Background Part 3 - Complaints Section 66 – Conduct or regulatory complaint raised by relevant professional organisation
177.This section inserts new sections 33A, 33B and 33C into the 2007 Act (which concern conduct and regulatory complaints raised by relevant professional organisations). It also makes consequential changes to section 33 of the 2007 Act.
178.New section 33A allows a relevant professional organisation which identifies a matter of concern relating to a practitioner’s conduct, in the course of carrying out its regulatory functions, to treat that matter as a conduct complaint and investigate it, without first having to remit it to the Commission, however it must also be satisfied that, if the matter were referred to the Commission it would be considered by the Commission to be an eligible conduct complaint. Where a relevant professional organisation initiates a complaint in this way, it must notify the Commission which will consider the issue to identify any potential services complaint. The relevant professional organisation must also have regard to the interests of any clients, or former clients, of the practitioner who may have been affected by the practitioner’s conduct and notify those clients if the complaint is upheld.
179.New section 33B allows a relevant professional organisation to treat any concern it has about a failure by an authorised legal business to comply with its rules for regulating it, or the terms of its authorisation, as if the matter were a regulatory complaint. Where this concern was identified in the course of carrying out its regulatory functions, the relevant professional organisation does not need to remit the complaint to the Commission before investigating it so long as it is satisfied that, if the matter were referred to the Commission, it would be considered by the Commission to be an eligible regulatory complaint. A regulatory complaint would include failure by the business to meet practice rules regarding accounting and auditing standards set by the business’s regulator in accordance with section 44 of the Act. Where a relevant professional organisation initiates a complaint in this way, it must notify the Commission which will consider the issue to identify any potential services complaint.
180.New section 33C enables relevant professional organisations to re-categorise a conduct or regulatory complaint that has been remitted to it by the Commission. In order to investigate the matter, the relevant professional organisation must, as soon as practicable, send details to the Commission of the organisation’s re-categorisation of the complaint. The relevant professional organisation must also be satisfied that, if the matter were referred to the Commission it would be considered by the Commission to be an eligible conduct or regulatory complaint as the case may be, before continuing its investigation.