Code of Conduct for Members of the CIRO Hearing Committees

General Principles

Members must always act honestly, in good faith and in the public interest.
Members must promote the principles of adjudicative independence, impartiality, fairness, competence, efficiency, integrity, accountability and respect for the adjudicative process and for those who appear before them.

Members must exercise their adjudicative functions independently and free of any inappropriate influence and interference.

Members must be and, must appear to be, impartial and objective with respect to issues before them, their decisions and the decision-making process.
Members must not have any bias, or demonstrate behaviour that would suggest or give rise to a reasonable apprehension of bias, in connection with any of the issues or persons involved in a matter before them.
Members must have no prior involvement in the matter before them.
Members must not pre-judge a case or decide an issue until they hear all of the evidence and arguments.
Members must approach the hearing with an open mind and avoid actions that can lead anyone to think otherwise.
Members must provide equal opportunities to all parties to fully present their case and ensure that the hearing process is fair, inclusive, efficient and accessible for all hearing participants.
Members must conduct hearings in a neutral, professional and courteous manner and treat all participants with respect and dignity.

Members must be competent in their area of expertise, CIRO’s jurisdiction and requirements.
Members must have superior written and oral communication skills, including active listening skills, patience, empathy and ability to interpret non-verbal and culturally diverse communication.
Members must make effective use of hearing time and resources, actively managing the hearing process and ensuring a timely disposition of matters.
Members must maintain their professional competence, keep abreast of relevant industry and legal developments and share their knowledge and expertise with colleagues.

Members must always conduct themselves with honesty, dignity and integrity and in a manner that promotes respect for the law and public confidence.
Members must ensure that their personal and professional conduct is above reproach in the view of reasonable, fair-minded and informed persons.

Members must not, directly or indirectly, have either a pecuniary or a non-pecuniary interest in the proceedings.
Members must avoid any activities or situations where they have, or could appear to have, a private or personal interest sufficient to appear to influence the objective exercise of their responsibilities and duties as an adjudicator or that could call into question their integrity and impartiality.
Members must decline any offers, gifts, donations or hospitality from any party involved either directly or indirectly in the proceedings before them.
Members must refrain from engaging in any activities or situations which could compromise the effective performance of their functions or become a recurrent reason for recusal.

Members must avoid communicating with any of the parties to a matter outside of the formal proceedings before, during and after a proceeding.
Members shall not comment upon the proceeding either publicly or privately except within the context of the formal hearing process or in discussion with their fellow Hearing Panel members.

Members shall not disclose any confidential information they obtained in the performance of their functions.
Members shall not discuss the case in the presence of anyone other than their fellow Hearing Panel members.