Governance Challenges in Religious Institutions – 4 program on-demand webinar series

Board Member and Director Duties under the Spotlight in Religious Institutions

Times have changed from when sitting on the board was simply a voluntary past time and goodwill was enough to bring to the table. Today, board members have increasingly onerous responsibilities, compliance obligations and potentially personal liability when things go wrong. This session will provide a guide to board members in religious institutions to help them navigate their roles and responsibilities, including:

• Revisiting key duties and obligations for board members
• Recent legislation and cases impacting director’s duties including Australian Securities and Investment Commission v Mitchell (No 2) [2020] FCA 1098
• Becoming personal: the changing nature of liability for board members
• Does the board know what it needs to know? What should be on the agenda of every board meeting
• Duties of board members in difficult economic conditions
• Lessons from recent royal commissions, ACNC standards and governance guidance for boards

Blowing Away the Cobwebs from Constituent Documents of Religious Institutions

There’s no time like the present to ensure that your organisation’s constituent documents are fit for purpose and meeting the needs of the institution. Not only can a good spring clean flush out redundancies and gaps, but also focus the organisation on what is required to position the organisation for the future This session will guide organisations through the process of review and reflection, including:

• Understanding and analysing the key terms of constituent documents
• How statutory and common law impact on constituent documents’ content and form
• When and how often is a review appropriate?
• What should organisations be looking for when reviewing the documents?
• Balancing fiddling around the edges with wholesale review and starting over
• Reviewing the fundamentals:
  • Objectives and purpose
  • Decision-making processes
  • Membership rights, meeting and votes
  • Dispute resolution
  • Winding up
• Anticipating member unrest and strategies for harmony
• Judicial review options when all else fails

Avoiding the Nuclear Option: Effective Management of Member Disputes

Disputes between an organisation and its members, or between members themselves, can threaten the very existence of the organisation and severely impact both culture and wellbeing. This session will provide a guide to internal conflict management and governance, including:

• Constitutions, rules and the law – how religious organisations manage their relationship with members
• The impact of member disputes and why they need careful handling
• Spotting red flags and strategies for heading off member disputes at the pass
• Designing a best practice dispute management process for members
• Optional dispute management solutions including:
  • Internal process
  • Mediation or arbitration
  • Judicial
• Building organisational capacity and training in dispute management and negotiation skills
• Communication management in a time of conflict
• Cases including Faamate Ors v Congregational Christian Church in Samoa – Australia (Ipswich Congregations Ors [2020] QCA 87

Process and Procedural Fairness in Investigations for Religious Institutions

Running a fair and impartial investigation can be a very demanding process, particularly where serious complaints and allegations with significant adverse consequences are involved. This session will provide a practical and detailed guide for religious institutions for planning and conducting effective investigations which will hold up against any later challenges, including:

• Determining authority and precedent for conducting an investigation
• Designing an investigation process and supporting procedures that meet the test of procedural fairness
• Internal and external investigations and the pro’s and con’s of each
• Procedural issues including:
  • The selection and qualifications of the investigator
  • The role of lawyers, support persons and representation
  • Interviewing rules, including interviewing children
  • Affording procedural fairness – what does it mean in practice? Cases and examples
  • Evidence, confidentiality and record keeping protocols
• Who is authorised to make and/or receive recommendations or findings?
• Authority for decision-making and outcomes, including disciplinary action and referral to external authorities