From October this year, clubs and other organisations incorporated under the Incorporated Societies Act 1908 will need to re-register under the new Incorporated Societies Act 2022. No need to panic though, you’ll have until April 2026 to do it!

The changes will help improve the governance and running of Kiwi clubs and give members more courses of action to take if their club does not do right by them.

What are the key changes?

There is an extensive list of procedural requirements that must be set out and followed in the club’s constitution or rules. 

• More registers and information must be kept by clubs and members must be able to access this information.
• There must be a dispute resolution process in place for members to make a complaint about the actions of the club, the committee, or other members;
• A clear set of performance standards expected from committee members;
• A range of options available to obtain an outcome through the courts for someone who is not happy with the actions of the club, committee, or other members.

Drilling down 

Increased compliance

Clubs will need to have clear set of written rules on how members can join and consent to being a member, how meetings are run, appointing, and removing committee members, and what liability is covered by insurance, amongst other things. Clubs need to review their existing rules against the minimum requirements expected and include anything missing.

Financial transparency and accountability is expected to improve as clubs will need to work through their financial reporting requirements and set out how they will control and manage their finances, reporting back to members annually. A tiered approach to the level of reporting will be required depending on the club’s financial threshold.  

Any club that fails to comply with the new requirements could face fines of up to $3,000.

Managing disputes

A robust internal process needs to be in place for resolving disputes, providing members with an avenue to challenge any actions that impact on their rights or where the actions of the club or committee are breaching the rules or other obligations. Clubs should keep the process flexible so it can be adapted depending on the nature and seriousness of the complaint. 

Committee members must act in good faith.

Anyone on a committee or acting for a club must always act in good faith and in the best interests of the club. There is a duty of care to the club to make sure it does not enter into any obligations the club cannot meet.  

Seeking compensation

Avenues will be available for members to apply to the court to seek different orders, receive compensation from clubs, officers or members for any breaches of obligations under the rules.

If you have any questions, or would like to get some advice, please contact Julie. We also have resources available that can help you. More information that may be useful can be found here.