A. The Board may enter into a confidential consent agreement with a person or firm in lieu of disciplinary action.

Terms Used In Virginia Code 54.1-4413.5

  • Board: means the Virginia Board of Accountancy. See Virginia Code 54.1-4400
  • Firm: means an entity formed by one or more licensees as a sole proprietorship, a partnership, a corporation, a limited liability company, or any other type of entity permitted by law. See Virginia Code 54.1-4400
  • Licensee: means a person or firm holding a Virginia license or the license of another state. See Virginia Code 54.1-4400
  • Person: includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency, or instrumentality thereof. See Virginia Code 1-230
  • Practice of public accounting: means the giving of an assurance other than (i) by the person or persons about whom the financial information is presented or (ii) by one or more owners, officers, employees, or members of the governing body of the entity or entities about whom the financial information is presented. See Virginia Code 54.1-4400
  • Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
  • Process: includes subpoenas, the summons and complaint in a civil action, and process in statutory actions. See Virginia Code 1-237

B. A confidential consent agreement:

1. Shall be entered into only in cases involving minor violations of the provisions of this chapter or regulations promulgated by the Board;

2. Shall not be disclosed by the person or firm;

3. Shall include findings of fact and may include an admission or a finding of a violation; and

4. Shall not be considered a notice or order of the Board but may be considered by the Board in future disciplinary proceedings.

C. The Board shall adopt regulations in accordance with the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) to implement the provisions of this section. Such regulations shall identify the type of minor violations for which confidential consent orders may be offered and limit the number of confidential consent orders that may be offered to the same licensee in any given period. The Board shall not enter into a confidential consent agreement if there is probable cause to believe a licensee has demonstrated gross negligence or intentional misconduct in the practice of public accounting.

2007, c. 804.