Complaints Process and Disciplining of Members
1) A complaint may be made to the Board by any person, that a member of the Association:
(a) has persistently refused or neglected to comply with a provision or provisions of
the Association rules; or
(b) has persistently and willfully acted in a manner prejudicial to the interests of the
Association.
2) The Board may refuse to deal with a complaint if it considers the complaint to be trivial
or vexatious in nature.
3) If the Board decides to deal with the complaint, the Board:
(a) must cause notice of the complaint to be served on the member concerned;
(b) must give the member at least 14 days from the time the notice is served within
which to make submissions to the Board in connection with the complaint; and
(c) must take into consideration any submissions made by the member in connection
with the complaint.
4) The Board may, by resolution, expel the member from the Association or suspend the
member from membership of the Association if, after considering the complaint and any
submissions made in connection with the complaint, it is satisfied that the facts alleged
in the complaint have been proved.
5) If the Board expels or suspends a member, the Secretary must, within 7 days after the
action is taken, cause written notice to be given to the member of the action taken, of
the reasons given by the Board for having taken that action and of the member’s right of
appeal.
6) The expulsion or suspension does not take effect:
(a) until the expiration of the period within which the member is entitled to appeal
against the resolution concerned; or
(b) if within that period the member exercises the right of appeal, unless and until the
Association confirms the resolution of the appeal, whichever is the latter.
Please note that complaints should be lodged within 90 days for fair consideration and investigation.
Please address any complaints to [email protected] within 20 days of the situation occurring and include the following details:
- Your contact details
- Details of the member (name, location)
- Details of the occurrence leading to the complaint, including dates, times and any other persons present (specific evidence is required for complaints to be investigated, not hearsay or subjective comments)
- What resolution you are seeking
- Actions you have taken to resolve the issue
Appeal Process
1) A member may appeal to the Association in Board meeting against a resolution of the
Board under the complaints process (rule 11), within 7 days after notice of the resolution is served on the
member, by lodging with the Secretary a notice to that effect.
2) The notice may, but need not, be accompanied by a statement of the grounds on which
the member intends to rely for the purposes of the appeal.
3) On receipt of a notice from a member under rule 12(1), the Secretary must notify the
Board which is to convene a Board meeting of the Association to be held within 28 days
after the date on which the Secretary received the notice.
4) At a Board meeting of the Association convened under rule 12(3):
(a) no business other than the question of the appeal is to be transacted, and
(b) the Board and the member must be given the opportunity to state their respective
cases orally or in writing, or both, and
(c) the Board members present are to vote by secret ballot on the question of whether
the resolution should be confirmed or revoked.
5) The appeal is to be determined by a simple majority of votes cast.
This process is based on the association rules contained in the constitution
