Tepora Wright has asked the following question:

Do you have to table minutes of an ordinary meeting at a special meeting?

I hate being pedantic, but it does depend on what you mean by a “special meeting”. I’ll explain what I mean.

If you have a meeting that is outside the regular timetable, for instance, on the 3rd Monday instead of  the 4th Monday, some people call that a “speacial meeting”. It’s not really a special meeting. it’s just that the day you meet has changed.

If you have an additional meeting, as well as your regular meetings, for instance to discuss a particular issue, then some people call that a “special meeting”. It’s not wrong to call it that, but it can be confusing if you ever have “Special General Meetings”.

So, if you have a special meeting like the last one I explained – a meeting to discuss something in particular, or at a different time or place, then the minutes you table at that “special meeting” are the ones from the last ordinary meeting because in meeting terms, this meeting is just a regular meeting – the only thing that makes it special is that it is called outside the normal timetable.

If however, Tepora is talking about a Special General Meeting, then that is whol;e new ball game.

A Special General Meeting is exactly the same as an Annual General Meeting, except that it is held between Annual General Meetings usually to make a decision on something important like a constitution change.

In this case, the minutes that are tabled at a Special General Meeting, are those of the last “General Meeting” which would probably have been the Annual General Meeting.

A “General Meeting” (whether is and AGM or an SGM) is one where every member has to receive a notice of the meeting in the prescribed format and time frame and also a notice of the business that is to be conducted at the meeting. No other substantial business should be conducted at that meeting.