The appellants, an engineer and his company, appealed a decision of the Discipline Committee of the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario finding them guilty of professional misconduct and negligence in the design of a manure storage tank.
The Divisional Court allowed the appeal, finding that the Discipline Committee breached procedural fairness by adjudicating an allegation regarding a 'cut-out' in the tank wall without providing proper notice to the appellants.
Furthermore, the Court held that the Discipline Committee erred by relying on expert evidence that it had previously ruled inadmissible regarding the standard of practice.
The findings of professional misconduct were set aside, and the matter was remitted for a re-hearing before a differently constituted panel.
