Vote of No Confidence in RA-AUS Board!

[David Isaac]

Not if the Board doesn't communicate what is going on. Not when we were told at the February GM that there was no 'other' legal action (other than the 'sting' incident) when in fact there were several cases pending and one was a letter sitting on the secretary's desk at the time of the meeting!

 

 

[Guest airsick]

I'm quite impressed with your ideas/points, however I'm keen to hear more about this last bit (has been mentioned previously with the same vagueness). Does anyone actually have any information regarding said cases being brought against us (RA-AUS), I understand the legality of discussing cases before the court, but surely as members of the association being sued, we are at the very least allowed to discuss/know the charges and damages sort?

There is the ongoing Sting case that I am led to believe has exceeded our insurance coverage already. On top of this there are several Ibis owners that have notified RA-Aus that they are not happy and that they are considering legal options. There are a bunch of aircraft owners who were affected by the recent audits that I've been told are also considering actions (SeaRay and Savannah owners).

 

Of course David is correct in saying that we have no idea of the true extent of these actions/claims as the board doesn't see fit to disclose them. The stupid thing is that it isn't illegal nor wrong to disclose these things we just shouldn't discuss details that might affect the cases themselves. Letting members know that their assets are potentially in jeopardy would be something of a priority in my view.

 

And structuring the organisation such that these assets were protected should also be a strong consideration as well...

 

 

[Admin]

Restructuring assets once a legal case has commenced is a big no no...it could end up being null and void anyway as it is seen by the court as a deliberate attempt to protect assets should they lose the case

 

 

[Guest airsick]

It's not a no no at all. Yes, it just might be null and void for current claims and actions but for future claims it could be very worthwhile. There's no way I would wait for this type of thing to occur as it seems new cases are popping up all the time...

 

 

[terryc]

The present system we operate under is just find for raa. The problem is the people that have offered themselves up for election are not up to the task. If someone was to ask my opinion I would offer the following advice,

 

1. I would have a document given to all elected board members and a seminar informing them of their rights and responsibility. It seems to me that people seem to think that not all board members are equal. If you lack the courage to demand your presents is felt and your views heard don't stand. Strong representation is essential to a board working well. Board positions like president and the like are servants of the board not the other way around.

 

2. communicate with the people you represent on a monthly basis by email. I'm sick to death of this idea that your just a phone call away. Get in the real world and learn to communicate. This has been the failing of all recent boards. When this is done you will see all raa members getting involved. We must encourage ideas and sugestions from the general membership through emails.

 

3. This is the biggie. Keep management and board separate . If the new GM is worth his salt he would have already removed the office keys from any board members who might have them. Board members have no place in the managing operation of this organisation The contact of the board with the management is through the GM. The only time a board member is required at the office is with an invitation from the GM. It has been said that the tech manager is responsible to the board and not the GM, this is wrong and has to be changed. If the GMs neck is on the line he needs to have the say over all his staff.

 

4. We need a part time book keeper with their finger on the pulse reporting to the GM.

 

5. Monthly board meetings, this is easy today with the internet with the ability of members to listen in. {some exceptions] This is part of modern communications of the world we live in.

 

When things start working well then the board can look at other matters to improve raa for it's members. There real job.

 

 

[Guest Andys@coffs]

Restructuring assets once a legal case has commenced is a big no no...it could end up being null and void anyway as it is seen by the court as a deliberate attempt to protect assets should they lose the case

The problem is that with one in play and multiple others likely to leap into play in the future it could be construed that we have no ability to restructure when the requirement to restructure is a normal business requirement and one that is effectively mandated by your insurers....if your working to protect your assets then your pretty likely at the same time, through the same actions, to be protecting theirs...

 

Andy

 

 

[turboplanner]

This would be one occasion when you would take professional advice from someone qualified to give information which may be so critical right now.

 

 

[Admin]

The problem is that with one in play and multiple others likely to leap into play in the future it could be construed that we have no ability to restructure when the requirement to restructure is a normal business requirement and one that is effectively mandated by your insurers....if your working to protect your assets then your pretty likely at the same time, through the same actions, to be protecting theirs...Andy

Yes Andy and you need to be able to prove that there was no malicious intent of trying to remove assets that can be claimed upon by a claimant...the courts would look very seriously at the intent which could become a further legal battle

 

 

[Guest airsick]

There is never a good time to restructure to protect assets, it costs money and is fraught with danger if done improperly. That said, there is a bad time to restructure to protect assets - when you've got none left to protect.

 

Turboplanner is right though, any form of restructure should only be undertaken with the sort of advice and guidance that only be given by someone with expertise in this area. Kind of like how the current board took the advice of the expert panel set up to assess the associations insurance options...

 

 

[timeflysforme]

I thank everyone for their comments. I haven't felt the need to add anything more because my prayers have been answered !

 

au revoir et bon débarras to the dearly departed.