[LinuxPicnic] Linux Picnic voting memberships & 2008 steering committee (fwd)

Wed Dec 19 12:54:39 PST 2007

Quoting Jennifer Davis (sigje at sigje.org):

[snip]

> All the members of the Steering Committee will be considered officers of
> the Linux Picnic.  The corporate By-Laws require officers of SIGs to be
> members of the corporation.  That keeps a strong bond as a legal link
> to protect volunteers under the "Volunteer Protection Act of 1997" and
> any liability insurance that the corporation obtains in the future.

Just a brief note that the Federal Volunteer Protection Act of 1997, per
analyses by attorneys in that field, really provides _no_ such protection,
being written in far too narrowly scoped a fashion to do so, and...

   ...is unlikely to provide significant protection for volunteers. 
   It will not shield volunteers from the time, expense and aggravation 
   of defending a lawsuit, even if the Act is ultimately found to bar a
   judgment.  At its worst, the Act may create a guide map for pleading
   within the statutory exceptions and limitations in order to plead
   technically adequate causes of action or defenses, thus surviving
   possible legitimate challenges early in an action and embroiling
   volunteers in expensive and protracted litigation.

That's from Runquist and Associates, a SoCal law firm specialising in
non-profits.  Please see full text at:
http://www.runquist.com/article_vol_protect.htm

Runquist & Assoc. likewise point out that the assertion frequently
heard, e.g., above, that volunteers must be a "member" to fall under the
Act (such as it is), is simply incorrect.

See also:  http://en.tldp.org/HOWTO/User-Group-HOWTO-7.html#ss7.1
(section "Common Misconceptions Debunked").

(I am not an attorney, but did study law while preparing for my CPA 
examinations, during my prior professional existence as a staff
accountant and tax preparer.  Accordingly, this post is not intended as
legal advice.  If you need specific legal advice, consult a qualified
lawyer.)