Minutes

Minutes, also known as minutes of meeting (abbreviation MoM), protocols or, informally, notes,
are the instant written record of a meeting or hearing. They typically describe the events of the
meeting and may include a list of attendees, a statement of the activities considered by the
participants, and related responses or decisions for the activities.

Minutes of First Meeting of the Hawkes Bay Earthquake Relief Fund Committee

Etymology

The name "minutes" possibly derives from the Latin phrase minuta scriptura (literally "small
writing") meaning "rough notes".[1]

Creation
Minutes may be created during the meeting by a typist or court reporter, who may use shorthand
notation and then prepare the minutes and issue them to the participants afterwards.
Alternatively, the meeting can be audio recorded, video recorded, or a group's appointed or
informally assigned secretary may take notes, with minutes prepared later. Many government
agencies use minutes recording software to record and prepare all minutes in real-time.

Purpose

Minutes are the official written record of the meetings of an organization or group. They are not
transcripts of those proceedings. Using Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised (RONR), the
minutes should contain mainly a record of what was done at the meeting, not what was said by
the members.[2][3][4] The organization may have its own rules regarding the content of the
minutes.

For most organizations or groups, it is important for the minutes to be terse and only include a
summary of the decisions.[2] A verbatim report (transcript) is typically not useful. Unless the
organization's rules require it, a summary of the discussions in a meeting is neither necessary
nor appropriate.[2]

The minutes of certain groups, such as a corporate board of directors, must be kept on file and
are important legal documents.[5][6][7] Minutes from board meetings are kept separately from
minutes of general membership meetings within the same organization.[8] Also, minutes of
executive sessions may be kept separately.[9] Committees are not required to keep formal
minutes although less formal notes may be taken.[10] For committees, their formal records are
the reports submitted to their parent body.

Format

The format of the minutes can vary depending on the standards established by an organization,
although there are general guidelines.[11][12][13] Robert's Rules of Order contains a sample set of
minutes.[14]

Generally, minutes begin with the name of the body holding the meeting (e.g., a board) and may
also include the place, date, list of people present, and the time that the chair called the meeting
to order.[15]
Since the primary function of minutes is to record the decisions made, all official decisions must
be included. If a formal motion is proposed and seconded, then (regardless whether it passes)
this is recorded.[16] The voting tally may also be included.[17] The part of the minutes dealing with
a routine motion might note merely that a particular motion was "moved by Ann and passed". It
is not strictly necessary to include the name of the person who seconds a motion.[16] Where a
tally is included, it is sufficient to record the number of people voting for and against a motion,[17]
but requests by participants to note their votes by name may be allowed. If a decision is made
by roll-call vote, then all of the individual votes are recorded by name.[17] If it is made by general
consent without a formal vote, then this fact may be recorded.

The minutes may end with a note of the time that the meeting was adjourned.[18][19]

Minutes are sometimes submitted by the person who is responsible for them (often the
secretary) at a subsequent meeting for review. The traditional closing phrase is "Respectfully
submitted" (although this is no longer common), followed by the officer's signature, his or her
typed (or printed) name, and his or her title.[19][20]

Usually, one of the first items in an order of business or an agenda for a meeting is the reading
and approval of the minutes from the previous meeting. If the members of the group agree
(usually by unanimous consent) that the written minutes reflect what happened at the previous
meeting, then they are approved, and the fact of their approval is recorded in the minutes of the
current meeting.[21] If there are significant errors or omissions, then the minutes may be
redrafted and submitted again at a later date. Minor changes may be made immediately using
the normal amendment procedures, and the amended minutes may be approved "as
amended".[21] It is normally appropriate to send a draft copy of the minutes to all the members in
advance of the meeting so that the meeting is not delayed by a reading of the draft.[19]

See also

Diary

Gazette

References

Citations
1. "Minutes" (https://www.etymonline.com/word/minutes) . etymonline.com. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
 2. "Frequently Asked Questions about RONR (Question 15)" (http://www.robertsrules.com/faq.html#15) .
The Official Robert's Rules of Order Web Site. The Robert's Rules Association. Retrieved 2015-12-15.

3. Robert 2011, p. 468

4. Robert III 2011, p. 146

5. "The Importance of Corporate Minutes" (http://www.inc.com/articles/2000/06/19436.html) . Inc.com.

Inc. June 13, 2000. Retrieved 2015-12-16.

6. "Internal Revenue Manual - 4.35.2 Audit Techniques for Business Returns" (https://web.archive.org/web/
20151222144435/https://www.irs.gov/irm/part4/irm_04-035-002.html) . Irs.gov. Internal Revenue
Service. May 5, 2006. Archived from the original (https://www.irs.gov/irm/part4/irm_04-035-002.html)
on December 22, 2015. Retrieved 2015-12-16.

7. Carnes, David. "How to File Corporate Minutes" (http://info.legalzoom.com/file-corporate-minutes-2130

2.html) . LegalZoom.com. LegalZoom. Retrieved 2015-12-16.

8. Robert 2011, p. 460

9. Robert 2011, p. 96

10. Robert III 2011, p. 162

11. Sylvester, Nancy. "How to Write and Keep Meeting Minutes" (https://web.archive.org/web/201502200335
42/http://nancysylvester.com/docs/Resources/articles/How_to_Write_and_Keep_Meeting_Minutes.ht
ml) . Nancy Sylvester, MA, PRP, CPP-T. Archived from the original (http://nancysylvester.com/docs/Reso
urces/articles/How_to_Write_and_Keep_Meeting_Minutes.html) on 20 February 2015. Retrieved
2015-12-16.

12. Slaughter, Jim. "Minutes Article" (http://www.jimslaughter.com/Minutes-Article.cfm) . Parliamentarian &

Parliamentary Procedure Consultant. Jim Slaughter. Retrieved 2015-12-16.

13. Jennings, C. Alan. "Meeting Minutes According to Robert's Rules" (http://www.dummies.com/how-to/con

tent/meeting-minutes-according-to-roberts-rules.html) . For Dummies. John Wiley & Sons. Retrieved
2015-12-16.

14. Robert 2011, pp. 472–473

15. Robert III 2011, p. 147

16. Robert III 2011, p. 148

17. Robert III 2011, p. 149

18. Robert 2011, p. 470

19. Robert III 2011, p. 150

20. Robert 2011, p. 471

21. "Frequently Asked Questions about RONR (Question 16)" (http://www.robertsrules.com/faq.html#16) .
The Official Robert's Rules of Order Web Site. The Robert's Rules Association. Retrieved 2015-12-15.

Sources
Robert, Henry M.; et al. (2011). Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised (11th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Da
Capo Press. ISBN 978-0-306-82020-5.

Robert III, Henry M.; et al. (2011). Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief (http://www.robertsrules.c
om/inbrief.html) (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Da Capo Press. ISBN 978-0-306-82019-9.

Further reading

American Institute of Parliamentarians (2014). The Complete Minutes Manual (https://web.arc

hive.org/web/20161014011415/http://astore.amazon.com/americinsti0a-20/detail/094273
6370) . American Institute of Parliamentarians. Archived from the original (http://astore.ama
zon.com/americinsti0a-20/detail/0942736370) on 2016-10-14. Retrieved 2016-03-01.

National Association of Parliamentarians (2009). Pathways to Proficiency - What Was Done at

the Meeting: A Guide to Minutes (https://netforum.avectra.com/eweb/shopping/shopping.asp
x?site=nap&webcode=shopping&shopsearch=minutes&prd_key=a3ff167f-bd10-49a3-a243-5f
458656f727) . Independence, MO: National Association of Parliamentarians.
ISBN 9781884048562.

Mina, Eli (2004). Mina's Guide to Minute Taking (http://www.elimina.com/books/e-products.p

hp) . Vancouver (Canada): Eli Mina Consulting. ISBN 978-0973442809.

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