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Bylaws — what every Circle starts with.
Every Circle on Circlworld starts with the Platform Default Bylaws already in place. The Default codifies the standard requirements that apply across all Circles — CPR, contribution confirmation, mediation pathway, custody, Treasurer conduct, departure procedure, anti-coercion, communication-isolation. Founders never build bylaws from scratch. A tradition template (Basic Pardna, Common Simple, etc.) layers on top if the Founder selects one; Circle-specific customisations layer on top of those over time.
Three layers, applied in order.
Platform Default
Always present from the moment a Circle commences. Codifies the platform's standard requirements. Cannot be removed; cannot be overridden on reserved provisions (CPR floor, custody-model rules, DSC pathway, etc.).
Tradition Overlay (optional)
The Founder may select a tradition template at formation — Basic Pardna, Common Simple, and others as the catalogue grows. The Overlay adds tradition-specific clauses (cycle cadence conventions, payout-order conventions, cultural-context clauses) on top of the Default.
Circle Customisations
The Members of the Circle may amend their bylaws through the Circle-level amendment procedure — supermajority vote (66.7%+), quorum (50%), 14-day notice. Customisations may raise permissive Default rates (e.g., CPR above the 10% floor), add Tradition clauses the Founder did not select, or add Circle-specific provisions.
When the Dispute Settlement Centre, a Lender, or any reader asks “what does this Circle’s bylaws say?”, the layers are read in order: Default → Overlay → Customisations. The most specific applicable provision governs, EXCEPT on reserved provisions where the Default prevails.
What the Default covers
Eight areas. Per Charter §2. Items marked reserved cannot be overridden by Tradition Overlay or Circle Customisation; the platform-level amendment procedure is the only way to change them.
Circle Protection Reserve (CPR)Reserved
10% floor on every contribution into the CPR; escrow-only custody; 25% catastrophic absorption ceiling. The 10% rate, escrow-only custody, and 25% ceiling are reserved — Circles cannot lower them.
Contribution + payout confirmation
Every contribution and payout is dual-attested. Confirmation within 14 days. A Circle may set a tighter tolerance window through Customisation; beyond 14 days the late-handling procedure activates.
Mediation pathwayReserved
Internal Circle mediation first; Dispute Settlement Centre if internal mediation does not resolve within 30 days. The DSC as the venue of last resort is reserved — bylaws cannot exclude the DSC.
Custody modelReserved
Founder records the Circle's Category A choice at formation (Member-to-member or escrow-held). Category B funds (loans + CPR + collateral) and Category C (cross-border Circles) are escrow-only per the Custody Framework Charter — reserved.
Treasurer Code of ConductReserved
The Code is binding on every Treasurer at every Circle. The Code's six pillars (fiduciary care, custodianship of trust, communication isolation, cultural humility, mediation as first response, transparency) form the professional-standards floor — reserved.
Member departure
Three categories: voluntary (10% penalty default, 25% maximum), for-cause (penalty reduced or waived), catastrophic (CPR absorbs up to 25%). The category boundaries are reserved; the penalty amounts within the 10-25% range are permissive.
Anti-coercionReserved
Voluntary participation; no managerial pressure (workplace, faith-community, family Circles need explicit opt-in/opt-out language); no deception about contribution amount, cycle length, payout order, or custody model. Reserved.
Communication-isolationReserved
Communications between Members about Circle operations (Plaza, mediation rooms, dispute proceedings) are governed by the platform's communication-isolation architecture. Bylaws cannot waive these protections — reserved.
What changed from the prior model
Before the Default, every Circle started with a template the Founder picked. The template was the bylaws. If the template didn’t cover something the platform requires (CPR mechanics, mediation pathway), there was no fallback. Founders had to do constitutional work before their first contribution cycle had run.
After the Default: every Circle starts with the platform’s standard requirements already in place. The tradition template (now an “Overlay”) is optional — the Circle can operate under Default-only if the Founder doesn’t want to commit to a tradition at formation, and add the Overlay later through Customisation. The Customisations layer becomes the place where the Members of the Circle make their Circle theirs — over time, through agreed votes, not all at once at formation.
Existing Circles continue to operate under their pre-Default bylaws until they elect to migrate. A migration tool surfaces which existing clauses are subsumed by the Default, which map to a Tradition Overlay, and which persist as Circle Customisations.