syndics

Noun

syndic (plural syndics)

1. A government official having different duties depending on the country; also, a magistrate, especially one of the Chief Magistrates of Geneva, Switzerland.
   • The Bailiffes and Syndicks of Merindoll appeare the ſecond time.1610 October, John Foxe, “A Notable History of the Persecution and Destruction of the People of Merindol and Cabriers in the Country of Prouince: […]”, in The Second Volume of the Ecclesiasticall...
2. (UK) An agent of a corporation, or of any body of people engaged in a business enterprise; specifically, in the University of Cambridge, a member of the senate appointed to carry out specific duties.
   • In France, syndics are appointed by the creditors of a bankrupt to manage the property.
3. A layperson who is given official responsibility for the finances, care, and civil administration of the nonreligious details of a convent or religious community.
   • The larger powers with which the syndic was invested by Martin IV and by his successors, Martin V ("Constitutiones Martinianae") in Wadding, "Annales", X, 301) and Paul IV ("Ex Clementi", 1 July, 1555), gave rise to the appellation syndicus Martinianus in contradistinction to syndicus communis.1912, Catholic Encyclopedia - Volume 14, page 385