Occasionally the Organization must have meetings, which we generally do via conference call. These calls take place under the "Organizational Meetings" Policy which provides:
The Organization may from time to time have meetings of all or some of its Members to discuss matters that affect the Organization as a whole. The Chief Operating Officer may schedule a meeting of the Executive Committee at any time. Participation is mandatory and no exceptions will be granted. Other Members may also convene meetings upon obtaining a quorum. Participation is discretionary, although failure to participate will be noted in the record as an objection.
Meetings are rare because the need for one suggests:
Note that only Members may participate in meetings, which raises the question of who is a Member. This is covered by the Policy's Definitions section:
(As an aside, we raised the eligibility age a few years ago from 21 to 30 in light of current science regarding the development of the human brain and the inability of any 21 year old to achieve Financial Independence.)
So it is clear that Spouses are Outside Counsel and not Members and frankly, no Member (or Spouse for that matter) has ever argued otherwise.
For good reason. We all agree that spouses have limited insight into the Organization's history so their opinions are not fully informed. Further, Spouses are unaware of the decades of unwritten agreements between Members and thus might prompt uncomfortable silences by violating one. Most importantly, participation could undermine their role as their spouse's Outside Counsel, which requires complete loyalty to their spouse without exception. As to Spouses, I suspect they prefer not to get involved.
We recognize that decisions made during conference calls often have serious financial consequences for spouses — as well as consequences for their schedules, given the certainty that decisions made during calls will lead to long and emotional post-call complaint sessions that may well be revived for weeks or even months.
But like most Organizations, we know how to work within the confines of our Policy and still achieve our objectives. So, while the world has long ago moved from conference calls to Zooms we — by unspoken agreement and without Executive Committee approval — stick with conference calls. Spouses can sit quietly during calls and listen in with no one having to acknowledge a policy violation, which often is the best solution for everyone. Zoom raises the intolerable risk that a Spouse's presence will be revealed.
Members don't always invite their spouse, maintenance of spousal loyalty being the paramount consideration. But if a Member wants their Spouse to listen in, if only to execute their role as Outside Counsel, conference calls enable this. Members have indeed spent years developing inter-spouse methods of silent communication to make this all work.
Since we don't speak aloud of any of this, you would think a Spouseless Member might suggest that we upgrade our communication systems. That has not happened. This is because conference calls have other benefits as well, including allowing allied siblings to text guidance during the meeting while eye-rolls and frustrated sighs (mute button required) remain undetected.
The Organization is dysfunctional, but it is sacred to its Members. We generally attend meetings despite work schedules and even pre-planned vacations. And although we deeply appreciate our Spouses — indeed their support as Outside Counsel goes a long way toward keeping the Organization alive — we are also realistic enough to understand that Spouses can come and go despite everyone's best efforts.
The Organization, however, remains.