Code of Conduct Panel (COCP) Formation and Manner of Operating The main purpose of the COCP is to maintain the code of conduct and protect community members from harm. The Code of Conduct Panel will be formed to address individual incident reports according to the following procedure: Appointment- The Code of Conduct Panel (COCP) is a standing committee of the association.
- Seven (7) members at large shall serve on the COCP, as appointed by the SLA President and approved by the Board. There shall be a Board liaison and a staff liaison; both serve in an advisory capacity and are non-voting roles. The Board liaison shall be the SLA President and the staff liaison shall be the Executive Director. The Executive Director shall attend all COCP and COCP sub-panel meetings in their advisory capacity. The SLA President shall attend COCP and COCP sub-panel meetings only as requested by the COCP.
- The COCP shall choose their chair.
- Members of the COCP shall serve overlapping terms of three (3) years, with staggered terms for the first three (3) years after adoption of this policy.
- Each member of the COCP will provide a preferred way to receive urgent notifications.
- Should a member of the panel need to be replaced, the Board and staff liaison shall be informed of the need for a new member immediately.
- SLA staff shall conduct yearly training for the COCP in handling alleged Code of Conduct violations.
Commission - Each member of the COCP shall sign a document[1] acknowledging they understand that all aspects of the proceedings shall be kept confidential, subject to legal reporting requirements, including but not limited to the names of all persons involved, the nature of the reported violation, any and all discussions and documents, and the resolution of the issue. If illegal activity is alleged, notification to law enforcement may be required or appropriate. Strict confidentiality may not be possible if illegal activity is alleged and law enforcement is notified.
- In the event of a reported incident, the Executive Director shall contact the chair of the COCP and provide the names of the persons involved.
- Time is of the essence in addressing reported incidents.
- The COCP chair shall contact the remaining members and first determine if any have a real or potential conflict of interest.
- In the event of a conflict of interest on the part of the SLA President, a replacement liaison shall be approved by the Board of Directors.
- In the event of a conflict of interest on the part of the Executive Director, a replacement liaison shall be selected by the association management company.
- The COCP chair shall form a sub-panel of three (3) members to address the incident.
- Each member of the COCP must confirm their acceptance of the role or request recusal or excusal within three (3) business days of notification.
- If someone is excused or recused, the chair of the COCP shall contact other members of the Panel until the sub-panel has three (3) members. The COCP sub-panel shall choose one (1) member to act as its correspondent to ensure accountability of the report handling and communications.
Duties - The COCP shall make a recommendation to the Board of Directors regarding resolution of the reported incident. The COCP may ask for additional resources, such as staff support or legal advice, directly from the staff or Board liaison.
- The COCP must responsibly use any technology or technical solutions (such as email or discussion boards) in order to maintain the security and privacy of personal information conveyed to the committee.
- The COCP shall, with the consent of the parties involved but otherwise in its sole discretion, recommend the optimal path for acknowledging that harm was done and seeking any appropriate and equitable solution.
- The COCP shall make all efforts to resolve each incident in a prompt and timely manner. Any delays should be communicated to the staff and Board liaison when known. When appropriate, the parties involved in the incident shall be informed of any absences or delays.
Resolution - Resolutions should include, at a minimum, the following items:
- The name of the person(s) being disciplined, if any
- The discipline imposed, if any
- Timeline or time frame for any discipline, if any
- Upon a decision or resolution, the COCP sub-panel correspondent shall inform the SLA President and Executive Director of their recommendation.
- The full Board of Directors shall determine resolution, unless the staff and Board liaisons, based on the sensitivity and seriousness of the incident and/or upon the advice of legal counsel, determine that final resolution needs to be handled by the Executive Committee.
- Final resolution shall be determined in a closed session.
- Upon final resolution of either the Board of Directors or the Executive Committee, the staff or Board liaison shall inform the appropriate parties of the resolution.
- Members who knowingly file false reports will be considered to have violated the Code of Conduct and will be subject to discipline as shall be recommended by the COCP sub-panel assigned to that report.
- The COCP may provide recommendations for additional policies or policy changes as they deem appropriate.
Code of Conduct Panel GovernanceMain duties of the position holdersAll members of the COCP must read, understand, and abide by this Code of Conduct document and the COCP incident report response guidelines. In addition to the roles and responsibilities outlined in the membership agreement, other individuals have the duties outlined below. SLA Executive Director or alternate staff liaison- Attend all COCP and COCP sub-panel meetings in their advisory capacity.
- Represent the COCP in any relevant communication with the SLA staff.
- Relay information to the SLA staff when required.
- Provide requested resources to the COCP.
SLA President or alternate Board liaison- Appoint members of the COCP.
- Represent the COCP in any relevant communication with the Executive Committee, SLA staff, and/or SLA Board of Directors.
- Relay information to appropriate people when required.
- Notify, and request a review if needed from, the Executive Committee regarding any communication to the membership from the COCP.
- Attend COCP and COCP sub-panel meetings only as requested.
- Provide requested resources to the COCP.
COCP Chair- Appoint members to serve on each sub-panel using a randomized method.
- Check that members on each sub-panel do not have real, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest.
- Serve on sub-panel(s) if needed.
- Ensure that each sub-panel proceeds in a timely fashion.
- Ensure that any reports are sent to SLA HQ or placed in the appropriate repository.
Members of the COCP- Support the objectives and mission of SLA by abiding by its CoC and other policies and procedures.
- Learn about the Code of Conduct and reporting guidelines.
- Understand and be comfortable to act on CoC related reports per the enforcement guidelines put in place.
- Elect one of their members to serve as Chair of the COCP.
- Declare any real, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest to the COCP Chair. Failure to declare a conflict of interest may be considered a breach of the CoC. A conflict of interest occurs when the concerns or aims of two different parties are incompatible, or a situation in which a person is in a position to derive personal benefit from actions or decisions made in their official capacity.
- Maintain the confidentiality of any reported incidents, the identity of persons involved, and discussions that take place within the committee.
- Shall not make any comments about any matters that they have been informed of as part of their duties as a COCP member unless authorized to do so.
- Shall not retain their own copies of any documentation.
- Hold themselves accountable for their responsibilities as trustees and understand that they are expected to follow through on their commitments.
- Respect and promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility and act in the best interests of SLA impartially, putting aside any other individual affiliations and personal biases
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