Approved by Decree of the National Executive Power N° 2347 – November 11th, 1980
Amendments approved by IGJ Resolution 00831 – September 1st, 2010 and ANI’s Assemblies
June 1st, 2020 and April 5th, 2021
CHAPTER I – NAME, CONDITION, DOMICILE AND CAPACITY
Article 1° – The National Academy of Engineering, constituted under the name of Argentine Academy of Engineering of which is its continuity, is a technical, scientific Institution, functioning as a civil association with the power of a legal entity. Its domicile is in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.
Article 2° – The Academy has capacity to acquire rights and obligations. Consequently, it can perform all the juridical acts necessary for the accomplishment of its functions if they are not prohibited by law.
CHAPTER II – AIMS AND LEGAL POWERS
Article 3° – The aims of the Academy are the following: a) To foster and spread technical and scientific research work related to engineering, leading to the development and progress of the country; b) To study the several aspects related to engineering: teaching and research work, professional work, plans connected with the public and private works, specially those of national interest; c) To express its opinion, whenever it is considered convenient, on the above mentioned issues, and clarify the questions posed by the national, provincial or municipal authorities, public and private universities and educational institutions, and the professional associations; d) To foster, by all possible means, the cult of dignity in the accomplishment of technical, scientific and professional engineering activities; e) To establish and keep relations with the domestic and foreign institutions devoted to the study of engineering sciences and all other sciences related to them; f) To found laboratories, institutes or research centers, as well as to hold lectures, seminars, conferences and all other king of meetings with domestic and foreign specialists. To establish rewards and incentives prizes to the studious and researchers; g) To take an active part whenever required in the constitution of boards of juries formed to pass legal opinion on technical or scientific reports; h) To create a rostrum for its members and remarkable persons in science or technology invited for such effect, to express their ideas publicly; i) To organize a specialized library and/or digital archive for its members and general public, having in mind the purpose of its creation, promoting the exchange of publications and requiring to similar organizations as well as public and private institutions to send their books, brochures and reports.
Article 4° – To that end, its legal powers are: a) To choose its Titular, Corresponding, Honorary and Emeritus Members; b) To periodically hold private sessions to discuss and solve internal affairs of the Institution and receive technical and scientific reports, as well as public sessions to have similar meetings and conferences; c) To provide for the partial or total publication of the decisions or items treated in the sessions, of the works or information presented, of the conferences or reports, and everythingconnected with the field of engineering; d) To participate in Juries to determine the value of intellectual work and to award prizes; e) To hold intellectual and scientific meetings leading to the achievement of its purpose; f) To carry out all the legal proceedings to achieve its aims; g) To make contracts with the State or with private institutions for the study of technical and scientific subjects, with adequate payment; h) To issue its own internal regulations.
CHAPTER III – ON ITS CONSTITUTION
Article 5° – The Academy will be composed of Titular, Honorary, Corresponding and Emeritus Members. In order to become a Member of the Academy it is absolutely essential, under all circumstances, to have a university degree in one field of engineering, to have had an outstanding performance in scientific or technical research, in the university chair or other teaching posts, or as a publisher in similar fields, or in his career, and to have an excellent public reputation. In very exceptional cases the degree in engineering may not be required such as the case of a well-known person working in the field of engineering. All the academic chairs will be for life and ad-honorem. The Academy will have the right to remove any members on the grounds of misdemeanor or professional breach that may impair the reputation of the Academy. In the above-mentioned cases, the Academy will function as a Tribunal of Honor and will proceed in accordance with the resolutions established in Article 44°.
Article 6° – The Titular Members will be forty in number, the majority of them being Argentine by birth and with a maximum of six being Argentine by naturalization. They will preferably be domiciled in the city of Buenos Aires, or within a distance not farther than sixty kilometers away, so as to ensure the regular functioning of the Academy. In spite of that, the Academy will have the right to appoint a certain number of Titular Members, up to ten, domiciled in the country farther than the specified area.
Article 7° – The number of Corresponding Members will be of eighty. The Corresponding Members will be people who, apart from meeting the requirements established in Article 5°, can represent the Institution in their place of residence. Such a residence may be within the country, with the exception of the city of Buenos Aires and the area of sixty kilometers around, or in a foreign country.
Article 8° – In very special cases, Argentine or foreign professionals meeting the requirements included in Article 5° and with an outstanding performance, may be appointed as Honorary Members of the Academy.
Article 9° – The Academy will have the right to appoint as Emeritus Members to Titular Members in the following instances: a) Whenever Members resign; b) Whenever Members believe they are unable to continue taking active part in the Academy works owing to different reasons. In both cases, such an appointment will determine the vacancy of the corresponding chair as a Titular Member. The President will inform the Academy of the existence of situations referred to in paragraph b), which will deal with in the next ordinary private session of the Academy. A two-thirds majority of those present will be required to approve shifting to Emeritus’ category.
Article 10° – The Titular Members will have the following rights and duties: a) To attend the public and private sessions with the right to vote and to become a Member of the Board of Directors through election; b) To submit reports to the Institution and to give public lectures in the premises of the Academy; c) To receive the publications of the Academy; d) To act on behalf of the Academy when necessary; e) To act as a Member of a special committee appointed by the Academy; f) To pay social fees; g) To report change of domicile. The Academy will convey to its Members a diploma which certifies its condition as such.
Article 11° – The absence of a Member at the sessions for a year without notice will be regarded as a resignation to the position of Titular Member; such a resignation will be treated in the following session. If a member of the Academy falls into this situation or expressly resigns, the President of the Academy, in an ordinary private session, will inform the Plenary, which in a subsequent meeting will proceed to consider it or postpone its final resolution if there are reasons for doing so. In any case, within three academic months after the date of resignation, a simple majority vote of those present must be accepted.
Article 12° – Corresponding Members will represent the Academy in their place of residence. They may send papers to be studied by the Academy, when at Buenos Aires, they may attend its meetings without the right to vote and lecture in public meetings with permission granted by the Board of Directors. Honorary Members will have the right to attend the meetings of the Academy without the right to vote and to lecture in public meetings with permission granted by the Board of Directors. Emeritus Members will have the same rights and duties as Titular Members, excepting the right to vote or to be a member of the Board.
Article 13° – Titular Members who change their domicile will keep their position. Corresponding Members, who move to the city of Buenos Aires or within an area of 60 kilometers around it, will be considered Corresponding Members as if they were residing in their former domicile and they will not represent the Academy in their new place of residence. If they move to another part of the country or go abroad, they will become Corresponding Members in their new place of residence.
Article 14° – The vacancies left by Titular Members will be filled in the following way:
a) Signed by three Titular Members, the proposal of a candidate will be presented to the Board of Directors. This letter must state the reasons why the merit of the candidate is considered sufficient to be elected as Titular Member. A Curriculum Vitae must be attached to this letter, that will specified, with due extension, the university, academic, professional, cultural background, degrees and awards. In the case of candidates without an engineering degree, considered as an exception in Article 5°, the proposals must be signed by six Titular Members. b) The Board of Directors will inform to the Titular Members the existence of a proposal, sending them a copy of the letter and informing that the Curriculum Vitae is at the headquarters of the Academy, available for consultation. c) Thirty days after the communication, the proposal will be considered in the subsequent session with special citation of the case in the agenda. d) The ballot will be secret and Members will vote for “yes” or “no”, being the candidate elected by two-thirds of the Members present. e) The sessions in which the proposals and election of candidates are considered, will be secret.
Article 15° – Designations of Corresponding Members are subjected to the same regulations as for Titular Members.
Article 16° – Designations of Honorary Members are subjected to the regulations included in Article 14°, but the proposals must be signed by ten Members.
Article 17° – The sessions referred to in sections c) of Article 14°, must be convoked at least eigth days in advance and more than half of the active Titular Members must be present for the election to take place.
Article 18° – The designations of Emeritus Members will be decided by majority of the two-thirds of the present Members, such appointments being included in the agenda.
Article 19° – Titular Members thus chosen must join the Academy in a public session, within a year from his designation. If that is not possible, will be eliminated from the list of members of the Academy – The separation may be suspended if the Member presents written justification for his delay which the Body of Directors finds satisfactory, in which case he is granted a six-month extension to join the Academy.
Article 20° – In sessions held to incorporate new Members to the Academy, the new Member will appoint another Titular Member to speak on its behalf. The new Member must present, at the time of its incorporation, a paper of high academic level being the author of it or having participated with relevant responsibility.
Article 21° – The chairs may be named after great late scientists or distinguished engineers.
Article 22° – The Academy may create Institutes for scientific and technical purposes. Its formation and scope are found in Chapter VI.
Article 23° – The Academy may also appoint Special Committees, on a temporary or permanent basis, to cooperate with the Institutes or for studies not pertaining to any Institute.
Article 24° – The Academy will be qualified to award honorary prizes and pay homage, namely: a) Appointment of an Honorary President, who should be one of the Titular or Emeritus Members who has excelled owing to his moral standards and to his performance in the scientific and technical fields and to his outstanding performance in the academic dignity. The Honorary President will maintain all the rights that correspond to Titular Members; b) To the people not related to the Academy but who worked for its development or to famous scientists and technicians, or to living or late members of the Academy.
CHAPTER IV – ON THE AUTHORITIES
Article 25° – The Academy will be directed and managed by its Board of Directors, composed of a President, a First Vice President, a Second Vice President, a Secretary, a Pro-Secretary, a Treasurer and a Pro-Treasurer. The Members of the Board must be Titular Members of the Academy. They will hold their position for two years and may be re-elected. The President will be re-eligible only once for a new period of two years. Upon completion of his term and after another four years may be elected again. The election to fill the position will be carried out in a session of the Academy referred to in Article 42° or in an Extraordinary Session. The ballot will be secret and the election will be made by simple majority, the quorum required being more than half of the active Titular Members; the session may start half and hour later than the time called for if a third of the Members are present. In case the President is re-elected, the vote of three-quarters of the present Members will be required. An Audit Body will be appointed which could be comprised from one to three regular Members, with the position of Auditors, as well as an alternate Member. Their terms will last two years. If the Institution exceeds the amount of one hundred Members, the Control Body will be collegiate and will be called Accounts Review Commission.
Article 26° – The Board of Directors is in charge of the direction of the Academy and its legal powers are: a) At the beginning of each year, to establish the plan of activities to be developed by the Academy during the Exercise, once it is considered and approved by the Assembly; b) To prepare the annual budget of the Academy from the project made by the President and the Treasurer at the end of each year; c) To get acquainted with the President and Treasurer’s Administrations of the funds of the Academy; d) To discuss the Financial Report and the Balance, the Inventory and the Account of Income and Expenditures submitted to the Assembly for its approval; e) To appoint and to remove the personnel of the Academy following the President’s suggestion. As regards of the technical personnel, the Academy will take intervention; f) To establish the prices of publications of the Academy; g) To propose to the Academy the necessary measures to improve the performance of its activities.
Article 27° – The Board will meet at least once a month, under the President’s call or whenever two of its Members consider it necessary; in this later case the meeting will take place within ten days after it has been petitioned. The call will be done at least eight days in advance. Its quorum will be constituted by more than a half of its Members and the decisions will be taken by majority of the votes of the present Members. It will take act of its resolutions; it will establish its own internal regulations and will give the Academy an annual account of its activities.
Article 28° – The President will represent the Academy and will convoke and preside the sessions and the meetings of the Board of Directors; he will propose the appointment and removal of the administrative and technical personnel; he will administer the Academy’s capital assets according to the budget approved, informing the Board and working together with the Treasurer; he will solve the urgent issues letting the Academy know in the following session and will take the necessary measures for the adopted decisions to be carried out. In case of absence the President will be replaced by the First Vice President or in his absence by the Second Vice President; if both the First and Second Vice Presidents are absent, the most senior Member of the Academy will take the President’s place, and among those with the same seniority, the oldest Member will take over. If the position of President becomes vacant, the First Vice President or in his absence the Second Vice President, will be appointed to finish the term. In case of total acephalia at the Presidency, the Secretary or in his absence, two Members, will call for the election of Members to fill the vacant positions within thirty days. The substitutes will finish the term. In exercise of his functions and legal powers, the President will act in accordance with the following: a) Approves the agenda for ordinary sessions, whose preparation is the responsibility of the Secretary. b) Together with the Secretary, he signs the correspondence, the official documents of the Academy, and the Minutes of the sessions of the Plenary and the Board of Directors. c) Order the expenses authorized by the budget. Sign up contracts on behalf of the Academy. Together with the Treasurer, he signs the checks, inventory balances and all funds movement documents; and accounts for the expenses incurred in the first private session the following year, obtaining the approval of the Assembly. Copies of the pertinent reports will be distributed to the Members of the Academy for their study, ten days prior to their treatment. d) In plenary sessions and in special sessions of the Assembly, which convenes and presides as established in Article 28° and regulates its Chapter V, submits the motions presented for voting. In the voting, he will have a tie-breaking vote, in addition to the one that corresponds to him as an Academic, except in the case of the appointment of new Academics, or the election of members of the Board of Directors. In these cases, the President will only have one vote. e) Proclaim the resolutions of the Academy and take the necessary measures for them to be carried out. f) Ensures the maintenance of order, in all its aspects, within the Academy. g) In the special session of the Assembly referred to in Article 42°, he presents ananalytical report of the scientific, technical and administrative activities of the Academy and attached dependencies. Academics will receive copies of these reports ten days prior to the date of the session. – The Vice-Presidents will exercise the presidency in the cases and in the order indicated by Article 28°; they collaborate in the managerial functions and in those for which their competition is requested, in addition to that which corresponds to the Special Commission designated according to Article 44°, paragraph a) to inform the Tribunal of Honor. For the performance of normal tasks in which they can act interchangeably, the Vice Presidents will proceed by mutual agreement or following the instructions of the President.
Article 29° – The Secretary, apart from his duties, will prepare, in agreement with the President, the sessions and redact the acts. He will convoke a session under the President’s requirement and will be in charge of the Records of the Academy. The Pro-Secretary will collaborate with the duties of the Secretary and will substitute for him in case of absence and will finish the term in case of vacancy.
The tasks inherent to the position of Secretary are the following: a) The custody of the minutes books; b) The custody of the documentary, scientific and technical material of the Academy; c) Keeping permanently updated the table of national and foreign members of the Academy; d) The supervision and care of the Academy publications; e) The performance of the functions entrusted to him by the Academy or the Board of Directors; f) Certification of all acts that require it; will attest to all the deeds, testimonies and other documents in which it corresponds. Endorse with his signature all the orders signed by the President in which it corresponds; g) The preparation of the Annual Report.
Article 30° – The Treasurer will be in charge of the patrimony of the Academy and along with the President or whoever replaces him, of all that related to the management of funds, the accounting for its activities, the drafting of the annual budget, etc. The budget will be planned at the end of each year, so that it can go into force the succeeding year; and will be planned on the basis of the available resources, the personnel’s salaries, the general expenses and contingencies and publications. The Treasurer, in addition, is in charge of preparing the Balance of each exercise of the Academy, which, together with the Memory, Inventory and Account of Expenses and Resources, must be sent annually to the General Inspection of Justice for its knowledge and approval. The Pro-Treasurer will collaborate with the Treasurer, will substitute for him in case of absence and will finish the term, in case of vacancy.
Article 31° – The authorities will be put in possession of their positions in an extraordinary session to be hold in April of the corresponding year. On that occasion, the outgoing President will summarize the scientific, technical and administrative work accomplished during his term and will welcome the new authorities. The incoming President will briefly refer to his work plans for the new period that is beginning. If for any reason it has not been possible to elect new authorities or the elected officials do not assume their functions on the corresponding date, will continue to govern the Academy the same authorities until the regulatory situation has been normalized.
CHAPTER V – ON THE SESSIONS
Article 32° – The Academy will hold plenary sessions to deal with subjects related to their aims, administrative issues or any other subject that may concern the Institution. Plenary sessions will be ordinary, extraordinary, public, private or secret. A special session of the Assembly will be held once a year according to Article 42° of the present By Laws. Ordinary sessions will be held at least once a month, from March 1st to December 20th. Extraordinary sessions will be held whenever the President thinks it convenient or when five of its Titular Members ask for it; in this later case, the session will be convoked ten days after the petition. Titular and Emeritus Members willbe equally summoned to ordinary sessions. For Titular Members, the obligation established in paragraph a) of Article 10° is in force from the day of their incorporation to the Academy with regular attendance at the sessions that the Academy holds in full and at those of the Institutes it integrates. When a Titular Member cannot attend a session to which it has been summoned, must give verbal or written notice to the Secretary. The days and hours set by the Presidency for plenary meetings may be altered by it when there are special causes of need or convenience. With the summons, copies of the reports, opinions and other pertinent documents available on which it will be necessary to deal in the session will be sent to the Members.
Article 33° – In the public or private sessions papers submitted by its Members will be discussed, whereas in the private sessions all the issues related to the management or administration of the Academy will be dealt with. Papers submitted by non-members may also be considered as long as those people are introduced by a Titular Member. The sessions will not have a predetermined duration. They may be lifted when the Members resolves it upon a motion of order or by order of the President, having exhausted consideration of the matters included in the agenda or considering the time. When it has passed to an intermission, the session will be adjourned if it does not continue the same day, unless the Academy in quorum has ruled on the moment to resume it. Communications, works, conferences, papers, etc., will always be presented on a digital platform that allows their distribution and filing. In the event that the communications were verbal, the author or authors must submit to the Secretariat a summary of their presentation. In the case of collaborative works, one of whose authors is a Member of the Academy, this will be presented on behalf of all.
Article 34° – All sessions will be convoked to each of the Members at least eight days in advance and specifying the matters to be treated. In the extraordinary sessions the acts referred to in Article 3° will be carried out, the work of the Academy will be presented; authors of works that have obtained prizes created by the Academy or awarded under its sponsorship will be proclaimed; homage will be paid to eminent scientists and Members of the Academy, present or not; and those public acts that are promoted or approved by the Academy will be held. The invitation to a person outside the Academy to publicly present his ideas or unpublished work, in accordance with the provisions of Article 3°, paragraph h) of the By-Laws, will be proposed under their responsibility of one or more Titular Members or Emeritus. If the Board of Directors approves the proposal, it will be up to the Presidency to invite the speaker to deliver his lecture in an extraordinary session called for that purpose. In extraordinary sessions, only those topics that are explicitly included in the corresponding agenda may be considered.
Article 35° – The ordinary and extraordinary sessions, except in the case listed in Articles 14°, 15°, 16, 42° and 45°, will require more than half of the active Titular Members to reach their quorum; the session may start an hour later than the fixed time if a third of the Members is present. With the exception of the cases listed in Articles 14°, 15°, 16° and 42°, the resolutions will be adopted by a favorable vote of the majority of the presents. Once the quorum has been reached, the total number of members present with the right to vote will be considered for voting. In the session in which a draft of the By-Laws reforms will be discussed, the presence of at least half plus one of the active Titular Members will be necessary. In the session aimed to approve those reforms, a quorum of two thirds of the active Titular Members will be required. Private special sessions will be held in those cases in which the Academy must decide with its vote on a special issue that makes it necessary in the opinion ofthe Board of Directors. The subject must appear in the agenda that will be made ten days in advance. Approval requires the presence of more than half of the active Titular Members of the Academy and more than half of the votes of the Members present. Extraordinary sessions dedicated to the awards ceremony will be considered as a special session. On the occasion, the President or the member of the Academy designated by him, will deliver a speech with reference to the contests and the authors who receive the prizes, and one of them will thank on behalf of all of them.
A quorum of two thirds of the total of active Titular Members will be required, in the private sessions in which it is: a) Decide on honorary distinctions in the form of designations, as stated in Article 24°; b) Award medals for special merits; c) Validate the decisions adopted by the Academy established in the Tribunal of Honor.
The acceptance or rejection of the resignation from the position of Titular or EmeritusMembers may be resolved with a quorum of more than half of the active Titular Members. If a vote is equal, the discussion will be reopened and if after it there is a new tie, the President will decide. All votes will be made in the affirmative or in the negative, except for the election of the authorities of the Academy. In the scrutiny of any secret ballot, blank votes or signed votes will not be counted; the latter will not be disclosed.
Article 36° – The sessions may be public whenever the Academy considers it necessary. No fixed quorum will be required in such cases. Special sessions destined to the incorporation of elected Titular Members, will have the character of a public session, in accordance with the provisions of Article 19°.
Article 37° – Except from expressed declaration of the Academy, taken with its quorum and by majority according to Article 45°, it will not take solidarity with doctrinaire ideas emitted by its Members, invoking membership to the Academy.
CHAPTER VI – ON THE INSTITUTES
Article 38° – Objectives and functions of the Institutes – The purpose of the Institutes dependent on the National Academy of Engineering will be to enhance and extend the tasks of the Academy on relevant issues of the country and the community, in which engineers play a preponderant role.
Article 39° – Integration of Institutes: A Titular Member must exercise the direction of each Institute. It will be directly assisted by a Secretary who must be a member of the Institute but not necessarily an academician. Non-academic members must be outstanding professionals in the subject, both in engineering and in other professions. The members will be nominated by the Director, on their own initiative or at the request of other Titular Members, and will be chosen with the same procedure as the academics. In other words, they will be presented to the Plenary and must be approved with two thirds of the votes present. Previously, their records must be available for analysis no less than one month in advance, which will be notified to all Members. The number of members of each Institute should not exceed 20. The members of the Institutes will be honorary and will last four years, after which their continuance will require again the approval of the two thirds present.
Article 40° – Functioning of the Institutes – The Director of each Institute will prepare the agendas and set the date of the meetings and events. Titular Members must be notified of all the activities of the Institutes and may participate in the meetings and events. They may also send proposals and queries. Institutes may organize public meetings, conferences, seminars and debates on the topics they cover. Specific expenses of such activities, must be covered with resources obtained from them,unless the Board of Directors of the Academy agrees to pay them with the ANI budget. Same considerations apply to the Institute’s specialpublications when they want to be edited outside ANI’s Annual. The publications of the Institutes must have the prior approval of the Board of Directors. Institutes will have ANI offices for their meetings as well as the administrative support of ANI staff.
CHAPTER VII – ON THE PATRIMONY
Article 41° – The patrimony of the Academy is constituted by all the goods owned at present and the ones it may acquire in the future. The Academy may integrate foundations and accept donations, legacies and all kinds of contributions for prizes, all the help received being defined to promote scientific and technical development. It may also acquire, sell or mortgage real estate so long as such a decision is taken by an assembly summoned to that purpose.
Article 42° – According to Articles 26°, 28° and 30° the funds of the Academy will be administered by the President with the Treasurer’s intervention and with the knowledge of the Board of Directors; he must give an annual account of the financial activities that will close December 31st. To that end a special session of the Assembly will be held yearly, within a hundred and twenty days after the closure of the fiscal year; the Financial Report, the Balance, the Inventory, the Account of Incomes and Expenditures will be discussed and approved in that session. The authorities of the Academy will be elected in the same session whenever it is required. The Academy will have an account in the Argentine National Bank and it may also have it in other banks according to the regulations in force. It must account to the National Executive Power for the way the money contributed by the State was invested on the date and inthe way determined by the corresponding legal regulations. Every year it must send to the General Inspection of Justice the names of the members of the Board, the Financial Report, the Balance, the Inventory, the Account of Income and Expenditures.
Article 43° – The Academy archives will be digitally saved or conserved, their Memories, documents, collections and in general everything that the Academy possesses and does not have a specific destination elsewhere. The Archives and collections of all the material of the Academy, except the bibliographic one, which will depend on the Library, will be under the control of the Secretariat.
CHAPTER VIII – ON THE TRIBUNAL OF HONOR
Article 44° – The constitution and procedure of the Tribunal of Honor provided for in Article 5° to decide on the separation of a member of the Academy, will comply with the following rules: a) When the President of the Academy receives a complaint about a member who has incurred in actions or facts that imply misconduct or serious fault, or professional fault that undermines the decorum of the membership of the Academy, he will convoke the Academy in a secret session, without the concurrence of the member involved in the complaint, to examine the charges and rule on the initiation of an academic trial of that member. Once the initiation of the trial has been decided, a Special Commission will be constituted consisting of the President of the Academy, the Vice-Presidents, and the Secretary. This Commission, after receiving the testimonies, will make known the decision of the Academy and the charges and accumulated testimonies, to the defendant, letting him know that he has fifteen working days to present to the Commission, in writing, the explanations and exculpatory evidence that he deems relevant; b) The Special Commission, within fifteen days following the expiration of the agreed term and having resorted toall lawful and reasonable means of inquiry to establish the authenticity of the charges, their seriousness and the degree to which the member has participated in the imputed facts, will issue its opinion, based on such verifications, with the addition of elements and considerations that it deems appropriate for the most complete clarification of the incriminations as pertinent and useful; c) The opinion of the Special Commission will serve as the basisfor the decision of the Tribunal of Honor. It will be made known to the members of the Tribunal with the character of “confidential” and in advance of their treatment; d) The President will establish the meeting date of the Tribunal of Honor and the Academics will be summoned no less than ten days in advance by special call. The member in question will be informed of the place, day, time and object of the meeting and if the Special Commission deems it appropriate, he will be notified that despite having finished the term that had been set for the presentation of evidence, the Academy will receive additional testimonies and justifications that may be provided in his release until the beginning of the session; e) Once the Tribunal of Honor is constituted and after considering the opinion of the Special Commission and eventually other pertinent elements, it will be issued in a secret session, proceeding to immediately apply the separation ruling or the dismissal, as appropriate. The decisions, which will be taken by secret ballot, will be final. The interested party will not be able to attend the meeting in which their separation is discussed and their case is resolved.
CHAPTER IX – ON THE BY-LAWS AMENDMENTS
Article 45° – The present By Laws may be reformed following a decision taken by the Academy or on a petition made by five Members. The reforms will be discussed in a session of Assembly called for that end and after it has been informed to the General Inspection of Justice; the quorum required will be more than half of the active Titular Members. The decision will be taken by majority. If the above stated quorum cannot be obtained, a new session will be convoked until obtaining the quorum.
Article 46° – The Assembly will have the prior dispatch of a Commission designated by the President of the Academy and with the opinion of the Board of Directors. Among its members there will be at least one of the five Academics who have presented the initiative for the amendment. The Special Commission may request legal advice and will be issued on the opportunity and usefulness of the projected amendment or amendments, formulating a dispatch that will be sent with the call to the Assembly to the Titular Members.
CHAPTER X – VIRTUAL MEETINGS
Article 47° – Conducting remote assemblies and sessions using means that allow participants to communicate simultaneously with each other must meet the following conditions: a) The free accessibility of all the participants to the meetings; b) A platform is used that allows the simultaneous transmission of audio and video; c) Participation with voice and vote of all the members and the inspection body, if applicable; d) To be recorded on digital media; e) A digital copy of the meeting will be kept for a term of five years, which must be available to any Titular Member who requests it; f) In the call, it will be reported in a clear and simple way which is the chosen means of communication and what is the mode of access in order to allow such participation.
CHAPTER XI – DISSOLUTION OF THE ACADEMY
Article 48° – The Academy may be dissolved in the following cases: a) Acting on the decision taken in a special session called to that effect, with a quorum of more than two thirds of the active Titular Members and with a majority of two thirds of thepresents; such a dissolution based on the inability of the Academy to accomplish the purposes established in Article 3° of the present By Laws; b) Acting on the regulations included in Section 2° of the Article 48° h) of the Article 163 of the Civil Code with the condition of Article 164 of the Civil and Commercial Code. In both cases the dissolution must be approved by the National Executive Power.
Article 49° – Once the Academy has been dissolved and after liquidating its assets and liabilities, what remains will pass on to the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Buenos Aires.