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Commerce Society General Meetings and Assemblies have come to a temporary halt with an ongoing investigation.
Announced by the Judicial Affairs Office (JAO) in an Instagram post on March 28, the office is investigating the Commerce Society’s General Meetings following a complaint regarding the “integrity” of the meetings. The Annual General Meeting is a space where all Commerce Students can vote on motions presented by the Society, according to AMS Secretariat Sylvie Garabedian in a statement to The Journal.
The JAO is responsible for investigating reported cases of category I Non-Academic Misconduct and suspected policy infractions. While category I cases aren’t explicitly separate from category II cases, they’re less severe and constitute cases such as possession of substances or disruption of University events according to the Student Code of Conduct.
An interim measure has also been enacted by the AMS Secretariat, Judicial Disputes Manager, Chief Governance Officer, and Judicial Committee Chair. The measure involves postponing the Society’s Annual General Meeting and halting any meetings of the Commerce Society Assembly until the end of the investigation. According to Garabedian, the JAO aims for the investigation’s results to be released on April 7.
The Journal reached out to the Commerce Society, who deferred all questions to Secretariat Garabedian out of respect for the AMS judicial process. In her statement, Garabedian said no details regarding the complaint could be shared.
“At this point in the investigation, there will be no comment about the allegations or nature of the concerns raised to the Judicial System to protect the privacy and integrity of the judicial proceedings,” Garabedian said.
She cited Part C, section 1.3 of the Judicial Policy as the reason for enacting the interim measure, which states that interim measures may be placed “where the matter at hand is time sensitive and/or failure to take prompt action may result in irreparable harm.”
“Based on the allegations and concerns brought forward, [the Secretariat, Judicial Disputes Manager, Chief Governance Officer and Judicial Committee Chair] believe that postponing the [Annual General Meeting] would protect the judicial proceedings, and any further escalations,” Garabedian said.
An expedited investigation is underway, Garabedian said, citing the time-sensitive nature of the investigation and importance of the Annual General Meeting for student democracy in the Society.
While students’ opportunity to discuss issues at the meeting have been placed on hold, she noted students were told to the Secretariat to discuss how the delays will impact their motions and items on the agenda.
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