10/01/2026
Official Clarification from the ACBA Board
Please be advised that the ACBA official page serves as an announcement board, not a debate forum. While we welcome positive engagement, we are not obligated to discuss confidential board matters publicly. We extend professional courtesy and respect to the official pages of TICA, CFA, and other federations, and we expect the exact same in return.
As the American member of FIFe, ACBA operates under the strict guidelines and regulations set forth by the international organization. We do not yet hold voting rights at the FIFe General Assembly, and we do not have the authority to amend, waive, or debate FIFe rules, including those regarding membership. We must enforce the rules exactly as they are written, no matter how much we disagree with them. Only the FIFe General Assembly has that power, which convenes annually in May.
Regarding the recent situation involving Anne Paul: formal investigations and due process only make sense when there is the suspicion of a dishonest conduct. Luckily, as it was clearly stated in the announcement, that is not the case here. After direct communication with Anne, the Board has confirmed that this was a genuine misunderstanding of the rules and not an intentional violation. Anne is a highly respected breeder, and we will not allow her reputation to be unfairly tarnished over an honest mistake. As such, she will rightfully retain all trophies and titles she has earned.
However, to remain fair to all exhibitors and compliant with FIFe regulations, which prohibit non-members from participating in the World Show, we cannot ignore the rule itself. Therefore, Jennifer Weissbach, whose cat placed second in the competition, has been invited to fill the position.
The primary purpose of that announcement is to congratulate Jennifer on a well-deserved honor, and she should be able to celebrate this achievement without disruption. We warmly invite our community again to leave positive comments congratulating her on that announcement. But no one will be allowed to disrupt that happiness in our page.
Therefore, any off-topic, demanding, or disruptive comments in any of our posts will be deleted to protect the celebratory nature of this federation. Repeated disruptions will result in the user being blocked, regardless of their positions or titles in other federations. Being a TICA judge or a CFA board member does not give anyone the right to feel entitled to come to a FIFe page and demand answers and explanations they are not owed. Again, we don't do that in TICA and CFA official posts, we expect the exact same courtesy and respect that we give to other federations.
It's profoundly sad and disturbing that we are forced to take such drastic measures on our page.
Thank you for your understanding and for supporting our exhibitors.
Sincerely,
the ACBA Board
