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STATUTES

ARTICLE 1:
NAME AND HEADQUARTERS

The European Business Press Federation (»EBP«) was established in 1962 as Union de la Presse Economique et Financiere Européenne in Como, Italy. EBP is organised pursuant to the Swiss law of associations and it has its legal seat in Zurich.

ARTICLE 2:
OBJECTIVES OF THE EBP

  1. The EBP aims to contribute to a united Europe, develop a European spirit of solidarity among its members, and stimulate and faciliate initiatives to look after the common interests of a free and independent press. All of these shall be done with particular emphasis on providing business and financial information.
  2. EBP also intends to make the European public and authorities aware of the responsibility borne by the business press.
  3. EBP will organise regular contact among its members to enable an exchange of views and experiences.
  4. EBP will undertake steps to secure the highest ethical standards for its members both from an editorial and business point of view.

ARTICLE 3: ACTIVITIES

The main activities of EBP are as follows:

  1. An annual meeting with discussions and roundtable conferences
  2. Seminars and study tours
  3. Creating and presenting awards
  4. Acting in support of the interests of its members

ARTICLE 4: MEMBERS

Business newspapers or magazines eligible for membership should meet the following requirements:

  1. They should focus on and aim to act as opinion leaders in business and financial matters
  2. They should be principally circulated in Europe
  3. They should have a national or Pan European coverage
  4. They should be independent
  5. They should be published at least 10 times a year
  6. They should be in existence for at least 2 years

Members are also expected to achieve high quality and ethical standards. Technical, specialized, trade, or official publications are not admitted. In recognition of the constantly changing European marketplace, the Executive Committee may, in exceptional circumstances, recommend, for endorsement by the General Assembly, the acceptance of a new member which does not fulfill all of the aforementioned criteria but is eligible on grounds of circulation or national interest. In order to qualify for membership, the candidate must file an application form with the Secretary General, accompanied by an independently certified audit of circulation not older than 6 months, (if it is standard in the candidate’s country) the EBRS report or other major readership survey and a minimum of three different copies of the publication. The application form must be signed by either the publisher or the editor-in-chief. Once accepted as a member the publication has to pay a yearly membership fee.

    ARTICLE 5: ORGANISATION OF EBP

    The European Business Press is comprised of:

    1. The General Assembly
    2. The President
    3. The Executive Committee
    4. The Secretary Genera
    5. The Treasurer

    ARTICLE 6:
    THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

    The General Assembly convenes once a year. The date and place is fixed a minimum of one year inadvance by the General Assembly. The General Assembly is made up of all the active members of EBP represented by the publisher and/or the editoror their appointed representative. Every member has one vote. The official language of the General Assembly is English.

    The General Assembly elects the President for a period of two years by secret vote. The Presidentcan only be re elected for one consecutive term.

    The General Assembly elects the members of the Executive Committee, confirms the appointment of the Secretary General and discharges the officersof EBP.

    The General Assembly can elect one or more past Presidents as Honorary Presidents. The Honorary President is a member of the Executive Committee.

    On the occasion of its annual meeting the General Assembly approves the activities and the budget for the next 12 months presented by the President or the Executive Committee.

    The General Assembly accepts or rejects proposed candidates for membership. No candidacy can beconsidered if not accompanied by an advice of the Executive Committee. The General Assembly does not have to provide explanations for its approval or rejection.

    The General Assembly can revoke the right to voteto any member who did not pay his yearly membership fee, and can exclude any member who no longer fulfils one or more criteria outlined in article 4 or who did not pay his membership fee two years in a row. Members can appeal against the decision, provided it is made in writing within 2 months after the notification. The appeal must be addressed to the President, who submits it to the General Assembly. The General Assembly decides about the appeal.

    ARTICLE 7:
    THE PRESIDENT

    The President chairs the General Assembly and the Executive Committee. He/she represents EBP in international fora and to the public and can formally engage the federation provided he/she acts within the budget and the programme approved by the General Assembly, as may be amended by the Executive Committee. Each year the President presents his/her report on the state of EBP to the General Assembly and outlines his/her proposals for consideration by the members.

    ARTICLE 8:
    THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

    The Executive Committee consists of a maximum of 12 members, including the President. Honorary Presidents, if any, and the Secretary General are not included in the figure but are nonetheless considered members of the Executive Committee. The members of the Executive Committee are elected for 2 years. They can be reelected. Every second year 4 seats should be up for election. The composition of the Executive Committee should take into account the geographical diversity of the membership. The Executive Committee appoints among its members a Treasurer for the duration of 2 years. The Treasurer can be reappointed. The Executive Committee appoints an Auditing Committee composed of three members who shall serve 2 years.

    The Executive Committee is responsible for acting on the General Assembly’s program and can adopt any reasonable initiative to fulfill it. The Executive Committee receives applications for membership from the Secretary General and after having verified if all conditions are being met, submits it to the General Assembly for vote, accompanied by its own advice. If a member of the Executive Committee leaves the EBP member’s employ he/she shall resign from the Executive Committee and cannot be replaced by a new member until the next meeting of the General Assembly. If a member of the Executive Committee fails to participate in more than three consecutive sessions, he/she will be considered to have resigned.

    ARTICLE 9:
    THE SECRETARY GENERAL

    The Secretary General is appointed by the Executive Committee and confirmed by the General Assembly for the duration of two years. He/she can be reappointed. The Secretary General assures the running of the EBP, its meetings and bodies. He/she participates and takes minutes in the meetings of the Executive Committee and the General Assembly of which he/she is an ex-officio member. The duties of the Secretary General are honorary and his/her compensation is for the expenses he/she incurs only.

    ARTICLE 10:
    THE TREASURER

    The Executive Committee elects among its members a Treasurer, who shall have sole
    signing authority for the approved budgetary or financial matters. The Treasurer can delegate this responsibility to a third party upon approval of the Executive Committee. The Treasurer and the Secretary General, draw up the budget of the federation. The accounts of EBP are maintained in Euros and according to accounting principles. Every year at the General Assembly meeting the Treasurer shall present the balance sheets, the revenues and the expenditures and an overview of accounts receivable and accounts payable. The Treasurer shall also present the financial situation of EBP anytime upon the request of the Executive Committee. The yearly membership fee is fixed by the General Assembly which may delegate this task to the Executive Committee. Each member shall pay his/her membership dues on the 1 March for the respective year. If a member fails to pay, the Treasurer will request the Executive Committee to send a formal notice and if necessary, recommend the consequences provided by these statutes.

    ARTICLE 11:
    SETTLING DISPUTES

    The membership shall endeavour to settle any dispute arising under these Statutes amicably. In the event of any ambiguity or uncertainty regarding procedures of the EBP, reference shall initially be made to past precedent of the EBP for handling similar matters, after which consideration should be given to general principles of governance of membership organisations in Switzerland and elsewhere in Europe, as well as appropriate parliamentary rules of order. In the event of any dispute and unwillingness of parties to mediate or arbitrate a dispute, the courts of Zurich, Switzerland shall have exclusive jurisdiction over this Agreement.

    ARTICLE 12:
    TERMINATION OF THE EBP

    The EBP shall terminate if the majority of the members decide so. In case of termination the assets of the EBP are equally divided among its members after the obligations are covered. The members have no other obligations than the annual membership fee during the time of existence of the EBP.

    Agreed upon the occasion of the Executive Committeemeeting in Helsinki and accepted by the General Assembly on June 12th 2009, to replace all former statutes on June 12th 2009.