Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria Act, 2022 › 2

2 — Second Schedule

[Sections 50(5) and 51(5).]

SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE, THE INVESTIGATING PANEL AND THE STANDARDS PANEL

The Disciplinary Committee

PARAGRAPH 1: (1) The Chief Justice of Nigeria shall make rules on the procedure to be followed and the rules of evidence to be observed in proceedings before the Disciplinary Committee.

(2) The rules shall in particular provide for—

(a) securing that notice of proceedings shall be given at such time, and in such manner as may be specified by the rules, to the person who is the subject of the proceedings;

(b) determining who, in addition to the person, shall be a party to the proceedings;

(c) securing that any party to the proceedings shall, if he so requires, be entitled to be heard by the Disciplinary Committee;

(d) enabling any party to the proceedings to be represented by a legal practitioner;

(e) subject to the provisions of this Act, the costs of proceeding before the Disciplinary Committee;

(f) requiring in a case where it is alleged that the person who is the subject of the proceedings is guilty of infamous conduct in any professional respect, that where the Disciplinary Committee judges that the allegation has not been proved, it shall record a finding that the person is not guilty of such conduct in respect of the matter to which the allegation relates;

(g) publishing in the Federal Government Gazette of notice of any direction of the Disciplinary Committee which has taken effect, providing that, a person’s name shall be struck off from the register.

PARAGRAPH 2: (1) For the purpose of advising the Investigating Panel and Disciplinary Committee on questions of law arising in proceedings before it, there shall in such proceedings be an assessor.

(2) The Council shall make rules for the functions of assessors appointed under this paragraph, and in particular such rules shall contain provisions for securing that—

(a) where an assessor advises the Investigating Panel or Disciplinary Committee on any question of law as to evidence, procedure or any other matter specified by the rules, he shall do so in the presence of every party or person representing a party to the proceedings who appears thereat or, if the advice is tendered while the Investigating Panel or Disciplinary Committee is deliberating in private, that every such party or person shall be informed as to what advice the assessor has tendered; and

(b) every party or person shall be informed if in any case the Investigating Panel or Disciplinary Committee does not accept the advice of the assessor on such a question.

(3) An assessor may be appointed under this paragraph either generally or for any particular proceedings or class of proceedings, and shall hold and vacate office in accordance with the terms of the instrument by which he is appointed and no assessor shall serve on both Investigating Panel and Disciplinary Committee at the same time.

PARAGRAPH 4: The Investigating Panel may, at any of its meetings attended by not less than three members of the Investigating Panel, make standing orders with respect to the Investigating Panel and subject to the provisions of any such standing orders, the Investigating Panel may regulate its own procedure.

PARAGRAPH 5: No member of the Investigating Panel shall sit as a member of the Disciplinary Committee or vice versa.

Miscellaneous

PARAGRAPH 6: A person ceasing to be a member of the Disciplinary Committee, the Investigating Panel or the Standards Panel shall be eligible for re-appointment as a member of that body.

PARAGRAPH 7: The Disciplinary Committee, the Investigating Panel or the Standards Panel may act notwithstanding any vacancy in the membership of any of the said bodies and the proceedings of any of such bodies shall not be invalidated by any irregularity in the appointment of a member of such bodies, or subject to paragraph 1 of this Schedule, or by reason of the fact that any person who was not entitled to do so took part in the proceedings of any of such bodies.

PARAGRAPH 8: The Disciplinary Committee, the Investigating Panel or the Standards Panel may each sit in two or more places.

PARAGRAPH 9: Any document authorised or required by virtue of this Act to be served on the Disciplinary Committee, the Investigating Panel or the Standards Panel shall be served on the Registrar.

PARAGRAPH 10: All expenses of the Disciplinary Committee, the Investigating Panel or the Standards Panel shall be defrayed by the Council.

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