West Virginia Code 30-9-21 – Complaints; investigation
(a) Upon receipt of a written complaint filed against any licensee, substantial equivalency practitioner or firm, the board shall provide a copy of the complaint to the licensee, substantial equivalency practitioner or firm.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 30-9-21
- Board: means the West Virginia Board of Accountancy. See West Virginia Code 30-9-2
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Firm: means any business entity, including, but not limited to, accounting corporations and professional limited liability companies, in which two or more certified public accountants or public accountants hold an ownership or membership interest, in terms of the financial interests and voting rights of all partners, officers, shareholders, members or managers, and the primary business activity of which is the provision of professional services to the public by certified public accountants or public accountants. See West Virginia Code 30-9-2
- Licensee: means the holder of a license. See West Virginia Code 30-9-2
- Probable cause: A reasonable ground for belief that the offender violated a specific law.
- Substantial equivalency practitioner: means any individual whose principal place of business is not in this state, who holds a certificate from another state and has complied with the provisions of section sixteen of this article. See West Virginia Code 30-9-2
(b) The board may investigate the complaint. If the board finds upon investigation that probable cause exists that the licensee, substantial equivalency practitioner or firm has violated any provision of this article or the rules, the board shall serve the licensee, substantial equivalency practitioner or firm with a written statement of charges and a notice specifying the date, time and place of hearing. The hearing must be held in accordance with section twenty-two of this article.
(c) The board may review the publicly available professional work of a licensee, substantial equivalency practitioner, or firm on a general and random basis, without any requirement of a formal complaint or suspicion of impropriety. If the board discovers reasonable grounds, the board may conduct an investigation and upon its own motion, may file a written statement of charges, including a notice specifying the date, time and place of hearing, against the licensee, firm or substantial equivalency practitioner.