Terms Used In New Jersey Statutes 45:2B-54.1

  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
  • Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • person: includes corporations, companies, associations, societies, firms, partnerships and joint stock companies as well as individuals, unless restricted by the context to an individual as distinguished from a corporate entity or specifically restricted to one or some of the above enumerated synonyms and, when used to designate the owner of property which may be the subject of an offense, includes this State, the United States, any other State of the United States as defined infra and any foreign country or government lawfully owning or possessing property within this State. See New Jersey Statutes 1:1-2
  • Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
  • State: extends to and includes any State, territory or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia and the Canal Zone. See New Jersey Statutes 1:1-2
  • Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
  • Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
5. a. A firm registered under P.L 1997, c.259 (C. 45:2B-42 et seq.) as a firm of certified public accountants or public accountants may have owners who are not licensed as certified public accountants or public accountants if it meets the following requirements:

(1) Nonlicensee owners shall be natural persons or entities, including, but not limited to, partnerships and professional corporations, provided that each ultimate beneficial owner of an equity interest in that entity shall be a natural person materially participating in the business conducted by the firm or entity affiliated with the firm;

(2) The ownership interest of nonlicensee owners shall revert to the firm upon the cessation of any material participation by the nonlicensee owner in the business conducted by the firm or entity;

(3) Persons who are licensed to practice public accountancy in any state or possession of the United States or the District of Columbia shall in the aggregate, directly or beneficially, comprise not less than half of the owners, hold more than half of the equity capital, and possess majority voting rights of the firm; and

(4) Nonlicensee owners shall not hold themselves out as certified public accountants or public accountants.

b. Except as otherwise permitted by the board, a person shall not become a nonlicensee owner or remain a nonlicensee owner if the person has:

(1) Been convicted of any crime, an element of which is dishonesty or fraud, under the laws of this State or any other state, of the United States, or of any other jurisdiction. A conviction includes the initial plea, verdict, or finding of guilty, pleas of no contest, or pronouncement of sentence by a trial court, notwithstanding that conviction may not be final or sentence actually imposed until appeals are exhausted;

(2) Had a professional license or the right to practice revoked or suspended for reasons other than nonpayment of fees, or has voluntarily surrendered a license or right to practice with disciplinary charges or a disciplinary investigation pending, which license or right to practice has not been reinstated by a licensing agency of this State or any other state, of the United States, or of any other jurisdiction;

(3) Been in violation of P.L.1997, c.259 (C. 45:2B-42 et seq.) or any regulation promulgated by the board under that act.

c. A nonlicensee owner of a licensed firm shall report to the board in writing of the occurrence of any of the events set forth in subsection b. of this section within 30 days of the date the nonlicensee owner has knowledge of the event. The report shall identify the event by the name of the agency or court, the title of the matter, the docket number, and the date of occurrence of the event.

L.1999,c.215,s.5; amended 2001, c.149, s.6.