STATUTES

of the Union of Private Practice Speech Language Therapists

І. GENERAL

Art.1. (1) The Union of Private Practice Speech Language Therapists (UPPSLT), hereinafter referred to as the “Union”, is a legal entity registered under the provisions of the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act (NPLA).
(2) The Union of Private Practice Speech Language Therapists has been established by its members and shall be liable for its obligations with its assets, the members of the Union shall be liable for its obligations only up to the amount of the contributions of physical assets provided for herein.

II. NAME, HEADQUARTERS AND REGISTERED OFFICE

Art.2 (1) The Union shall operate under the name Сдружение „Частно практикуващите логопеди“, which may be written in English language as follows: Union of Private Practice Speech Language Therapists (UPPSLT).
(2) Any written statement on behalf of the Union shall include its name, headquarters, registered office, registration details.

Art. З. The headquarters and registered office of the Union are located at 36, Damyan Gruev str., fl. 1, apt. 6, Sofia 1606.

Art.4. The main purposes of the Union shall be, as follows:

1. to work on changing the status of the Speech Language Therapist profession.
2. to work on raising the prestige of the specialists.
3. to inform all its members about changes in the status of the profession.
4. to inform the employers of all its members about changes in the status of the profession.
5. to protect the interests of its members before their employers, clients, patients and institutions in the Republic of Bulgaria.
6. to work on creating professional status of speech language therapists working in the private sphere and to protect their interests before the legislative authority.
7. to apply all European and international norms and standards related to the clinical practice of speech language therapists practicing the profession in the Republic of Bulgaria.
8. to work on creating a standard for the practice of the speech language therapist profession in a private practice in the Republic of Bulgaria, valid for Bulgarian and foreign citizens.

IV. MEANS TO ATTAIN THE PURPOSES OF THE UNION

Art.5. The means by which the Union shall attain its purposes are as follows:

1. Conduct information and statistic campaigns.
2. Project development.
3. Conduct trainings in the Lifelong Learning system.
4. Introduction of a qualification system.
5. Introduction of a supervisory system.
6. Conduct scientific and practical forums.

V. DETERMINATION OF WORK BEING PERFORMED

Art.6. The Union shall operate for private benefit.

VI. SCOPE OF ACTIVITIES AND TERM

Art.7. The scope of activities of the Union shall be as follows: All activities related to the prevention, diagnosis, therapy and consultation of human communication and disorders of the eating and swallowing mechanisms which are not prohibited by the law.

Art.8. The Union is established for an indefinite period of time.

VII. MEMBERSHIP. RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS, EXPULSION AND REMOVAL OF A MEMBER

Art.9. (1) A member of the Union may be any legally capable natural person over the age of eighteen years who shares the purposes of the Union and the means for their achievement, fulfills its Statutes and meets the professional and educational criteria set out below. Members are regular, associated and honorable.
(2) Regular members of the Union may be Bulgarian citizens, natural persons – certified speech language therapists who meet the following requirements:
2.1 have a Bachelor’s degree in Speech Language Therapy OR
2.2 have a degree equivalent to a Master’s degree in Speech Language Therapy (status quo) OR
2.3 have a Master’s degree in Speech Language Therapy with a previous medical or humanitarian specialty program and 5 years of continuing professional experience in the specialty program AND ARE
2.4 officially registered as self-insured persons, or work in a private institution in the field of speech language therapy services, or are owners or managers of a private institution in the field of speech language therapy services. Membership under clause 2.4 shall be proved after submission of the relevant registration documents.
2.5 Regular members of the Union shall have the right to vote in the General Assembly and shall pay, upon admission, an entry fee and a regular membership fee, which shall be determined by a proposal of the Management Board and by a decision of the General Assembly.
(3) Associate members in the Union may be:
3.1 University students in Speech Language Therapy until completion of a Bachelor’s degree
3.2. Associate members are not entitled to vote in the General Assembly and shall pay a full entry fee and 50% of the regular membership, which shall be determined by a proposal of the Management Board and by a decision of the General Assembly.

Art. 10. (1) Membership in the Union is voluntary.
(2) The candidate for membership of the Union shall submit to the Management Board an application for admission as a member, declaring that he/she is familiar with and accepts the provisions hereof, and accompanies it with documents certifying his/her capacity and qualification.
(3) The Management Board shall make its decision, within one week of the submission of the application, to accept or refuse a membership and shall notify the applicant in writing of its decision.
(5) The refusal of admission may be appealed before the General Assembly of the Union, which decision is final. Appeal shall be made in accordance with Art. 17, par. 5 below.

Art. 11. The members of the Union shall have the following rights:

1. To participate in the management of the Union;
2. To be informed about its activity;
3. To make proposals for work to the Union;
4. To participate in all activities and structures of the Union;
5. To be elected and to elect the bodies of the Union;
6. To use the assets of the Union only insofar as it is connected with the exercise of activities and functions in its management bodies or those assigned by decision of the latter;
7. To use the results of the activity of the Union in accordance with the provisions herein;
8. Members identify themselves with a special membership card containing personal data and a photo of the person;

Art. 12. The members of the Union shall be obliged:

1. To comply with the provisions hereof and to implement the decisions of the governing bodies of the Union.
2. To participate in the activities of the Union and to work for the achievement of its purposes.
3. To raise the prestige of the Union, to help increase its assets and not to perform actions and omissions that are contrary to its purposes and malign it.
4. To pay in due time the contributions of physical assets provided for herein, to comply with the Rules of Ethics adopted by the Union when exercising the profession of speech language therapist.
5. To carry out prevention, diagnosis, therapy and consultation in accordance with all adopted and ratified documents, standards and norms.

Art. 13. The rights and obligations of the members, with the exception of property rights, shall be non-transferable and shall not pass to other persons upon death, respectively upon dissolution.

Art.14. (1) The members of the Union may authorize third parties to exercise their rights and perform their obligations, for which they must authorize them with an explicit written power of attorney with notarized signature.
(2) The authorization shall take effect in terms to the Union after the Management Board has been notified in writing.
(3) In the cases of authorization, the members of the Union shall be liable for the failure of the authorized person to fulfill their obligations.

Art.15. The members of the Union shall be liable for its obligations only up to the amount of the contributions of physical assets provided for herein. They are not personally responsible for the obligations of the company.

Art. 16. Membership in the Union shall be terminated:

1. With a unilateral written statement made to the Membership Board of the Union.
2. Upon death of or in the event of enforcement of full restraint on a member of the Union.
3. With expulsion due to non-observance of moral, ethical standards of work or in case of violation of the standards and procedures of the Union.
4. In case of non-payment of the established contributions of physical assets for one year and failure to attend the General Assembly in two consecutive meetings.
5. With the dissolution of the Union.

Art. 17. (1) A member of the Union may be expelled by a decision of the Management Board when:

1. violating the obligations laid down in Art. 12 hereof;
2. performing other actions that make their further membership in the Union incompatible.
   (2) Before taking a decision on expulsion, the Management Board shall inform in an appropriate manner, including by telephone, the member whose expulsion will be decided and gives him/her the opportunity to provide written explanations on the infringements found if he/she wishes to do so.
   (3) In order to comply with the decision-making procedure for expulsion, it is sufficient that the expelled member has been informed of the findings of infringements committed by him/her and has been instructed to submit his/her written explanations of the case.
   (4) In minor cases of infringements under Art. 12, the Management Board shall make a decision on the deadline for termination of the infringement and for removal of its consequences, which non-fulfillment shall result in the expulsion of the respective member, in which case it is not necessary for the expelled member to be notified pursuant to par. 2 and 3.
   (5) The decision of the Management Board to expel a member of the Union may be appealed before the General Assembly of the Union, but not later than the next regular General Assembly. The complaint shall be in writing and submitted through the Management Board.

Art. 18 (1) Termination of membership due to cancellation is found when a member of the Union:

1. has not paid his/her entry fee within the set out time limit;
2. has not paid or delayed the membership fee by one year;
3. has effectively ceased his/her activities in the Union by not attending in person two consecutive meetings of the General Assembly.
   (2) The above circumstances are established by the Management Board according to the documents of the Union, which reports the cancelation to the General Assembly and reflects it in the documentation of the Union.

Art.19. Upon termination of membership, the Union shall not owe any repayment of the contributions of physical assets made.

VIII. GOVERNING BODIES

Art.20. The supreme body of the Union is the General Assembly, and its governing and representative body is the Management Board.

Art. 21. (1) The General Assembly is composed of all members of the Union.
(2) The members of the Union may authorize a natural person by an explicit written power of attorney without notarized signature, to represent them in the meetings of the General Assembly. The proxies have no right to represent more than three members at a time and to reassign third parties with their rights under the power of attorney.
(3) The General Assembly shall be convened at least once a year.

Art.22. The powers of the General Assembly shall include:

1. Amendment and supplement of the Statutes of the Union;
2. Acceptance of documents of the Union;
3. Election and dismissal of members of the Management Board and determination of their remuneration;
4. Adoption and approval of report of the Management Board;
5. Decisions concerning the opening and closing of branches and regional sections of the Union;
6. Decisions concerning the participation in other organizations;
7. Decisions concerning the transformation or dissolution of the Union;
8. Adoption of the basic guidelines and program for the activity of the Union;
9. Adoption of the Union’s budget;
10. Decisions concerning the the membership fee or the contributions of physical assets due;
11. Revocation of resolutions made by the other bodies of the Union when such resolutions contravene the law, the Statutes or other internal acts regulating the activities of the Union;
12. Decisions concerning the appeals against decisions of the Management Board for refusal of admission to the Union or expulsion of members from the Union;
13. Decisions concerning the disposition of real estate of the Union or encumbering it;
14. Decisions concerning all other matters placed within its competence by the law or the Statutes;
15. Decisions concerning the adoption and implementation of a standard for speech language therapy prevention, diagnosis, therapy, consultation for speech language therapists working in the private sphere;
16. Decisions concerning the adoption and implementation of a Practice based on evidence of speech language therapists working in the private sphere;
17. Decisions concerning the performance of additional business activities for the benefit of the Union;
18. Decisions concerning the appointment of external experts and determines their remuneration.

Art. 23. (1) The General Assembly of the Union shall be convened by the Management Board at its initiative or at the request of one third of the members of the Union.
(2) Provided that the Management Board does not call a session of the General Assembly within one month after receiving a request made by at least one third of the members of the Union, the meeting shall be convened by the Court at the headquarters of the Union at the written request of the interested members or the person assigned by them.

Art.24. (1) The invitation to convene a General Assembly must be in writing and must contain the agenda, date, time and place of the General Assembly, as well as on whose initiative it has been called. Invitations are sent to all members of the Union by post or e-mail at least one month before the day of the General Assembly.
(2) The invitation shall be published on the Union’s website and placed on the notice board at the Union’s registered address at least one month before the scheduled day.

Art.25. (1) The General Assembly shall be legal if more than half of the members are present,
(2) If there is no quorum, the General Assembly shall be adjourned for one hour, at the same venue and with the same agenda, and the session so adjourned shall be valid regardless of the number of members present or represented.
(3) The quorum shall be established by the chairman of the meeting according to a list showing the names of the members being present and their representatives, shall be signed by them, endorsed by the chairman and the secretary of the meeting and annexed to the Minutes.
Art.26. Each member of the Union is entitled to one vote at the General Assembly voting, except in cases when he/she also votes by power of attorney. In such cases, the attorney-in-fact shall also vote on behalf of the authorizer and exercise his/her right to vote in accordance with the powers conferred upon him/her.

Art.27. A member of the Union shall not have the right to vote in resolving issues concerning:

1. him/her, his/her spouse or relative in the direct line of descent – without restriction, a relative up to the fourth degree by consanguinity or up to the second degree by affinity;
2. legal entities in which he/she is a manager or may impose or impede the decision-making.

Art.28. (1) The decisions and resolutions of the General Assembly shall be made after an open ballot by a simple majority of the members present.
(2) The General Assembly, as an exception, may decide that certain votes be cast by secret ballot.

Art.30. The General Assembly shall not consider any matters not listed on the agenda.

Art. 31. (1) Minutes shall be kept for each session of the General Assembly, which shall be certified by the chairman of the assembly and the person who prepared the minutes, who are responsible for the correctness of its contents.
(2) The minutes with a list of the attendees and the written materials on the convening and holding of the General Assembly, attached to it, shall be recorded in a special book.
(3) Each member who attended the General Assembly is entitled to ensure that the session and the decisions are accurately reflected in the minutes.

Art.32. Any member of the Union, the Management Board and the prosecutor may refer to the court of registration of the Union to rule on the legality of a decision adopted by the General Assembly or its compliance with these Statutes. This should take place within one month of the decision being notified, but no later than one year from the date of its adoption.

IX. MANAGEMENT BOARD

Art. 34. (1) The Management Board shall consist of at least three members.
(2) The Management Board shall be elected by the General Assembly.
(3) The General Assembly shall elect a Chairman from the Management Board.
(4) The Management Board shall elect a Secretary from among its members.
(5) The Chairman and the Secretary of the Management Board shall represent the Union to third parties individually, and, in this regard, sign all necessary documents.

Art. 35. (1) Minutes shall be kept for each session of the General Assembly, which shall be certified by the chairman of the assembly and the person who prepared the minutes, who are responsible for the correctness of its contents.
(2) The minutes with a list of the attendees and the written materials on the convening and holding of the General Assembly, attached to it, shall be recorded in a special book.
(3) Each member who attended the General Assembly is entitled to ensure that the session and the decisions are accurately reflected in the minutes.

Art.36. The members of the Management Board shall be elected for a term of two years and can be re-elected for two consecutive terms. The next election term shall be eligible for a minimum of 2 years.

Art.37. The Management Board shall have the following powers:

1. It shall represent the Union and shall determine the representative power of its individual members;
2. It shall ensure the implementation of the decisions of the General Assembly and shall report on its activities to it;
3. It shall dispose of the assets of the Union in compliance with the requirements hereof;
4. It shall prepare and submit to the General Assembly a draft budget;
5. It shall prepare and submit to the General Assembly a report on the activity of the Union;
6. It shall determine the order and manage the activity of the Union;
7. It shall decide on all matters other than those within the competence of the General Assembly of the Union;
8. It shall fulfil the obligations laid down herein;
9. It shall prepare and offer procedures for:
   9.1 registration and standardization for the introduction of evidence-based practice;
   9.2 statistical processing of data relating to prevention, diagnosis, therapy and consultation;
   9.3 preparation of registers and storage of data;
10. It shall keep a record of the membership cards issued.

Art.38. (1) The Chairman shall call meetings of the Management Board at least once a month.
(2) Each member of the Management Board shall have the right to request an extraordinary meeting. If the Chairman fails to call the meeting within seven days from the date of the written request, each of the interested members shall be empowered to validly call the meeting.
(3) All members of the Management Board must be notified of a meeting of the Management Board. The notice of meeting shall be made in an appropriate manner, including by telephone or e-mail.

Art.39. (1) The meeting shall be valid if attended by more than half of the members of the Management Board.
(2) A member of the Management Board shall be considered present if there is a real-time telephone or other similar connection between such a member and the other members of the Management Board, provided that such connection guarantees the identification of the respective member and allows him/her to participate in the discussions and the voting of resolutions. The Chairman shall certify the voting of the member in the minutes.
(3) The meetings shall be chaired by the Secretary of the Management Board and, in his/her absence, by a member elected by the Management Board.

Art.40. The Management Board shall take its decisions by a simple majority of the members present, and for the decisions referred to in Art. 36, clause 3 and 6 of the Statute and Art. 14, par. 2 of the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act – with a majority of all members.

Art.41. (1) Any interested member of the Union may challenge before the General Assembly a decision of the Management Board which is contrary to the law, these Statutes or a decision of the General Assembly,
(2) Calling a decision into question may be made within one month of the decision being notified, but not later than one year after the decision has been taken.

X. REGIONAL SECTIONS

Art.42. (1) The regional sections are organizational forms for the implementation of the activities of the Union on site and do not have the status of its branches within the meaning of the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act.
(2) The regional sections shall be established by a decision of the General Assembly of the Union.
(3) Regional sections shall be created on the basis of the administrative territorial division of the country with offices in the respective town of the provinces where not less than 10 members of the Union live and practice the profession.

Art. 43. (1) Each regional section shall hold meetings of its members, called by its coordinator, at the request of at least three members of the section, or at the request of the Management Board of the Union. Minutes shall be kept for the meetings of the section.
(2) Within one month of the decision to form the section, the latter shall hold its first meeting, at which it shall elect a coordinator.
(3) The coordinator shall be elected for a term of one year and there shall be no restrictions on his/her re-election. The coordinator may be replaced at any time by decision of the section. The coordinator shall submit to the Management Board of the Union the minutes of the meeting of the section for the election made within one week after the meeting.
(4) The coordinator shall organize the implementation of the decisions of the General Assembly and the Management Board of the Union on the territory of the section. The coordinator shall report to the Section and the Management Board for its activities.
(5) The coordinator may represent the Union only in the presence of a notarized power of attorney from the representative of the Union.

ХІ. BRANCHES OF THE UNION

Art. 44. By decision of the General Assembly of the Union, branches can be opened and closed outside the settlement where the headquarters of the Union is located.

Art.45. (1) The branches shall not be legal entities, they shall be managed by a Manager appointed by the Management Board and shall carry out the activities determined by the decision on their establishment.
(2) The branch manager shall represent the Union on the activities of the branch, and the decision to establish the branch may provide for restrictions on his/her representative power.
(3) The activities of the branches shall be managed methodologically and shall be controlled by the Management Board, unless otherwise specified in the decision for their establishment.
(4) The branches shall be subject to registration in the respective district court at their headquarters in accordance with the provisions of the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act.

ХII. ASSETS OF THE UNION

Art.46. The assets of the Union shall consist of the right of ownership of movable and immovable property and intellectual products, other real rights, receivables, as well as other rights, regulated by the law

Art.47. The assets of the Union shall be formed by contributions of its members, fees under the procedures and business activities provided for herein, donations by individuals and legal entities, wills in favour of the Union, sponsorship, funds allocated to support the speech language therapy theory and practice by international organizations, programs, associations and foundations.

Art.48. (1) All members of the Union shall be obliged to pay the entry fee and annual membership fees, the amount of which shall be determined by the General Assembly.
(2) Entry fees shall be paid within one month after receipt of the decision for admission to the Union, and the annual membership fee shall be paid in one or two installments for the current year no later than January 28 of the respective year. The due installments shall be paid in cash to the cashier of the Union or to a bank account specified by the Management Board.

Art.49. (1) The Union shall carry out additional business activities within the meaning of Art. 3, par. 3 of the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act with the following scope of activities: publishing and paid distribution of editions; organization and conduct of training courses; organization and conduct of scientific seminars and congresses, elaboration and paid distribution of didactic materials for speech language therapy intervention, as well as other activities related to the main activity of the Union.
(2) The Union shall carry out the additional business activities under the preceding paragraph under the conditions and in the order specified in the Commercial Law and other laws and regulations governing the respective type of business activities.
(3) The income from the additional business activities carried out by the Union shall be used to achieve the purposes set out herein.
(4) The Union shall not distribute profits.

Art.50. The assets of the Union shall be spent in accordance with the expenses stipulated in its budget, as well as by a decision of the Management Board for carrying out activities and events aimed at achieving the purposes set out herein.

XIII. TRANSFORMATION AND DISSOLUTION OF THE UNION

Art. 51. The Union may be transformed into another non-profit legal entity by a decision of the General Assembly. A decision on this can be made if 2/3 of all members of the Union are present at the meeting, and if 3/4 of the attendees have voted for it.

Art.52. (1) The Union shall be dissolved:

1. by a decision of the General Assembly;
2. by a decision of the District Court at its headquarters, if it is not established in the proper order.
3. in case it performs activities that are contrary to the law or contrary to public order or morality,
4. has been declared bankrupt..

Art.53. (1) Upon dissolution of the Union by a decision of the General Assembly, liquidation shall take place.
(2) The liquidation shall be carried out by the Management Board or by a person designated by it, in the latter case the powers of the liquidator shall correspond to those determined by the Commercial Law at the time of liquidation.
(3) The liquidation shall be carried out in accordance with the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act and the Commercial Law.
(4) The distribution of the assets remaining after the satisfaction of the creditors shall be distributed in accordance with the decision of the General Assembly on liquidation among the regular members of the Union at the time of opening the liquidation procedures. If no decision is taken until the termination, it shall be taken by the liquidator in compliance with the requirements of the relevant law.

XIV. OTHERS

Art.54. Any matters not provided for herein, as well as the interpretation and application of its provisions, shall be governed by the Non-Profit Legal Entities Act

These Statutes have been adopted at the General Assembly of the Union held on September 201

Founders:

1. Nina Iordanova
2. Elena Boyadzhieva-Deleva
3. Ivelina Alexandrova