treasurer and Committee Member. 27. The names of nominees for the principal offices shall be presented by a proposer and seconder during the May meeting of the Club or by written submission to the Secretary prior to that meeting. All nominees, proposers and seconders must be bona-fide members of the Club. 28. Six of the nominees shall be elected by a ballot of the Club membership during the AGM to serve in the principal offices of the Club for a period of one year. Elected nominees shall assume immediate office. 29. Members holding office may be considered for re-election. 30. The six principal office bearers shall meet as a Committee when required to discuss any particular aspect of Club business; four to form a quorum. 31. Vacancies occurring within the Committee during the period of office shall be filled by the remaining Committee members co-opting a Club member to the vacant post. Such an appointment shall be ratified by the Club members at the following monthly meeting. 32. The Committee shall have power to caution, suspend or expel any member willfully in breach of the Club rules, or who has been guilty of discreditable conduct or has acted in a manner injurious to the character and interests of the Club. 33. All persons (members and non-members) travelling on Club Trips must pay the full cost of travel, accommodation, match ticket and any other related expenses to the Treasurer or Secretary at least seven days before departure. 34. It is the sole responsibility of those travelling on a Club Trip to ensure that their money has reached the Treasurer or Secretary at least seven days before departure. If payment is not received before the due date, no travel or match ticket will be ordered. 35. Non-members travelling on a Club Trip shall be subject to a levy, the value of which shall be determined by the Committee in advance of the trip. 36. Non-members may travel on Club Trips if they are accompanied by a Club member on the understanding that the Club member will guarantee the behaviour of a non-member on the trip. 37. Where a non-member is seeking to travel on a Club Trip, and is not accompanied by a Club member, the non-member must be sponsored by a Club member before he/she is allocated a place on the trip. This means that the Club member will be responsible for the behaviour of the non-member on the trip. 38. If a non-member misbehaves, the Club member who sponsored them will receive one warning and the non-member will be barred from all future trips. If, on a future trip, that same Club member sponsors a different non-member who subsequently misbehaves, the Club member will have his/her membership terminated with immediate effect and will not be allowed to rejoin the Club. No sporting regalia other than Everton’s, or their opponent's, shall be worn on any official club trip by members or non-members. 39. Drivers of private cars used on Club Trips shall be reimbursed a wear and tear allowance in a manner and at a level determined by the Committee. 40. A presentation shall be made to the Everton Player of the Season during one of the official Club Trips to be arranged the following season. 41. Tickets for premium matches - e.g. Cup ties, Liverpool and Man Utd - can only be ordered on behalf of Club members. In the unlikely event of ESCNI's allocation not being fully used by members, any surplus tickets may be offered to non-members at the discretion of the Secretary subject to rules 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 and 44 as appropriate. 42. In the event of the supply of match tickets received by the Club failing to meet the demand by Club members, the allocation of tickets shall be prioritised by the number of senior matches (home or away) attended by the member (using tickets obtained via ESCNI) within the preceding twelve months. Only those members in good standing and who propose to attend the game shall be eligible for inclusion in the ballot. Should any successful member subsequently be unable to attend the game, the match ticket must first be offered back to the Club before being disposed of in some manner by the member in question. 43. Members ordering match tickets for games other than official Club Trips should ensure that payment (cash or cheque) is with the Treasurer or Secretary at least three weeks before the date of the match. This is to allow sufficient time to clear any cheques and pay for the match tickets. 44. Match tickets will only be handed over to non-members after the full cash payment has been received. If a non-member is paying for tickets by cheque, the cheque must be received by the Treasurer or Secretary at least three weeks before the tickets are handed over. This is to allow the cheque to be cleared before the tickets are handed over. 45. Where ESCNI obtains tickets for non-members who are not travelling on a Club Trip, there will be a charge of £3 per ticket to cover the Club's administration costs. 46. If a non-member, and this includes former members, asks ESCNI to provide match tickets, this service will be provided on a once only basis. If a non-member asks for tickets on more than one occasion, the Committee takes the view that it is reasonable to expect that person to join ESCNI. The person will therefore be advised that further services will not be available to them until they have paid the appropriate membership fee. 47. It is expressly understood that all members are strictly bound by the provisions of these rules. Should any matter arise which is not provided for in these rules, then it should be dealt with by the Committee until such time as it can reasonably be addressed in accordance with Rule 11. The above rules, numbered 1 to 47, were approved and adopted by the members at the Annual General Meetings of the Club on 24 June 1996, 30 June 1997, 29 June 1998, 25 June 2001 and 29 June 2004.