Upon written, signed request, the president shall cause an inquiry to be made for the purpose of determining whether there is reasonable basis to believe a violation of this Section has taken place. Requests should be directed to the executive vice president at the national headquarters.

Inquiry shall be made by a committee appointed by the president. A committee of inquiry (thereafter the “committee”) shall be comprised of at least three persons, each of whom shall be a member of the Society. A finding concurred in by the majority of the committee shall be the finding of the committee.

The committee shall review the written request. If the committee finds that the written request does not state allegations which, if sustained, would constitute a violation of this Section, it shall so notify the president who shall notify the originator of the request. If the committee finds that the written request does state allegations which, if sustained, would constitute a violation of this Section, it may make inquiries of the member whose conduct is the subject of the request, and may make inquiries of other persons who may have knowledge of pertinent facts and circumstances.

The committee shall find whether the evidence is sufficitent to support the allegations in the request, and shall so notify the president who shall notify the member whose conduct is the subject of the request, and the originator of the request.

The committee may request guidance and advice from the Board of Directors or from the Ethics Committee. Such opinions or advice shall be reduced to writing and appended to the findings of the committee.

Within 30 days after receipt of a committee finding that a violation may have occurred, the president shall appoint a conference panel (hereafter the “panel”) which shall determine whether the conduct described in the request constitutes unethical conduct. The panel shall be comprised of three members of the Society, at least one of whom shall be a member or past member of the Board of Directors and none of whom shall have served on the committee.

Within 10 working days after appointment, the panel shall send notice of the purported violation by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the last known address of the member whose conduct is the subject of the request.

The notice shall specify the conduct which is the subject of the request and the specified unethical practice involved and/or that the conduct appears to constitute unspecified unethical conduct, and shall set a time and place for a conference which time shall be not less than 30 nor more than 90 days from the date of notice and which place shall be not more than 100 miles from the residence of the member whose conduct is the subject of the request.

The panel finding shall be immediately communicated to the president, to the member whose conduct is the subject of the request, and to the originator of the request. In the case of a finding of specified unethical conduct, the panel shall submit its recommendation for action by the Board of Directors through the president.

Expulsion, suspension, or censure of a member shall be reported in the CPCU News. Reprimand of a member shall not be reported, and shall be communicated only to the member whose conduct has been found to be unethical.

The Board of Directors shall have prepared a synopsis of each case, without names, resulting in disciplinary action, and shall publish these synopses in CPCU News for the education and guidance of all members.