I am writing the minutes of a meeting. I wrote 'minutes opened at 13:19' and someone corrected me to 'minutes were opened at..'
Then I wrote 'Elections held by secret ballot. Results revealed after the Chairman finished counting,' to, once again, be corrected to 'Elections were held' and 'Results were revealed.'
I hold the opinion that the verb 'to be' is of little importance in the context, especially when writing minutes. I came here for expert opinion. Please refer me to an answered question if there is one. I have failed to find the answer to my question through search.
Thank you.