Albert Sweetnam

The Discipline Committee found that a former member and his company engaged in professional misconduct by plagiarizing a stormwater management report prepared by another engineering firm.

The respondents submitted the copied report for a single-family residential property, despite the original report being designed for a 70-unit townhouse development in a different municipality.

The respondents also failed to sign and seal the report and misrepresented an individual as an engineer in training.

The respondents did not attend the hearing.

The Committee revoked the member's licence and the company's Certificate of Authorization, and ordered $10,000 in costs.

The respondent, a former professional engineer, admitted to professional misconduct for certifying a structurally inadequate railing system design that failed to comply with the Ontario Building Code.

The Discipline Committee accepted an Agreed Statement of Facts and found the respondent guilty of professional misconduct.

The Committee also accepted a Joint Submission on Penalty, ordering a reprimand, publication with names, and, should the respondent seek reinstatement, a two-month suspension and a restriction prohibiting him from providing structural engineering services until he passes a specified examination.

The Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario brought disciplinary proceedings against a member and his engineering firm for submitting incorrect and altered calibration certificates for vibration monitoring units at two construction sites.

The member admitted to the allegations, acknowledging that the conduct amounted to negligence and unprofessional conduct under Regulation 941.

The Discipline Committee accepted a joint submission on penalty, finding it reasonable and consistent with prior cases.

The member and the firm were reprimanded, the member's licence was suspended for one month, and the findings were ordered to be published with names.

The respondents, a licensed professional engineer and his engineering firm, faced discipline for providing deficient structural engineering drawings and allowing an unlicensed employee to hold himself out as a professional engineer.

The respondents admitted to professional misconduct, including negligence and undertaking work outside their competence.

The Discipline Committee accepted a joint submission on penalty, ordering a reprimand, a two-month suspension of the member's licence and the firm's Certificate of Authorization, and a restriction prohibiting them from providing structural engineering services.

The moving parties requested a third adjournment of their discipline hearing because they retained new counsel who was unavailable on the scheduled dates.

The Discipline Committee denied the request, noting that the previous adjournment had been made peremptory to the moving parties, they had known about the peremptory nature of the dates for a month, and the hearing was still three months away.

The Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) brought disciplinary proceedings against the respondent for preparing deficient structural drawings and providing professional engineering services without a valid Certificate of Authorization.

The respondent admitted to the allegations in an Agreed Statement of Facts, acknowledging that the drawings lacked material data, cited an outdated Building Code, and failed to make reasonable provision for the safeguarding of the public.

The Discipline Committee accepted a Joint Submission on Penalty, finding it did not meet the high threshold for rejection established in Anthony-Cook.

The respondent was reprimanded, his licence was suspended for two months, he was fined $2,500, and a restriction was placed on his licence requiring the successful completion of structural engineering examinations.

The moving parties, a professional engineer and a certificate of authorization holder, requested a second adjournment of their discipline hearing after retaining new counsel who was unavailable for the scheduled June 2023 dates.

The moving parties also requested time to retain an expert and review disclosure.

The Discipline Committee granted the adjournment to September 2023, ordering that the new dates would be peremptory to the moving parties.

The moving parties, a professional engineer and a certificate of authorization holder, requested an adjournment of their discipline hearing because the engineer was out of the country with limited internet access.

The Association opposed the request but provided alternative dates if granted.

The Discipline Committee reluctantly granted the adjournment to the alternative dates, noting the engineer's prior unresponsiveness to scheduling attempts.

The Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) brought disciplinary proceedings against a member for providing structural engineering services without a Certificate of Authorization and outside his area of competence.

The member provided deficient structural drawings for a residential renovation that posed grave safety risks.

The member admitted to the allegations in an Agreed Statement of Facts.

The Discipline Committee found the member guilty of professional misconduct and accepted a Joint Submission on Penalty, ordering a reprimand, a one-month licence suspension, a permanent restriction prohibiting him from practising structural engineering, and publication of the decision.

The member, an electrical engineer, signed and sealed a letter to a municipality certifying that structural work for a solar panel installation had been completed in accordance with engineering drawings.

In fact, the member had not inspected the work, and approximately half of the required attachment plates were missing, creating a potential risk to public safety.

The member admitted to professional misconduct.

The Discipline Committee accepted a joint submission on penalty, ordering a reprimand, a one-month suspension of the member's licence and his company's Certificate of Authorization, publication of the decision, and a requirement that the member pass the Professional Practice Examination.

The Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) brought professional misconduct allegations against a member and his engineering firm regarding inaccurate heating and cooling load calculations for a residential solarium.

The member signed and sealed revised calculations prepared by a technician without checking them, resulting in a significantly undersized cooling unit.

The member admitted to the facts and pled guilty to professional misconduct for negligence and for sealing documents not actually prepared or checked by him.

The Discipline Committee accepted a joint submission on penalty, ordering a reprimand, publication without names, and successful completion of the Professional Practice Examination within 14 months, failing which a 10-month suspension would apply.