Book 2 - Appraisal Institute of Canada

Professional Affairs
Consistency and
fairness for all members
The Professional Affairs Coordinating
Committee continues to work on behalf of
members to ensure that the professional
practice process remains consistent and fair for
all members. The committee has observed and
reviewed recent trends and themes and made
recommendations to the Institute in many areas.
These include:
• Business Valuation. The committee will
be recommending that the Institute step up
development of appropriate training, standards
and errors & omission protection for members
that wish to expand their area of practice in this
field
• Ethics CPD. The committee has recommended
to the Learning Advisory Committee
that, in conjunction with UBC, a specific Ethics
CPD course be developed that would be
complementary to the Professional Practice
Seminar and the BUSI 112 Real Estate Law and
Ethics course
• Training and Development. The committee
affirmed that members of the professional
practice committees should receive training on
their roles and responsibilities as members of
these committees.
• Professional Practice Regulations
Revisions. The committee was consulted on
revisions to the process and has endorsed the
improvements under consideration.
The committee has reviewed the scope of practice
of members and the errors & omissions coverage
to ensure that there continues to be a fair
and consistent interpretation of what CUSPAP
provides and what valuation services continue
to be insured. The goal is to ensure that members
have coverage for valuation services and
that those services are indeed within the scope
of services that the Institute has endorsed from
By Gordon J. Tomiuk, AACI, P. App, Chair, Professional Affairs Coordinating Committee
a standards and education viewpoint.
The committee has asked the Institute to work
with industry stakeholders to investigate the possibilities
of reporting incidences of suspected appraisal
fraud to a central agency that can then disseminate
this information to lenders. Appraisal fraud is a
serious concern and members have indicated that
it is difficult at best to notify their customers when
they suspect that one of their reports may have been
modified by a third party.
The committee continues to refine the scope of
what constitutes serious complaints that warrant a
formal investigation and which conduct is deserving
of discipline. For example, a review of those files
referred to the Investigating Committee points to
the fact that the CRA scope of practice continues
to be an area in need of improvement. This pattern
is being reviewed by both LAC and the Standards
Committee, with the intent to improve the education
and awareness of CRAs so that they will better
understand and determine what valuation assignments
may or may not be within their scope of
practice.
The trends noted in this article result from
complaints that the Institute receives, and from
members’ feedback. Based on these observed
patterns, PACC follows the consistency and fairness
approach and takes steps to improve the Institute’s
programs. In turn, this continues to raise the level of
confidence in the professional practice process. The
committee welcomes feedback and can be contacted
via email at pacc@aicanada.ca.
Professional Affairs
Coordinating Committee
Gordon Tomiuk, AACI, P. App,
AIC President – Chair
Peter Lawrek, AACI, P. App –
Chair of Adjudicating Committee
Hal Love, AACI, P. App –
Chair of Insurance Advisory Committee
John Hutchinson, AACI, P. App –
Chair of Investigating Committee
Charles Abromaitis, AACI, P. App –
Chair of Appeal Committee
Ray Bower, AACI, P. App –
Chair of Standards Committee
To contact this committee email:
professionalaffairs@aicanada.ca
Canadian Property Valuation Volume 52 | book 2 | 2008 Évaluation Immobilière au Canada 23