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This translation in English is for communication purposes only, Any conflict in translation between the articles of association in German and this version, then the German version takes precedence.

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Initial Version adopted November, 1st 1997 in Vienna, modification resolved October, 25th 1999 in Stuttgart, September 30th, 2017 in Warshaw,  January 26th, 2019 in Brussels, June 26th, 2020 by online voting and latest October 29th, 2021 by online voting.

 

§ 1 Name, Seat, Financial Year, Language

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  1. The Association shall bear the name LEGATO and shall be entered in the register of associations. The Association is registered in Karlsruhe, Germany.

  2. The financial year of the Association shall be the calendar year.

  3. The business of the Association shall be conducted in English unless legal requirements stipulate otherwise.

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§ 2 Purpose, Charitable Status

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      1. The Association shall be the umbrella organisation for LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) choirs and ensembles in Europe. The purpose of the Association shall be to:

        1. Promote art and culture, particularly to promote choral singing

        2. Promote understanding between nations, particularly by staging events with participants from many European nations

        3. Work for the equal rights for LGBTQ+ people in Europe and combat discrimination against these groups.

  2. The Association is formed for purposes which are exclusively and directly charitable. It shall not work to further its own selfish interest and shall not pursue commercial goals.

  3. Funds belonging to the Association may be used solely for purposes in keeping with this Constitution. Members shall not be entitled to share in any profits and shall have no other claim on the funds of the Association in their capacity as members.

  4. All offices of the Association shall be honorary.

  5. The Association neither opposes nor endorses any causes of a political or religious nature.

 

§ 3 Membership

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  1. The Association shall comprise regular members and associate members. Regular membership shall be open to European choirs and ensembles. Associate membership shall be open to any person or group, association, organisation or company who agrees with the aims of the Association and want to support them.

  2. The board shall decide the outcome of each written application for membership. In the event of the application’s being rejected, the board shall be under no obligation to give reasons for the rejection. Rejected applicants wishing to appeal must do so in writing within one month, for the appeal to be made to the General Meeting. The decision of the General Meeting shall be final.

  3. Membership shall be terminated by death, in the case of a person, or by the dissolution of the legal entity (choir, organisation, association, or company), by resignation, or by expulsion. Notice of resignation must be given in writing to the board one month before the end of a quarter. Expulsion must be for an important reason. Reasons justifying expulsion include:

    • Conduct prejudicial to the Association or its aims.

    • Breach of the duties laid down in this Constitution.

    • Arrears in membership contributions of at least one year.

The board shall decide on expulsions, which it must communicate in writing, giving reasons for the expulsion. The expelled member may appeal to the General Meeting and must communicate the wish to do so in writing to the Committee within one month of expulsion. The decision of the General Meeting shall be final. The rights of the member shall be suspended, pending the decision of the General Meeting. Contributions paid covering future periods do not become repayable when a membership ends. 

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§ 4 Rights and Duties of Members

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  1. The Association shall levy membership fees, the amount, and at intervals fixed by the General Meeting. The amount for regular members and associate members may be different and maybe scaled depending on the number of members a choir/ensemble has and its financial power. Decisions on reduced subscriptions, deferment of payment, and exemptions shall rest with the board whose decision shall be final.

  2. Members of the Association are required immediately to notify the board of any change to your address and authorised representative.  If the member is an unincorporated association then it must name the person who is the representative. 

  3. All members shall have the right to attend, apply to, and address the General Meeting. Each member will have only one authorised representative, this representative may not represent more than two members at any one time. Every regular member shall be entitled to one vote; associate members shall not be entitled to vote.

  4. Officers of the Association shall have the same rights and duties as associate members, but shall not be required to pay subscription fees.

  5. Other rights and duties of members shall be fixed by the General Meeting.

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§ 5 Organs of the Association

 

The organs of the Association shall be the General Meeting and the board.

 

§ 6 General Meeting

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  1. The board shall summon a General Meeting at least once a year. The Board will convene immediately a general meeting if it is the interest of the association or if at least one-fifth of the members demands one in writing, giving the reasons for and purpose of the Meeting. The board shall issue an invitation to the Meeting at least two months in advance, the invitation to include a provisional agenda, either in the Association newsletter or other written communication.

  2. If the invitation has been issued in accordance with this Constitution, the General Meeting shall be deemed to constitute a quorum irrespective of the number of members who actually attend. The meeting will be chaired by a member of the boat=rd or if none are present, the meeting will elect a Chair for the meeting

  3. The General Meeting shall not be open to the public, but guests may be admitted with agreement from the General Meeting. Authorised members representatives are allowed to take part and to speak unless the General Meeting makes a different decision

  4. The General Meeting shall have responsibility for:

    • Electing a person to take the minutes and a Chair, if necessary

    • Admitting guests and approving the agenda

    • Decisions on changes to the Constitution, including the purpose of the Association

    • Dissolution of the Association

    • Electing and dismissing the board

    • Electing the auditor

    • Receiving the financial report from the board and discharging it

    • Receiving the auditor’s report

    • Taking final decisions on appeals against expulsion or rejection of application for membership

    • Fixing the amount and due dates for membership fees

    • Stipulating additional rights and duties not named in the Constitution, in accordance with § 4.

  5. Applications for dismissal of the board, changes to the Constitution, or dissolution of the Association that is not included in the invitation sent to members have to be dealt with at the next General Meeting. Applications for changes to the Constitution must be made verbatim, with supporting reasons.

  6. Votes shall be by show of hand, unless, in individual cases, a quarter of the regular members present request a secret ballot. Decision shall be by a simple majority. A tie shall be deemed to constitute rejection of the question. Dismissal of the board changes to the Constitution, including changes to the purpose of the Association, and dissolution of the Association requires a two-thirds majority. Abstentions and invalid (spoiled or unauthorised) votes shall not be included in the calculation.

  7. Anyone who is a member of a choir/ensemble is eligible for election.

  8. The decisions of the General Meeting shall be recorded in the minutes, which are to be signed by the Chair and by the person who took the minutes. Changes to the articles of association must be recorded verbatim. The minutes must also include the name, representative name, and registered location of the attending members (choirs/ensembles) at the General Meeting.  

  9. The general meeting can take place in the form of an in-person meeting or also as an online meeting. A mixed form of these procedures is also permissible (hybrid meeting). The form of the meeting shall be indicated in the invitation. If an online or hybrid meeting is held, the other provisions of these articles of association concerning general meetings shall apply accordingly, with the proviso that the members must additionally be informed in good time of the access data to the online conference room and that members connected online shall be deemed to be present. Members shall be obliged not to disclose their access data to third parties and to keep it strictly confidential.

  10. Resolutions of the members may also be passed in writing and/or by e-mail or by using an online form provided by the association. The call for a resolution shall be made by the board by e-mail. Such a resolution shall be valid if all members of the general meeting entitled to vote have been involved, by the deadline set by the board the involved members without minimum participation have cast their vote(s) in text form or in the online form and the resolution has been passed with the required majority. After the conclusion of the procedure, the results of the resolution shall be made known to all members in a timely manner.

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§ 7 Board

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  1. The Board will consist of at least three and a maximum of seven people. At least one woman and one man should belong to it. The gender composition of the Board should be balanced as far as possible. The President and other roles are elected by the board members from within the board. The President holds a casting vote

  2. The board is elected by the general assembly for a period of two years. It is chosen for whom more than half of the voters present vote "yes". If more candidates receive the required votes than there are vacancies, the candidates with the highest number of votes are elected. If several candidates for a board position do not receive the necessary number of yes votes, further ballots will be necessary. The candidate with the lowest number of yes votes from the previous ballot will not be taken into account in the further ballots for the respective board position. They remain in office until a new board is elected. The individual re-election of board members is permitted.

  3. If a member of the Board of Directors leaves prematurely, the others elect a replacement member for the remainder of the term of office of the member of the Board who has resigned. If more than half leave the board, the board must immediately convene a general meeting at which the entire board is newly elected.

  4. The board can be dismissed by a two-thirds majority of a General Meeting. A new board shall then be elected immediately.

  5. The board within the meaning of Section 26 of the German Civil Code (BGB) consists of persons with equal rights named in Paragraph 1, Sentence 1, and in particular, has to conduct the day-to-day business of the association. He represents the association in and out of court. Each of its members is authorized to represent alone.

  6. The board makes its decisions at personal meetings or in telephone/video/internet conferences, to which invitations have to be sent by letter, fax or email within two weeks, or by exchanging letters, faxes or emails. If the board of directors determines the location and date of further meetings at one of its meetings or if it decides to hold regular meetings at a specific location, the invitation can be omitted. At least half of the members of the Executive Board are required to pass resolutions.

  7. The decisions of the board must be recorded and signed off by the board. The minutes are to be made available to the regular members in an appropriate form on request. The member bears the resulting expenses.

  8. If the interests of the association so require, the board can distribute tasks, i.e. create further association offices and determine their owner. This includes, for example, the editing of a club magazine, the administration of a sheet music archive, the management of the membership register, and the organization of meetings and events. These offices must be abolished immediately if their duties are fulfilled and are not regularly recurring or if they can no longer be performed.

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§ 8 Dissolution of the Association

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  1. In the event, the Association is to be dissolved or its purpose has been abolished, the assets of the Association shall pass to the Deutsche AIDS-Hilfe, which shall use them exclusively and directly for charitable purposes.

  2. In the event of dissolution, the General Meeting can stipulate another recipient or recipients by a simple majority; such recipients may only use the assets for charitable purposes. Such a decision shall be void if the German tax authorities withhold their consent to it.

 

Adopted by the founding members Dominik K. Jakob (Vielhomonie Rhein Ruhr, Duisburg), Richard Mohr (Schola Cantorosa, Hamburg), Peter Kyburz (Schmaz, Zürich), Jürgen Eicher (Rosakehlchen, Heidelberg), Heinz F. Borel (Fliedertafel, Basel), Josef Schinkowitsch (Plüsch, Wien), Markus Werner (Männer-Minne, Berlin), Hans v.d. Veen (Homomannenkoor Zangzaad, Groningen), Annette Kreis (Liederliche Lesben, Frankfurt).

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