Actions of the Tribunal. The Tribunal will abide by the principles of natural justice, which include the following: 1. reasonable notice for all parties of the time and place of the hearings;
Actions of the Tribunal. The Tribunal will abide by the principles of natural justice, which include the following: 1. reasonable notice for all parties of the time and place of the hearings; 2. the right of all parties to be represented by counsel; 3. the right to call and examine witnesses; 4. the right to present arguments; 5. the right to cross-examine witnesses. The Tribunal should aim to review all available research-related material and information that it considers relevant to the allegations. This review may include an audit of the research accounts of the respondent. The Tribunal should aim to review all research with which the individuals have been involved during the period of time considered pertinent in relation to the allegations (but in any case not longer than five (5) years). The complainant and respondent, as well as any collaborators or supervisors with a direct connection to the investigation, will be given an opportunity to review and comment on a draft of the report of the Tribunal. All such comments will be included as appendices in the final report. There must be documentation of the investigation, and it must be kept in one place, under secured conditions, with no circulating copies. Investigations into allegations of misconduct may result in various outcomes, including: 1. a finding of misconduct; 2. a finding that no culpable misconduct was committed, but serious methodological errors were discovered; 3. a finding of minor errors and/or sloppiness; 4. a finding that no fraud, misconduct or methodological error was committed. Final Action The Tribunal, after completing its own inquiry, will formulate recommendations to be carried out by the VPAD. If the allegations are substantiated, then the areas to be considered in making the recommendations should include the need to do the following (with due regard to the relative seriousness of the misconduct or methodological error identified by the Tribunal): 1. withdraw all pending involved abstracts, articles, books and papers; 2. notify editors of journals in which the research involved was reported; 3. notify all collaborators and professional associates, as well as institutions with which the individual(s) had been previously affiliated and where there is reason to believe the validity of previous research might be questionable; 4. notify provincial licensing and certification boards; 5. notify professional societies; 6. notify sponsoring and funding agents; 7. redefine the status of those involved in the m...
