Statutes of the European Craniosacral Association – ECSA

§ 1 Name, Seat, and Business Year

1. After its registration in the Register of Clubs and Associations, the Association will be named “European Craniosacral Association”.

It has been registered in the District Court in Ingolstadt (formerly in Pfaffenhofen), Germany, since 1998.

2. The registered office of the Association shall be at the location of its administrative center: Rohrbach/Ilm.

3. The business year for reporting purposes goes from July 1st to June 30th.

4. Annual Membership goes from the 1st of January until the 31st of December.

5. The working language is English.

6. The currency is the EURO.

§ 2 Aim of the Association

The European Craniosacral Association is an association of national professional associations of Craniosacral practitioners/therapists in Europe and throughout the world. There are no ties to any religious or political party whatsoever.

The Association aims to promote and uphold the highest principles and standards of Craniosacral education and practice in Europe and worldwide.

To fulfill its purpose, the Association plans to:

1. Support communication between national organizations of the Craniosacral Method, the students and professionals of this method, and other healthcare organizations and/or other professional organizations, as well as the public.

2. Distribute information material about the philosophy and working of the Craniosacral Method.

3. Organize and support events aimed towards publicizing and further developing the philosophy and working strategies of the Craniosacral Method.

4. Support further development around Craniosacral practice and teaching by encouraging additional research.

5. The Association operates selflessly. Its priority is not to gain financial profit to cater to its own needs. None of the Association’s resources shall be spent except for the aims as defined in its statutes.

6. Members may earn money for specific functions or other assigned duties. These special functions or assigned duties must be agreed in advance by the General Assembly, or the General Assembly must previously empower the Board of Directors to authorize them. Nobody is allowed to benefit from expenditure which has nothing to do with the aims of the Association or from disproportionately high payments.

§ 3 Membership

Ordinary Member

A national association of Craniosacral practitioners/therapists from all European countries, which shares the aims of ECSA and seeks to cooperate and strengthen the Craniosacral field, can become a full member, referred to as an “Ordinary Member” hereafter. Each Association can have a minimum of one (1) and a maximum of three (3) representatives in the ECSA. They have the right to attend meetings and are allowed to vote (only one [1] vote per association). They are required to pay a one-time Admission Fee to ECSA, as well as an Annual Membership Fee. The Board must approve this member of the Directors.

Extraordinary Member Association

A national association of Craniosacral practitioners/therapists outside Europe, interested in the aims of ECSA and seeking to cooperate and strengthen the Craniosacral field. They pay a one-time Admission Fee and an Annual Membership Fee. They have no right to vote. The Board must approve this member of the Directors.

Extraordinary Member Single

A practitioner who is not representing any national Craniosacral association, who is interested in the aim of ECSA, and wants to cooperate and strengthen the Craniosacral field. They pay no Admission Fee but an Annual Membership Fee. They have no right to vote. The Board must approve this member of the Directors.

Honorable Member

A practitioner who is not representing any national Craniosacral association, who has been part of ECSA before as a representative, and is interested in staying in the aim of ECSA, and wants to cooperate and strengthen the Craniosacral field. They do not pay an Admission Fee, but they do pay an Annual Membership Fee. They have no right to vote. This member must be proposed and approved by the Board of Directors.

§ 4 Becoming a Member

1. Membership is obtained by written application and approval in writing by ECSA.

2. The Board of Directors decides on the acceptance of a new member. An application can be turned down if the Association’s aims or interests are likely to be infringed upon by the acceptance of the new member.

§ 5 Termination of Membership

1. Membership ends:

a) by dissolution of the ECSA,
b) on the exclusion of the member, or
c) on the member’s resignation.

1a) Upon the dissolution of ECSA, all memberships will be automatically terminated.

1b) A member can be excluded from ECSA by unanimous decision of the Board of Directors. Exclusion is permitted only if:

  • For an association:
    a) the member, by their professional behavior or through its own regulations or statutes, has violated or is still violating the principles of the ECSA’s professional self-image, its statutes, or its interests, even after explicit warning by the association that this kind of behavior could result in exclusion, or
    b) the member has not paid their membership fee by 31st October of the current annual membership year.
  • For an individual physical person:
    a) the member’s present address cannot be found out using any of these criteria: by inquiring with the residents’ registration office, enquiring the country association’s registry, or the latest declared address by the member.
    b) the member, by their professional or personal behavior, has violated or is still violating the principles of the ECSA’s professional self-image, its statutes, or its interests, even after explicit warning by the association that this kind of behavior could result in exclusion, or
    c) the member has not paid their membership fee by 31st October of the current annual membership year.
  • A member, whether an association or individual member, may be excluded from ECSA by a unanimous decision of the Board of Directors. The procedure for excluding a member will be as follows. The Board of Directors announces to the member the initiation of an exclusion action in writing via return-receipt email or registered letter. It records this in the member’s file with the seat of ECSA. The involved member has six (6) weeks to justify, in writing, via return-receipt email or registered letter, their association’s actions to the Board of Directors. After reviewing the response, the Board will make its final decision.
  • There is a time limit of one (1) month for the member to appeal against the Board’s decision, in writing via return-receipt email or registered letter to the Board. The Board presents the information to the General Assembly in writing via email for their review. A decision regarding the appeal must be reached by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote in the General Assembly of ECSA’s members. Voting may be conducted by email.

1c) Resignations must be submitted to the seat of ECSA in writing via return-receipt email or registered letter at the latest by 30th September of the current calendar year to allow for resignation at the end of that year. If this deadline is not kept, membership will only terminate at the end of the following calendar year.

Upon termination of membership, all entitlements resulting from the membership are canceled, except for any possible claims by ECSA regarding arrears or other ECSA claims. There is no refund of membership fees or any other payments made to ECSA during the associated membership year.

§ 6 Membership Fees

1. Annual Membership goes from the 1st of January until the 31st of December.

2. Every Ordinary Member must pay a one-time Admission Fee at the time of their admission, as well as an Annual Membership Fee related to the number of its association members by December of the year prior.

3. Every Extraordinary Member Association and Extraordinary Member Single must pay a one-time Admission Fee at the time of their admission, as well as an Annual Membership Fee.

4. Every Honorable Member must pay an Annual Membership Fee.

5. The Board of Directors proposes an amount of the one-time Admission Fee and the Annual Membership Fee to the General Assembly for the following 2 (two) years. The decision about these fees is voted on and confirmed by the General Assembly Meeting. The Annual Membership Fee may not be increased by more than fifteen percent (15%) per year.

6. In addition, there may be periodic one-time Special Fees proposed by the Board of Directors or any Ordinary Member to fund specific projects. This fee also must be voted on and confirmed by the General Assembly. A special fee is based on a budget prepared for that particular project.

§ 7 Organs

The Association consists of the following organs:

General Assembly
Board of Directors: Chairperson, Treasurer, Clerk/Secretary
Advisory Council
Auditor(s)
Additional Committees (optional)

§ 8 General Assembly

1. The General Assembly is the highest body of the Association. Its functions include, but are not limited to:

  • Election or dismissal of the Board of Directors, as well as its formal approval.
  • Election or dismissal of the Advisory Council
  • Election or dismissal of the Auditor(s)
  • Deciding about the Association’s guidelines
  • Changing the Statutes
  • Dissolution of the Association
  • Decision about special fee(s)
  • Accepting the annual budget
  • Accepting the annual member fees

2. In-person or online, or hybrid version meetings of the General Assembly are called annually (every year). The General Assembly must be called by the Board of Directors at least 6 months in advance. The invitation must be in writing and must include the agenda.

3. The Board of Directors is entitled to call an Extraordinary Meeting of the General Assembly. Such a meeting is also to be called if either the Advisory Council or at least one-third of all the voting members have applied for it in writing.

4. Extraordinary General Assembly Meetings can also be called if extra funds are needed or if the Board of Directors considers that an important decision must be taken before the next General Assembly.

5. Votes by the General Assembly are cast openly unless there is opposition to this method. Each member can only represent one other member, and only if authorized by that member in written form.

6. The President of the General Assembly is elected from that General Assembly.

7. A record is to be kept of every meeting of the General Assembly. The minutes are to be distributed to all members within four (4) weeks in a digital version.

8. Instead of calling an Extraordinary Meeting of the General Assembly, the Board of Directors may also call for a digital vote. It must do so if either the Advisory Council or at least one-third (1/3) of all voting members apply for it in writing.

9. In case of a digital vote, the following rules apply:

  • The Board of Directors decides on the exact wording and procedure, following an explicit authorization by the Advisory Council.
  • Before casting such a vote, there must be a consideration period of at least twenty (20) days.
  • Digital votes are to be sent to the Email address of the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors must receive them within twenty (20) days of dispatching the forms.
  • The votes will be counted by the Board of Directors and, in addition, by a member appointed by the Advisory Council.
  • All members must be informed about the results within two weeks after closing.

10. During meetings of the General Assembly, decisions are reached via a vote by a simple majority of all the participating eligible members. In the case of making changes in the Statutes, there must be a majority of two-thirds (2/3), and for dissolution of the Association, a majority of three-fourths (3/4) is required.

11. During an Extraordinary Meeting of the General Assembly, decisions can be made and votes taken only about topics that are included in the written agenda. In an Ordinary Meeting of the General Assembly, it is also possible to discuss and reach decisions about matters which were not announced previously, provided that at least three-fourths (3/4) of the eligible members present or represented by proxy vote to do so.

12. Decisions reached by all the organs are authenticated by the signature (wet ink or electronic) of the official keeper of the minutes.

§ 9 Board of Directors

1. The Board of Directors is the official representative of the Association. Its tasks include managing the Association’s business and assets, as well as recruiting and dismissing potential employees. The Board of Directors implements the resolutions of the General Assembly Meeting and coordinates, based on these resolutions, the activities of the Board of Directors and other bodies of the Association.

2. The Board of Directors consists of a Chairperson and a minimum of two Deputies. The Deputies might take over the positions of Clerk/Secretary and Treasurer. The Association can be represented legally and out of court by any member of the Board of Directors. A Deputy Chairperson is internally bound to instructions received by the Chairperson unless the General Assembly has explicitly decided against it.

The Board of Directors is exempt from the restrictions as defined in §181 of the German Federal Law (Prohibition of Contracts with itself).

3. The General Assembly elects the Board of Directors. Each Board member’s term of office is fixed in advance by the General Assembly. The Board members preferably step down in turn, in different calendar years.

4. Board of Directors members may be re-elected.

5. If a Deputy decides to resign or a Deputy should perform egregious acts, the Chairperson may appoint another Deputy, on approval by the Advisory Council, to fill this post until the next meeting of the General Assembly.

§ 10 Advisory Council

1. The Advisory Council consists of up to five (5) natural persons to be elected by the General Assembly. The General Assembly can, however, change the number of Advisory Council members to a minimum of one and a maximum of fifteen (15), if required. Their term of office is fixed in advance by the General Assembly.

2. The Advisory Council’s tasks include supporting the work of the Board of Directors according to the interests of the General Assembly and acting as an advisory body.

§ 11 Auditor

The General Assembly is to elect one or two Auditors. Their term of office is fixed in advance by the General Assembly. The Auditors’ task is to examine the Association’s books. They are not members of the Board of Directors.

§ 12 Additional Committees (optional)

1. Educational Standards and Admissions Committee

The Educational Standards and Admissions Committee consists of a minimum of three (3) and a maximum of five (5) members. This Committee oversees the qualification criteria for new ordinary members and establishes the minimum standards of practice and educational requirements for all members. Committee members are to be appointed by the General Assembly by a two-thirds (2/3) majority. Their term of office is two (2) years.

2. Additional Committees

By decision of the General Assembly, other institutions and committees with special tasks can be called into action without requiring an official amendment to the statutes.

§ 13 Dissolution

In case of a dissolution of ECSA or if its purpose should ever become null and void, all the Association’s assets are to be transferred to a public corporation or a nonprofit-making institution, which is to use these assets solely as defined in §2 of these statutes.

The institution is to be chosen by the Board of Directors. A decision on how the assets shall be spent must be made in conjunction with the German Tax Office.