september 2008 Issue
COMPLIANCE
Neglecting Dues Leads to Fine For Practicing Former Member
Editor’s Note: In lieu of the usual statistical roundup, the Compliance Department reports in this edition on a recent court case against a former member.
BY DAVE TODD, P.ENG.
APEGGA Director, Compliance
Paying your annual APEGGA dues and renewing your licence may seem like mere paperwork that can be put off. It’s much more than that, however, which a past member from Calgary found out the hard way in Provincial Court of Alberta, in June.
The 39-year-old man’s licence had been cancelled by APEGGA in 2002 because he didn’t pay his dues. Yet between Oct. 17, 2005, and Oct. 20, 2006, the former engineer put his invalid seal and his signature on about 135 drawings for the company that employed him.
That seal, by the way, belongs to APEGGA. As a non-member, the man was obligated to return it, which he didn’t do.
The company he worked for believed the signature and seal were valid and believed the man was licensed to authenticate the drawings. The total value of the work was $406,000, the court transcript says.
After the company learned that the seal was not valid and that the man was unlicensed, the work had to be redone. The cost to the company was $28,639.03, court heard.
The court ordered the man, who pleaded guilty, to pay that sum in restitution. He was also fined another $1,000.
Personal circumstances had prevented him from paying his dues on time. But even after those circumstances changed, he chose not to renew his licence.
That’s his choice. There’s nothing illegal going on — until he chooses to practice engineering without his licence.
I’m not naming the man here, but I could. His guilty plea and the judge’s acceptance of the facts and fine recommendation came out in open court, and the transcript is available to the public.
This is court action that your Association pursued. We did it on your behalf and on behalf of the people of Alberta. It’s our obligation to do so, in fact, under the legislation that governs us, the Engineering, Geological and Geophysical Professions Act.
The job falls to the Compliance Department. My staff and I enforce the right-to-practice and right-to-title provisions of the EGGP Act. The department’s focus is on individuals and companies that are not registered — those that may be, inadvertently or otherwise, holding themselves out as professional members or practicing the professions illegally.
This is one of the ways we protect the public and preserve your right of self-regulation. In a very real sense, your reputation and ability to do your job are at stake, each time someone without a licence practices the APEGGA professions.
On the surface, perhaps, the situation I’ve described might sound unimportant. After all, the man very likely still knew what he was doing. It’s unlikely that the lack of a licence suddenly changed that, right?
When you dig a bit deeper, however, our action against him becomes reasonable and justifiable. Let’s start with the company he worked for. The work he did was not professional. So the company was exposed to greater liability than it should have been.
If the work itself was flawed, APEGGA could take no discipline action against the former member. Remember, our discipline investigations cover members, not non-members.
As a non-member, the man had no obligation to practice professionally and according to the APEGGA Code of Ethics. Perhaps, in those several years since being a member, he neglected his Continuing Professional Development obligation and fell behind in his knowledge and skills.
Licensure is not an inconvenience. It’s a necessity. And be warned — when we find out about former members practicing without a licence, we will pursue legal action.
Report a Violation
If you are aware of practice or title violations and you are able to provide evidence (reports, letters, business cards, websites, etc.), we encourage you to contact Frank Perich, P.Eng., Assistant Director, Compliance, at fperich@apega.ca. Because the Compliance Department deals with non-members, we do not reveal the source of complaints when you make contact.