Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Doris P. Zimmerman is a Professional Registered Parliamentarian, a member of the National Association of Parliamentarians and the American Institute of Parliamentarians, and founder and president of Parliamentary Consultants, Inc.

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A revised edition of the bestselling Robert's Rules in Plain English, which still stands as the most concise, most-user friendly guide to parliamentary procedure on the market today.

If you've ever had to run a meeting according to parliamentary procedures, you know just how difficult it is to keep track of all the rules, much less follow them. Figuring out what to say and how to say it seems an impossible task.

Robert's Rules in Plain English, 2nd edition, is the solution to that problem. Not only does it provide you with the essential, basic rules in simple, straightforward English, it also includes summaries, outlines, charts, and sample dialogues so you can see exactly how these rules work in practice.

With an extended glossary and new chapters on electronic meetings and internet usage, Robert's Rules in Plain English, 2nd edition, is an authoritative, modern guide to running a meeting successfully and keeping it on track.

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Robert's Rules in Plain English 2e

HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Chapter One

How It All Began

Parliamentary procedure came to America with our ancestors. The term refers to the rules that have evolved over time to facilitate the democratic transaction of decision making in an organized group.

American parliamentary procedure is based on the procedural rules used in the English Parliament. Early American parliamentary procedure consisted of what the early settlers remembered of those rules. The complex system of English parliamentary law had developed over time in an awkward and unsystematized manner by a process of decisions and precedents.

It is no wonder the colonists had difficulty in remembering specific and intricate details.

At the time of the founding of our country, each colony had its own ideas of procedure. During the Continental Congress, each colony had different rules regarding how delegates were to be elected, the number of people they should represent, and so forth.

This confusing state of affairs continued until 1801. Thomas Jefferson, while serving as vice president, saw the need for a written and uniform system of rules. He compiled the Manual of Parliamentary Practice, which was immediately adopted by both the House and the Senate to prevent needlesshaggling over procedure.

At the same time, Americans began forming many different kinds of organizations -- political, cultural, scientific, and so forth. Jefferson?s manual was too complex and beyond the ability of the average citizen.

It was not until 1876 that Henry Martyn Robert, a practical, precise, and civic-minded engineer, put together a small book of rules specifically designed for nonlegislative organizations. He wrote that his parliamentary manual was ?based, in its general principles, upon the rules and practices of Congress, and adapted in its details to the use of ordinary societies.?

That first Robert?s Rules of Order was an almost instant success. Groups who adopted it as a parliamentary authority were now free from the hassle of struggling with the rules governing their meetings.

Today we can be a part of any meeting in any state and know that the rules will be the same if Robert?s Rules of Order is the adopted parliamentary authority. Motions are amended the same way whether the meeting takes place in California or in New York.

Excerpted from Robert's Rules in Plain English 2eby Doris P. Zimmerman Copyright ©2005 by Doris P. Zimmerman. Excerpted by permission.
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