Minutes are notes that are taken at a meeting and often distributed to participants. Often, the secretary of an organization or club is the person who gets stuck taking the minutes.
The best minutes provide a summary of the most important items that were discussed during a meeting. Parent-teacher organizations, city councils, and court hearings all include someone who takes minutes. In the case of a hearing, every single word spoken in the courtroom, unless specifically excluded by the judge, is included in the minutes. The Latin root of minutes is minuta scriptura, "rough notes," or "small writing."