BIOHACK-5: DAO Operating Agreement

Context:

Our DAO is legally organized as a Marshall Islands DAO LLC (non-profit). This structure leverages what is probably the most DAO-friendly jurisdiction out there right now. Some of the benefits of this setup include -

• Giving all Members, including team, legal protections
• Streamlined structure where anybody who holds a token is considered a Member, with their rights enshrined in law, without Members having to be doxxed or recorded off-chain
• Flexible governance with on-chain and off-chain components as defined by the DAO

Biohacker DAO LLC was formally established in May 2024 (although the DAO started in January that year). Our Operating Agreement has gone through three iterations - in the beginning we didn’t have a token, then some of the Stewards changed, then finally the token got launched and token holder’s rights had to be defined.

Now, finally, the latest version of our Operating Agreement has gone through a thorough legal review, and hereby we present and propose the fourth version, for approval by the DAO. We ask the DAO to review and approve or reject this OA, for the sake of maximum transparency, and in alignment with the governance process defined within the OA.

Proposal:

The Operating Agreement is a foundational document of the DAO and essentially outlines its purpose, structure, and roles, responsibilities, and rights of everyone involved.

It recognizes on-chain token holding and voting as binding, whilst holding the Stewards accountable and subject to impartial mediation, should they wrongfully dismiss proposals or mis-administer the multi-sig. Furthermore, it grants involved parties the right to Swiss arbitration (considered the best-in-class and the most reputable) for serious legal disputes arising under the OA.

It is aligned with our previously adopted Constitution and it provides the minimum necessary governance framework, on top of which we believe we can build a successful and lasting organization, over the next many years. Ultimately, the OA speaks for itself. It is legally binding, yet written in a language that should be simple enough for anyone to read and understand. We recommend you do so.

The proposed updated Operating Agreement can be found here, stored immutably on IPFS - https://ipfs.io/ipfs/bafybeibsdcuvxdi3a27wdyhkxzetf3vq4gtpjlh3i7apvd252plv3b3qkm

Voting:

Vote YES if you agree to adopt this Operating Agreement for the DAO (Fourth Amendment).

Vote NO if you do not wish to adopt this Operating Agreement. This means the DAO will continue operating under the previous version of the OA, which may not fully reflect our current decentralized structure. Alternative proposals for amendments can still be made in the future.