User manual ADRIAN EMPIRE GUIDEBOOK FOR NEW CROWNS

[. . . ] GUIDEBOOK FOR NEW CROWNS © 2004 The Adrian Empire Inc. , all rights reserved. Anyone is welcome to point out any error or omission that they may find. NEW CROWN GUIDEBOOK: Table of Contents Page 2 of 16 TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FORWARD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [. . . ] A local codicil cannot be written that change a bylaws ­ the codicils are intended to allow a subdivision to take a gray area and define its details more clearly. A. THE BYLAWS The bylaws are your friend ­ your very close friend, and not just an acquaintance. They outline the rules of Adria, as well as what your duties, responsibilities, rights, and privileges are. We recognize that the bylaws are sometimes confusing and complicated. They are a living document, and are constantly changing. Not many of the changes are huge, or drastic, but they sometimes are difficult to translate into real life. You have your local chancellor, the Imperial chancellor, and the Imperial Crown from whom you can get advice. You also have the Crowns' e-list, where you can talk to the Crowns of all the other subdivisions, and get their advice. The odds are good that someone has run into the same question, or the same situation, and can help to guide you. B. WRITS, CODICILS A writ is a Crown edict. A codicil is an addition to the law, approved by the estates. Shire: May not enact any writs or codicils. Duchy: Must submit writs and codicils to the Imperial Chancery for approval before enacting. Archduchy: Must submit writs and codicils to the Imperial Chancery for conflict-checking before enacting. Kingdom: Must submits writs and codicils to the Imperial Chancery for conflict-checking after enacting. C. ESTATES MEETINGS Estates meetings can be called by the Crown at anytime. However, a crown may not go six months without holding one. Some subdivisions hold estates meetings every month, and some only every six months (the minimum number required by law). What your subdivision does is fine, as long as it gets the work done. Before rocking the boat and changing the custom, ask yourself why you are changing it. If you want more contact, perhaps an informal estates coffee klatch might be more appropriate than calling a formal estates meeting. If you think there are too many meetings, ask yourself if it would make the estates nervous if they thought they were out of contact for months at a time. © Adrian Empire Inc. JULY 2004 NEW CROWN GUIDEBOOK: Adrian Law Page 9 of 16 D. MOTHER, MAY I?(OR "WHAT YOU CAN DO") Often, the mother-may-I analogy is used to illustrate the amount of independence and authority that the subdivisions have. In this analogy, the Crown experiences a situation (any situation) and comes to a resolution for that situation. Depending on what the subdivision is determines how they implement that resolution: Shire: "Imperial Crown, what do we do?" Duchy: "Imperial Crown, do you think we could do this-and-such?" Archduchy: "Imperial Crown, we're going to do this-and-such, is that okay with you?" Kingdom: "Imperial Crown, we did this-and-such, did we screw up?" In each subdivision, the Imperial Crown (or the Imperial Chancery) is involved, as well as some level of approval. [. . . ] Do not try to manipulate the estates so that they won't have the votes. Besides, it won't help. 4. STEPPING DOWN EARLY This is a difficult decision to make ­ almost as difficult as the decision to run for the Crown in the first place. Sometimes, it is necessary to take a step back and retire before the reign is over. In this case, the same procedures are followed as if you were replaced by the estates. [. . . ]