The Discipline Committee (DIC) hears and determines allegations of professional misconduct or incompetence against a PEO licence holder (professional engineer “P.Eng.”, temporary licence, provisional licence or a limited licence) or a holder of a Certificate of Authorization.
The DIC’s jurisdiction is triggered upon a decision of the Complaints Committee, Council, or Executive Committee to refer a matter to the DIC for determination. The DIC also hears applications by licence holders who apply for licences or Certificates of Authorization after a prior revocation and suspension. The parties to a discipline proceeding are set out in the Professional Engineers Act.
Click here to see how misconduct and incompetence are defined at section 28 of the Act.
Pursuant to section 28(3)(b) of the Act, the DIC also fulfills roles similar to what is known as a Fitness to Practise Committee within other self-regulated professions. For further information on reporting such a situation that may involve a licensee, contact PEO’s registrar.
Notice of the Electronic Conduct of Hearings of the Discipline Committee of the Association of Professional Engineers Ontario
(Approved October 9, 2020)
- To protect the health and safety of all persons involved, given the COVID-19 pandemic, all proceedings of the Discipline Committee will be held electronically for the foreseeable future.
- All hearings before the Discipline Committee, including all scheduled hearings, will proceed remotely by videoconference on the Zoom platform.
- The Discipline Committee’s remote hearings remain open to the public. A court reporter will record the evidence taken at the remote hearing.
- The parties and witnesses should observe etiquette and best practices appropriate to remote hearings, including that there shall be no communication with witnesses who are testifying by use of the chat function or any other means.
- No person may take or attempt to take a photograph, motion picture, audio recording or other record capable of producing visual or aural representations of the remote hearing by electronic means or otherwise.
- All documents in relation to Discipline Committee proceedings are to be delivered and filed electronically only. The parties will be advised as to the procedure.
- The Association's website posts hearing schedules and links for public access to the hearings
- Panels of the Discipline Committee may provide additional or alternative directions.
2024 Hearing Schedule
| Name of Parties | Date/Time of Hearing |
|---|---|
| PEO v. George W. Karugu, P.Eng. and Karugu Consulting Inc. | April 29 and 30, 2024 at 9:30 a.m. |
This schedule of DIC proceedings is provided for public information and is subject to change.
Due to the pandemic, the PEO offices and hearing rooms are closed to the public and to the parties. The hearings are conducted electronically, and modalities enabled via Arbitration Place Virtual.
Arbitration Place Virtual (“APV”) has been retained by the tribunal as an all-encompassing service for the facilitation of its virtual hearings proceedings. APV is retained to provide experienced Virtual Case Managers that oversee all technical logistics and technological preparation for the proceeding – both prior to and throughout the matter – so that counsel, the parties, and adjudicators can focus on the substantive issues. APV’s virtual hearing management services include support for document management and display during hearings; facilitation of virtual caucus break-out rooms; coordination with court reporting; hardware upgrades; technical testing and preparatory work. APV is under the direction of the tribunal only.
NOTE: Any member of the public who would like to observe a Discipline Committee hearing live should email the Tribunal administrative staff at [email protected] at least 24 hours prior to the scheduled hearing start time, providing their name, email address and phone number. Once a request to observe a hearing is received, Tribunal administrative staff will provide the requestor with the information necessary to observe the hearing.
Please note that observers must remain on mute with their cameras off for the duration of the hearing. If an observer’s camera is turned on and/or they are unmuted at any point, the meeting host will turn off their camera and mute them. The meeting host has the ability to, and may, remove any observers who do not comply.
Stakeholder Comments Requested
As part of its commitment to deliver fair and impartial adjudicative services, the Discipline Committee invites stakeholder comments. If you have suggestions for access improvements, document interactivity, guidelines, forms, or general ease of use of the webpage, please email your comments, in confidence, to: [email protected].
Discipline Committee Practice Directions
1. Timelines on Release of Discipline Committee Decisions:
The Discipline Committee has adopted guidelines for the release of various types of panel decisions. Timelines are influenced by how complex a matter is, and some decisions will take longer to be released. Typically, however, the following timelines are expected to apply: 90 days, following completion of a hearing, for release of a decision on the merits, 60 days for penalty/costs decisions, and 60 days for sanctions and publication decisions after receiving final submissions from the parties.
2. Appeals of Discipline Committee Decisions:
Pursuant to the Professional Engineers Act, a party who is dissatisfied with a Discipline Committee decision has a statutory right of appeal to the Ontario Divisional Court. Appeals must be filed with the Divisional Court within 30 days of the date of the Discipline Committee decision. You will find this date at the end of the decision document. The Ministry of the Attorney General’s Guide to Appeals in Divisional Court explains how to apply for an appeal in Divisional Court. You may want to get legal advice before you start your appeal.
3. Discipline Hearing Recordings and Transcripts:
Motion or hearing proceedings before the Tribunal are recorded by an independent court reporter. If a party wishes a partial or complete transcript, these can be ordered directly from the court reporter. Costs of transcribing the recordings are the responsibility of the party requesting the transcript. To obtain the contact information of the court reporter, please email your request to the Tribunal Administrative Officer:
Svitlana (Lana) Tereshchenko
Tribunal Administrative Officer
[email protected]
(416) 224-1100 ext. 2269
NOTE: Apart from recording by the court reporter or by other person authorized by the Tribunal, any recording of Discipline proceedings, whether held in-person or electronically, is strictly prohibited.
4. Media requests:
Any media requests should be directed to PEO Communications Manager:
Duff McCutcheon
PEO communications manager
[email protected]
(416) 840-1068
Contact Us
Excerpts from legislation applicable to pre-hearings and hearings of the Discipline Committee:
I. Pre-hearings:
Disqualification
5.3(4) A member who presides at a pre-hearing conference at which the parties attempt to settle issues shall not preside at the hearing of the proceeding unless the parties consent.
Link to the Statutory Powers Procedure Act (SPPA):https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90s22
II. Hearings:
Discipline Committee
27 (1) The Discipline Committee is continued and shall be composed of the following persons appointed by the Council:
1. At least one elected member of the Council.
2. At least one member of the Association who is,
i. a member of the Council appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council, or
ii. not a member of the Council, and approved by the Attorney General.
3. At least one person who is,
i. a member of the Council appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council under clause 3 (2) (c), or
ii. neither a member of the Council nor a member of the Association, and approved by the Attorney General.
4. At least three members of the Association each of whom has at least 10 years experience in the practice of professional engineering.
Quorum
(2) One of each of the persons appointed under paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 4 of subsection (1) constitute a quorum of the Discipline Committee.
Chair, vice-chair
(3) The Discipline Committee shall name one of its members as chair, and another as vice-chair, of the Discipline Committee.
Link to Professional Engineers Act:https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90p28?search=Professional+Engineers