Section 400-RICR-00-00-1.10 - Administrative Procedures for Complaints, Investigations, and Contested Hearings1.10.1Routine Complaint ProcessingA. Applicability. Any person, firm, business entity or public officer, including a licensee, may submit a complaint to the Board against any licensee or person believed to be engaged in unlicensed activity (referred to herein as "respondent").B. Form. All complaints shall be submitted in writing and signed by the complainant or its authorized representative. A complaint shall state the grounds for the complaint, including a statement of facts or circumstances upon which the complaining party relies for the charge. A complaint shall state the name, address, and telephone number of the complainant or representative to be contacted by the Board or its investigative designees for purposes of investigation or giving of notice.C. Construction of Complaint. Failure to include any of the information described in §1.10.1(B) of this Part will not necessarily preclude the Board from acting on the complaint or acting with respect to the factual allegations upon its own motion.D. Notice to Respondent. Upon receipt of a complaint, the Board shall notify the person against whom the complaint is made of the facts of the complaint.E. Response by Respondent. Within twenty (20) days of receipt of notice that a complaint has been filed, the respondent shall respond in writing to the Board.1.10.2Other Triggers for Board InvestigationsA. Procedure. In addition to routine complaint processing under §1.10.1 of this Part, the Board may initiate an investigation after receipt of any apparently reliable information from any source, including a State or Federal agency, that a person may have violated the Act or any Regulation concerning professional conduct of licensees promulgated by the Board pursuant to the Act.B. Investigation and Notice. The Board may initiate an investigation under §1.10.2 of this Part with or without giving notice of the investigation.C. Information on Criminal Acts. Where the information received by the Board involves the conviction of or pleading guilty or nolo contendere by a licensee to a crime or an act constituting a crime in a court of competent jurisdiction of this or any other State or Federal Court of any of the offenses set forth in R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-3.1-12(b)(5), the judgment of conviction or plea of a licensee for such crime shall be conclusive evidence of the conviction of that crime in any hearing before the Board. Where an appeal of a conviction or sentence imposed pursuant thereto has been filed and is pending, the Board has discretion to postpone action or to pursue disciplinary action. In exercising this discretion, the Board will be guided by any applicable due process principles and may consult with the licensee or his or her legal representative.D. Information on discipline by a Board of Accountancy of another State. Upon receipt by the Board of information from any authority of any other State having jurisdiction to govern the practice of accountancy or to impose disciplinary action against any accountant authorized to practice in such State that the right of a licensee to practice as a public accountant or certified public accountant, or to provide services of a related nature before any State or Federal agency, has been suspended or revoked for any reason other than the failure to pay a fee or to meet the continuing education requirements in such State, the Board may, in any hearing before the Board, consider a copy of the record of the proceedings before such State authority to be prima facie proof of the contents of such record and conclusive evidence of such action. Upon receipt of such information, the Board may require the licensee to appear before the Board to show cause why like discipline should not be imposed by the Board of Accountancy of this State. In the event that the Board votes to impose a sanction against a licensee, the Board shall not be bound by the nature or time period of any sanction imposed by any other authority or agency.1.10.3Board Investigation GuidelinesA. Authority of the Board. Pursuant to an investigation, the Board shall have the authority to compel licensees to provide any information that is necessary for the investigation, including, but not limited to, tax returns and working papers. For the purposes of an investigation, the Board shall have the authority to compel the licensee to appear before the Board to provide information for the purposes of fact finding.B. Conduct of a Licensee. During an investigation, the licensee shall be required to provide information as to the licensee's conduct in response to any request, whether formal or informal, for such information from the Board or its investigative designees. The licensee shall at all times during the investigation cooperate fully with the Board and its investigative designees to facilitate the expeditious resolution of the investigation. Failure of the licensee to fully comply with requests by the Board or its investigative designees is grounds for disciplinary action under R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-3.1-12(b)(9).C. Dismissal. If the Board finds insufficient grounds to support the charges, the complaint will be dismissed. Notice of dismissal will be provided in writing to the person who filed the complaint and to the respondent against whom the complaint was filed.D. Related Matters. Where the allegations against a respondent are similar or related to the material allegations of a pending criminal or civil matter, the Board may postpone action on the complaint pending resolution of the civil or criminal matter. The acquittal of a respondent on criminal charges or a verdict or judgment in favor of a respondent in civil litigation involving substantially similar material allegations to allegations of unprofessional conduct or unlicensed activity shall not in itself justify dismissal of a complaint or termination of an investigation predicated upon the same material allegations, but such acquittal, verdict, or judgment may be considered by the Board in reaching its decision. The dismissal of criminal charges, the settlement of civil litigation involving substantially similar material allegations to a complaint, or any agreement between a respondent and a complainant or any person in consideration of which such person agrees not to make or pursue a complaint against the respondent shall not preclude the Board in its discretion from investigation or from continuing to process a complaint previously filed.E. Other Agencies. The Board will cooperate with the agencies and authorities of other States exercising similar jurisdiction with respect to the practice of accountancy in exchanging information concerning disciplinary action against any licensee. The Board will similarly cooperate with Federal agencies that sanction the Board's licensees and/or make referrals to the Board for the Board's investigation and disciplinary action.1.10.4Contested HearingsA. Notice to Respondent. Upon determination by the Board that a hearing is required, a specification of the charges shall be prepared and provided to the respondent together with notice of the hearing. The notice to the respondent shall include the time and place of the hearing and shall be provided to the respondent not less than twenty (20) days prior to the date of the hearing.B. Attendance at a Hearing. At any hearing, the respondent may appear in person or may be represented by counsel. Business entity respondents shall be represented before the Board by counsel. At all hearings, legal counsel assigned to the Board shall appear and represent the Board.C. Respondent's Presentation of Evidence. The respondent will have the opportunity to produce witnesses and evidence on his or her behalf, to cross examine witnesses, and to have subpoenas issued on his or her behalf by the Board.D. Powers of the Board. The Board may issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents and may administer oaths, take testimony, hear proofs and receive exhibits in evidence in connection with a hearing under these Regulations. In case of disobedience of a subpoena, the Board may petition the Superior Court to require the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of documentary evidence.E. Hearing Procedure. The Board shall not be bound by strict rules of procedure or by the laws of evidence in the conducting of its proceedings, but any determination of the Board shall be based upon sufficient legal evidence to sustain the determination.F. Record of Hearings. The Board shall maintain a separate file with respect to each investigation as the official record of the Board.G. Voting. A majority vote of the Board shall be required in order to take action against a respondent. Each member of the Board voting shall be required to have attended the hearing or any continuance thereof or to have read the record of the hearing or continuance at which he or she was not in attendance.H. Conclusion of Hearing. The Board shall issue a decision after conclusion of the hearing. The decision shall include findings of fact and conclusions of law and be delivered to the respondent.I. Sanctions. If the decision is adverse to the respondent, the Board may impose any of the sanctions set forth in R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 5-3.1-12 and 5-3.1-13. In determining the sanction to be imposed in any case, the Board will consider aggravating and mitigating factors in assessing which sanctions to impose against a respondent.J. Settlement. Unless precluded by law, and subject to approval by the Board, at any time prior to the entry of an order, disposition by settlement may be made of any contested matter by stipulation, consent agreement, consent order, or decree.K. Reporting Disciplinary Actions. Where the Board is required to or has discretion to report disciplinary action to other States in which a licensee is also licensed, the Board may report such disciplinary actions to a multistate enforcement information network.L. Refusal to Testify. The Board may draw adverse inferences from a respondent's refusal to testify before the Board including any refusal accompanied by an assertion of Fifth Amendment rights.400 R.I. Code R. 400-RICR-00-00-1.10
Amended effective 8/4/2020
Amended effective 4/4/2022
Amended effective 2/19/2023