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COUNCIL REGULATION ESTABLISHING A DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURE

The Council shall exercise disciplinary powers in accordance with Article 23 (6) of the Statutes. It may take action either upon receiving an accusation or on its own initiative.

PROCEDURE

1. If any member or group of members of the Association or the President acting either on behalf of the Association or upon a substantiated complaint from a third party accuses one or several members of the Association of failure to observe the Statutes, the Code of Professional Ethics or any other applicable rules and regulations, she or he shall refer the matter to the Council, explaining the accusation and submitting any documentary evidence deemed to be useful.

2. The President shall inform the member(s) concerned in writing of the contents of the accusation and shall give them a period of six weeks following receipt to answer it.

3. The written answer must reach the President within the deadline set, accompanied by any document deemed useful.

The refusal of any person accused to supply such information may be interpreted as evidence against them.

The President shall forward the file on the case to the Council.

4. Any request for the extension of a deadline shall give reasons and shall be addressed to the President, who shall decide at her or his discretion.

5. For each individual case, the Council shall appoint a committee of enquiry from amongst its own members. The said committee shall have three members, one of whom shall be its rapporteur.

The Council may appoint a committee of enquiry by means of written consultation; it shall vote on the basis of a proposal from the President or the Bureau.

6. The Council shall forward the file on the case to the committee, along with any response received from the member(s) accused.

7. The committee of enquiry may call on any person who has made an accusation, as well as those accused, to supply any additional clarification, explanation or documentation that it deems necessary. The refusal of any person accused to supply such information may be interpreted as evidence against them.

8. The committee of enquiry may also request evidence from other members of the Association, especially representatives of the regions concerned. Any such evidence shall be communicated to the parties accused before any decision concerning them is taken.

9. Concurrent with the appointment of the committee of enquiry, a registered letter shall be sent to the parties, informing them of the accusations made against them and of the penalities which may be imposed upon them and inviting them to seek a hearing.

Parties wishing to be heard by the committee shall inform the President within a period of 90 days from the time of notification of the appointment of a committee of enquiry. If the parties fail to exercise this right within the period, they shall be deemed to have waived the right to be heard by the committee. Parties wishing to be heard must pay their own expenses. Hearings shall customarily be held on the occasion of a meeting of the Council.

The parties may also submit their views in writing. In this case, the written submission must have been sent to the President within a period of 90 days of notification by registered letter of the appointment of a committee of enquiry.

10. The committee shall submit its conclusions to the Council for a decision which shall be taken by a two-thirds majority of the votes cast.

11. The Council may impose any of the following penalties:

• warning
• reprimand
• suspension
• expulsion

If a two-thirds majority cannot be found in favour of a particular penalty, an alternative penalty may be proposed.

11.1. Whenever a member is warned, she or he shall be informed thereof in writing.

11.2. Whenever a member is reprimanded, she or he shall be informed thereof in writing and it shall also be made known to the members of the Association.

11.3. Suspension shall be for a period of at least one year and for not more than three years. It shall be notified to the member(s) concerned and made known to the members of the Association.

11.4. Expulsion shall be notified to the member(s) concerned and made known to the members of the Association.

11.5. There shall be no right of appeal against a warning, reprimand or suspension. It shall be possible to appeal to the Assembly against expulsion, as provided for in the Statutes.

12. Each case shall be conducted in French or English. All written matter shall be drafted in one of these two languages. All correspondence shall be by registered mail.

13. No committee of enquiry shall be bound by any procedure other than that laid down in this Regulation.

14. The secretariat shall keep the file on any disciplinary case which has been the subject of the procedure defined in this Regulation. The Council shall establish the conditions under which such archives may be consulted.

15. This Regulation may be modified by a decision of the Council taken with a two-thirds majority of the votes cast and, if appropriate, after having sought a legal opinion on the proposals.

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