Professional Standards
Professional Standards Committee
The Professional Standards Committee shall consist of at least twenty-five Board REALTORÒ members appointed by the Chairperson of the Professional Standards Committee, subject to confirmation by the Board of Directors. The President of the Board, subject to confirmation by the Board of Directors, shall appoint the President of the Professional Standards Committee.
Grievance Committee
The Grievance Committee shall consist of at least five (5) Board REALTORÒ members appointed by the President/President, subject to confirmation by the Board of Directors in order to maintain continuity; said members will be appointed for varying terms from one (1) to five (5) years. The President shall be appointed by the President with input from the Chair of the Professional Standards Committee. A Committee member shall continue in this capacity through the conclusion of any pending cases, even though a Committee member’s term expired prior to the rendering of a decision in said case(s).
Appeal Hearing Panel
The Appeal Hearing Panel shall consist of a Quorum of the Board of Directors.
Ethics Hearing Panel
The Professional Standards Committee President shall appoint a panel of five (5) members from the Professional Standards Committee, with one being designated as Chair, to hear an Ethics complaint. An alternate panel member may be selected to attend a hearing in a non-voting, learning capacity.
Arbitration Hearing Panel
The Professional Standards Committee President shall appoint a panel of three (3) members with one being designated as Chair, to hear an Arbitration.
Mediation Officer
The President of the Professional Standards Committee shall appoint a Mediation Officer to conduct Mediations. Mediation service will be offered in an arbitration request immediately following the Grievance Committee’s decision to forward the request for arbitration to a formal hearing.
Training
All members of Professional Standards Committee, Grievance Committee and the Board Mediator(s) must meet the following requirements:
1) Show proof of having taken the 8-hour GRI and accredited Ethics and Professional Practice Course.
2) All new Committee members must take the Board approved annual Professional Standards Training Session the first two years they are a member
3) After the second year of service, Committee members must attend the annual Board approved Professional Standards Training Session, or one approved by the Board, at least once every three years
4) No Committee member may remain current in any of the listed capacities without meeting the above requirements.
5) The Executive Vice President (EVP) of the Board and the Professional Standards Committee President shall have the ability to request an exception to any of the above with approval by the Board of Directors.
New members of the Board of Directors shall be required to attend the Board approved annual Professional Standards Training Session the year they are elected, and all members of the Board of Directors are encouraged to attend annually.
The Professional Standards Training session shall be a course designed by, accredited by or recommended by the President of the Professional Standards Committee and shall include but not be limited to revisions of the Code of Ethics as well as revisions and updates to the Standards of Practice and case studies. There shall also be a review of the procedure and process for filing of complaints, the process of the Grievance Committee and processing of both Ethics Hearings and Arbitration Hearings.
Fees
a) An Arbitration filing fee in the amount of $500 will be collected from both parties to the Arbitration.
b) The arbitration filing fee of the prevailing party will be returned. If there is a split award, the Hearing Panel will determine the disposition of filing fees.
c) The Aspen Board of REALTORS® will require a $100 filing fee to file a Request for Appeal (Ethics) and a $100 filing fee for a Request for Procedural Review (Arbitration). If the Directors do confirm a procedural error, the filing fee will be returned to the appropriate party.
d) The Aspen Board of REALTORS® will not impose an administrative processing fee.
e) Administrative expenses of Regional Professional Standards Committee Hearings will be paid for by the Board where the Respondent is a member.
Notification
a) All communications related to Professional Standards Committee Ethics and Arbitration Hearings (i.e. Official Notice of Hearing, Hearing results) will be through certified United States mail. Hearing Panels will be provided copies of Ethics Complaints and Arbitration requests no less than fourteen (14) days prior to the Hearing.
b) The Respondent in an Ethics complaint or Arbitration request has fifteen (15) days to submit a response and is required to submit ten (10) copies of the response.
c) Parties are required to file requests for Rehearing or Appeal within twenty (20) days.
d) Parties to an arbitration or ethics hearing are required to give notice of counsel and/or witnesses fifteen (15) days prior to the scheduled date of the hearing.
e) In an Ethics hearing or Arbitration, Parties shall have 10 days from the date the list of Professional Standards Committee names are received, to challenge the qualification of any member of the Hearing Panel.
f) In an Appeal (Ethics or Arbitration) Parties shall have 10 days prior to the appeal, to challenge the qualification of any member of the Hearing Panel (Board of Directors) as per Section 2(f) and 27(f).
g) After receiving a request for arbitration the Grievance Committee shall have thirty (30) days for determination as to whether the mater is subject to arbitration.
h) The Grievance Committee may request Respondents in an ethics complaint or arbitration request to provide them with a written response within fifteen (15) days, however, the Grievance Committee is encouraged to refrain from asking the Respondents for a written response.
Board Attorney
a) The only individuals who may contact the Board Attorney in Professional Standards matters are the President of the Board, the President of the Professional Standards Committee or their designee, and the Executive Vice President (EVP).
b) The use of the Board Attorney at Ethics and Arbitration Hearings will be at the discretion of the Professional Standard Committee President.
c) All Hearing Panel decisions (Ethics and Arbitration) will be reviewed by legal counsel prior to being sent to either party.
General
a) All Hearings shall be recorded by a court reporter. Parties involved in the Hearing may request a copy of the transcript. The cost of a transcript will be borne by the individual who requests it. The Board will retain the original copy and the individual(s) requesting the transcript will receive a copy. If both parties request a transcript, they will share the cost. Parties may not tape record the Hearings. The official recording for the Board will be a court reporter only.
b) The Executive Vice President (EVP) or his/her designee will read the Decision of the Ethics Hearing Panel into the record when it is presented to the Board of Directors for confirmation.
c) The Aspen Board of REALTORS® Board will continue to provide voluntary arbitration as a service as offered under Statements of Professional Standards Policy in the manual, #3. Circumstances under which Arbitration is Contingent Upon the RealtorÒ’s Voluntary Participation, and under Section 44, Duty and Privilege to Arbitrate, (4), (5) and (6).
d) The Aspen Board of REALTORS® Board will follow the expedited Ethics administrative procedures as outlined in Section 20 (f-o) of the manual.
e) The optional procedures in Subsections c-f of Section 53 of the manual regarding depositing arbitration awards with SMDRA have not been adopted per recommendation of Board’s legal counsel.
f) The Aspen Board of REALTORS® Board has chosen to follow Option #1 of Section 48(b) Submission to Arbitration of the manual. Option #1 states: Arbitration shall not proceed unless the signed Response and Agreement Form (Part Thirteen, Form #A-4), and deposit amount have been received from the respondent.
g) That Section of the N.A.R. Code of Ethics and Arbitration Manual is supplemented as follows:
When a designated REALTORÒ Broker Member of a principal office and/or branch manager REALTORÒ Broker Member is suspended or expelled, a notice shall be sent to all other members of that firm or office, as applicable notifying them of the suspension or expulsion. When a branch manager REALTORÒ Broker Member is suspended, the following subparagraphs (h), (i), and (j) shall apply only for that office. The period of suspension shall not begin earlier than thirty (30) days following notification.
h) The retention, withdrawal and submission of listings in MLS by the firm and/or branch office shall be in accordance with the rules of Service. Regular fees will be charged for resubmission of listings after the suspension period expires.
i) A suspended REALTORÒ Member is forbidden to use the term REALTORÒ during the period of suspension.
j) When a designated REALTORÒ Broker Member of a principal office is suspended, he may not advertise as a REALTORÒ any properties listed with his firm, nor may he nor any other person in his firm use the designation in connection with, but not limited to, office signs, letterheads, business cards, posters or other advertising. When a branch manager REALTORÒ Broker Member is suspended the same restriction shall apply to that office which he/she manages.
k) The Board will NOT include the names of parties when the Decision of the Hearing Panel is presented to the Directors for ratification (Section 22a).
l) The Aspen Board of REALTORS® will NOT publish the names of Code of Ethics violators after a second violation occurs within a three (3) year period (Section 45).
Approved at January 20, 2010 Board of Directors Meeting