A Direct Line Blog

By Donya Parrish, MCU VP-Risk Management

Q: Our board and management team would like to record our exit exam meeting with our examiners in case there is anything we don’t agree with. Is that allowed?

A: Maybe, but you could have a few steps to take to do it in a compliant manner. NCUA noted in its 2022 Supervisory Priorities letter that “credit unions may record their meetings (exit conferences and joint conferences). The officials should ask for the examiner’s concurrence before recording the meeting, a request to which the examiner should normally agree. Any rare cases of disagreement will be addressed at the regional management level. Credit unions should refer to local, state, and federal laws and consult with legal counsel prior to recording conversations, especially as it relates to any requirements to obtain consent from the parties involved. Also consistent with the Examiner’s Guide, the examiner has the discretion to request that a copy of the recording or a transcript be sent to the examiner.”

Montana law does require consent from both parties before recording. In addition, if you are a state-chartered credit union, the Division of Banking has a policy that recording a meeting with their team requires advance notice and Commissioner approval.

We rarely hear of situations that are contentious enough to require a recording to settle a disagreement, but in this era of Zoom and online meetings, it is easy to hit that “record” button without realizing the possible implications.