At a hearing of the Disciplinary Tribunal of the Institute
of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand on the 1st day of May 2003, the tribunal recorded that Christopher James King, of Auckland, was deemed to have pleaded not guilty to the following charges and did not admit the following particulars:
THAT in terms of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand Act 1996 and the Rules made thereunder, and in particular Rule 21.30:
A. the member is guilty of conduct unbecoming an accountant; and
B. the member is in breach of the institute's code of ethics, specifically FP1, FP5, EP13 and EP14.
IN THAT
? The member used his then employer's funds for personal expenses, including the purchase of tyres and English pounds.
? The member misapplied money paid by another employee for a vehicle purchased from his then employer, and applied the money towards the payment of a vehicle purchased by himself from his then employer.
? The member transferred funds from his then employer's account to his personal account, as reimbursement for payment he alleged had been made by himself for training courses, when he had neither paid for nor attended such training courses.
The tribunal found the member guilty as charged with the exception of a breach of EP14, and the particulars proven.
Orders of the Tribunal:
(a) Pursuant to Rule 21.31 (c) of the Rules of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand, the disciplinary tribunal ordered that Christopher James King pay a monetary penalty of $5,000.00.
(b) Pursuant to Rule 21.31 (k) of the Rules of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand, the disciplinary tribunal ordered that Christopher James King be censured.
(c) Pursuant to Rule 21.33 of the Rules of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand, the disciplinary tribunal ordered that Christopher James King pay to the institute the sum of $2,210.00 (inclusive of G.S.T.) in respect of the costs and expenses of the hearing before the disciplinary tribunal and the investigation by the professional conduct committee.
In reaching its decision, the tribunal considered that the member's conduct in relation to the matters described above was unbecoming of an accountant and that the code of ethics had been breached.
In accordance with Rule 21.35 of the Rules of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand, the disciplinary tribunal directed that the decision be published in the
New Zealand Herald, the New Zealand Gazette and
the Chartered Accountants Journal of New Zealand with mention of the member's name and locality.
Right of Appeal:
Pursuant to Rule 21.41 of the Rules of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand which were in force at the time of the original notice of complaint, the member may, not later than 14 days after the notification of this tribunal to the member of the exercise of its powers, appeal in writing to the appeals council of the institute against the decision.
No decision, other than the direction as to publicity, shall take effect while the member remains entitled to appeal or while any such appeal by the member awaits determination by the appeals council.
Dated this 7th day of May 2003.
A. N. FRANKHAM, Tribunal Chairman.