That is the heart of the chapter membership agreement. The chapter is granted a limited right to use the name, logo and other marks of the parent organization and to qualify as the parent`s “chapter,” subject to various national conditions defined in the agreement. In order to ensure consistency of branding and messaging, the reference organization should be prepared to provide detailed information about its name and use it on the chapter`s website and other promotional materials. A chapter is not an effective representative, unless there is value to align with the higher organization. The senior organization should detail its support for the chapter. This can include mutual assistance, insurance and other services, fundraising assistance, training and much more. The most important protection of the parent organization is its right to revoke the chapter`s membership or otherwise change the role of the chapter (for example. B by imposing the merger of two or more chapters of different territories). Revocation is sometimes subject to notice or dispute resolution procedure. A revoked chapter must end the use of the parent organization`s trademarks, including, if necessary, by amending its corporate documents. However, the chapter model is not without risk. Poorly organized or poorly managed local chapters can quickly destroy the reputation of the senior organization, reduce the time and energy of its staff, and eventually make the organization accountable for chapter activities. Minimizing these risks and establishing a chapter structure that takes time requires preparation, communication and an agreement of belonging to the well-developed chapter (sometimes called the Charter of Chapters Convention).

This provision defines activities that the chapter should or should undertake, as well as activities that are prohibited or require prior authorization. The approach to this provision can vary considerably depending on the autonomy that the senior organization prefers. It is essential that the parent organization have adequate oversight of the chapters so that it can resolve all problems or revoke chapter status before problems are turned into public scandals. At a minimum, the chapter is normally required to report annually to the senior organization, to retain appropriate financial and business data, and to allow the senior organization to review its data sets. The taxes and royalties paid by the chapter to the parent organization can be structured in a variety of ways, including annual or monthly lump sum payments, a percentage of the money received, payouts for pay-per-view services provided by the parent organization, or any combination of them.