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Revised Statutes of Newfoundland 1990


CHAPTER L-6

AN ACT RESPECTING THE ASSOCIATION OF NEWFOUNDLAND LAND SURVEYORS

Analysis

1. Short title

2. Definitions

3. Registered surveyors only may practise

4. Exceptions

5. Corporation

6. Objects of the association

7. Powers of association

8. Council of management

9. Functions of council

10. Meetings

11. Board of examiners

12. Examinations

13. Board meetings

14. Articled student

15. Fees

16. Notice of examination

17. Qualifications for admission to practise

18. Attendance of articled student at school

19. Reduction of service on basis of qualifications

20. Death of surveyor

21. Transfer of articles

22. Duty of candidates to give notice of wish to be examined by board

23. Report to board on candidate's application for examination

24. Certificate

25. Oaths of office

26. Dismissal or suspension of members

27. Register

28. Fees to be paid before registration

29. Improper use of words implying registration

30. Publication of register of practising surveyors

31. Penalty for falsification of register by registrar

32. Penalty for fraudulently obtaining registration

33. Recovery of fees and fines

34. Mailing of notices and documents

35. Application of fees, etc.

36. Accounts and audits

37. Acting as professional agent of unqualified person

38. No action to be taken against association in certain cases

39. Liability of members is limited

40. Seal


Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Land Surveyors Act.

RSN1970 c198 s1

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Definitions

2. In this Act

(a) "association" means the Association of Land Surveyors of the Province of Newfoundland;

(b) "board" means the Board of Examiners appointed under section 11;

(c) "council" means the council of management of the association;

(d) "president" means the president of the association or the presiding officer at a general meeting of the association;

(e) "register" means the Surveyors' Register referred to in section 27; and

(f) "secretary", "secretary-treasurer" or "registrar" means the secretary-treasurer of the association.

RSN1970 c198 s2

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Registered surveyors only may practise

3. (1) A person shall not act as a surveyor of lands unless he or she is authorized to practise as a land surveyor according to this Act and is registered under this Act.

(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine of not less than $40 or more than $100.

RSN1970 c198 s4

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Exceptions

4. The prohibition contained in section 3 does not apply to

(a) a member of the Armed Forces of Canada acting in the course of his or her duty;

(b) a member of the public service of Canada or of the province acting in the course of his or her duty; or

(c) a person surveying his or her own property or surveying the property of another without reward

but nothing in this section shall exempt a person mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (c) who is a registered land surveyor under this Act from paying his or her dues or subscription to the association as a condition of continuing in membership.

RSN1970 c198 s3

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Corporation

5. (1) The Association of Land Surveyors of the Province of Newfoundland is continued as a corporation.

(2) The corporation consists of those persons who are authorized to practise as land surveyors under this Act.

(3) The head office of the association shall be at the place that the council may decide.

RSN1970 c198 s5

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Objects of the association

6. The objects of the association are

(a) to promote and improve the efficiency of land surveyors in the province in matters relating to land surveying;

(b) to do the matters and things that will advance and protect the interests of land surveyors in their profession;

(c) to assure the general public of the proficiency and competency of land surveyors in the practice of land surveying; and

(d) to do other matters and things that may be necessary for or conducive to the welfare of land surveyors and their usefulness to the public.

RSN1970 c198 s6

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Powers of association

7. The association has power to

(a) make by-laws

(i) to provide for the government, discipline and honour of its members,

(ii) to provide for the maintenance of the association by levying contributions or otherwise, but the levy shall not in a year exceed the total sum of $20 on each member,

(iii) to provide for the examination and admission of candidates for the study or practice of the profession,

(iv) to provide for the fixing and collecting of annual and other fees, and

(v) relating to the objects and powers of the association;

(b) acquire, hold and dispose of real and personal property; and

(c) do the other matters and things that may be necessary for the working of the association.

RSN1970 c198 s7

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Council of management

8. (1) There shall be a council of management of the association consisting of the president, vice-president and secretary-treasurer who shall be the registrar of the association and secretary of the examining committee, and 5 other members, to be elected and hold office in the manner provided in the by-laws.

(2) A new by-law or the amendment or repeal of an existing by-law shall be presented in writing to the secretary signed by at least 2 members 60 days before the annual meeting, and the secretary shall, in the notice calling the annual meeting, include a copy of the by-law or the amendment or repeal of an existing by-law, and the by-law, amendment or repeal shall become effective if passed at the annual meeting.

(3) The president, or in his or her absence the vice-president, or in the absence of both, the senior elected member of the council, shall act as chairperson at meetings of the council, and the council at its 1st meeting, following the election of the presiding officer and council for the next year, shall appoint those officers that may be necessary for the carrying out of this Act, who shall hold office during the pleasure of the council.

(4) Meetings of the council may be held by order of the president or at the request of 3 members of the council, and notice of the meetings shall be given by the secretary to each member by mailing the notice to the registered address of each member at least 21 days previous to the time of the meeting.

(5) At a council meeting, except when questions of discipline are to be decided, 3 members shall form a quorum, and all matters shall be decided by a majority of the votes of the active members of the council present at that meeting, the chairperson voting only when the votes are evenly divided, but questions of discipline shall be decided only by a majority of the votes of the total council.

(6) Except in the case of an appointment to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation, death or dismissal of a member of the council, all elected members of the council shall hold office for the term of 1 year and until their successors have been elected.

(7) In the case of the resignation, death or dismissal of the president, vice-president or an elective member of the council, the other members of the council may fill for the unexpired portion of his or her term a vacancy so caused.

RSN1970 c198 s8

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Functions of council

9. The functions of the council are

(a) to maintain the discipline of the members of the association;

(b) to prevent or remedy misunderstanding between members of the association, and to hear and decide all complaints and accusations preferred by 3rd parties against them in relation to their professional conduct; and

(c) to draw up an annual report on the operations of the association for submission to the annual general meeting of the association; and the report shall be in the form of the minutes of all meetings of the council during the preceding year.

RSN1970 c198 s9

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Meetings

10. (1) The annual general meeting of the association shall be held at the place and time that may be determined by the council.

(2) The association shall hold other meetings that are required.

(3) Notice of the meeting shall be given by the secretary-treasurer to each member of the association by a letter addressed to his or her registered address at least 30 days before the meeting.

RSN1970 c198 s10

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Board of examiners

11. (1) There shall be a board of examiners appointed by the association and approved by the Lieutenant-Governor in Council to examine candidates for admission to study and to examine candidates for admission to practise as land surveyors.

(2) The board shall consist of 2 members of the association and 2 other persons who may but shall not necessarily be members of the association, and members of the board shall hold office until their successors are appointed.

(3) Two members of the board shall form a quorum.

(4) The association shall pay all the expenses of the board, including the annual fee to the members that the association shall determine.

RSN1970 c198 s11

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Examinations

12. Examination of candidates for admission to the study or practice as land surveyors shall be held at a place on the 4th Monday in January in each year, or at another time, that the board shall determine.

RSN1970 c198 s12

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Board meetings

13. The board shall meet at the call of the secretary.

RSN1970 c198 s13

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Articled student

14. A person shall not be admitted as an articled student with a land surveyor unless he or she has previously passed an examination to the satisfaction of the board in the subjects that the board may prescribe.

RSN1970 c198 s14

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Fees

15. An applicant shall before being examined as provided in section 14 pay to the secretary the fees chargeable by the association for the examination and certificate.

RSN1970 c198 s15

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Notice of examination

16. (1) An applicant for examination previous to becoming an articled student shall give 1 month's notice to the secretary of his or her intention to present himself or herself for examination and shall pay to the secretary the required fee.

(2) Upon the candidate passing the necessary examination for an articled student the board shall notify the secretary of the fact.

(3) The candidate may then become articled to a land surveyor under the prescribed articles and shall within 2 months after the execution of the articles transmit the articles, or 1 of the duplicate originals where the articles are in duplicate, to the secretary together with the required fee.

(4) In the event of the articles not being forwarded to the secretary within the time required under subsection (3), the student's time of service under articles shall count from the time when the articles are received by the secretary instead of from the date of the articles.

RSN1970 c198 s16

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Qualifications for admission to practise

17. A person shall not practise as a land surveyor in the province until he or she

(a) has reached the age of 19 years;

(b) has passed an examination to the satisfaction of the board in the subjects that the board may prescribe;

(c) has previously served regularly for 3 successive years, of which at least 12 months has been in actual practice in the field, under a written instrument in the prescribed form, as articled student to a land surveyor admitted and practising as a land surveyor;

(d) has received from the land surveyor a certificate in the prescribed form of having so served; and

(e) has deposited with the secretary his or her own affidavit setting out the period of his or her articles and the actual surveys in the field with the dates of those surveys.

RSN1970 c198 s17; 1971 No71 s33

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Attendance of articled student at school

18. A person serving as an articled student may with the permission of the surveyor to whom he or she is articled attend a school, college or university approved by the board, for the purpose of taking a course of study which includes subjects required for the final examination for admission to practise as a land surveyor, but the total period of the term of articles and of the course of study shall not exceed the period of 4 years from the date of the articles and not less than 3 years of the period of 4 years shall be passed in the actual service of a practising land surveyor.

RSN1970 c198 s18

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Reduction of service on basis of qualifications

19. Where an applicant for admission to practise deposits with his or her application evidence of educational, professional or other qualifications which, in the discretion of the council, may warrant it, the council may reduce a period of service required under this Act to a period of not less than 1 year.

RSN1970 c198 s19

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Death of surveyor

20. Where a surveyor dies or leaves the province or is suspended or dismissed or stops practising, his or her articled student may complete his or her term of articles with a registered surveyor in actual practice.

RSN1970 c198 s20

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Transfer of articles

21. A surveyor may by written instrument transfer an articled student, with the student's consent, to another registered surveyor in actual practice with whom he or she may serve the remainder of the term of his or her articles.

RSN1970 c198 s21

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Duty of candidates to give notice of wish to be examined by board

22. A person, wishing to be examined by the board as to his or her qualifications to be admitted as a land surveyor, shall give written notice to the secretary at least 1 month prior to submitting for an examination and the person shall pay to the secretary the required fee and shall file with the secretary the certificate or other evidence of service that is required under this Act.

RSN1970 c198 s22

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Report to board on candidate's application for examination

23. The secretary shall immediately notify the board of the candidate's intention to present himself or herself for examination and shall make a report to the board showing whether the candidate has complied with the requirements as to payment of fees, service and otherwise so as to entitle the candidate to become a registered member of the association upon passing a successful examination.

RSN1970 c198 s23

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Certificate

24. Upon the board reporting to the secretary that the candidate is qualified to practise, the association shall grant him or her a certificate in the following form:

This is to certify that A.B. of .................... has passed the examination before the board of examiners and has been found qualified to fill the office and perform the duties of a surveyor in the Province of Newfoundland, having complied with all the requirements of the law, and A.B. is by law authorized to be registered as a member of the Association of Land Surveyors of the Province of Newfoundland.

The seal of the association has been affixed to this certificate at the city of ...................... in the Province of Newfoundland, the ..... day of .............. 19.... in the presence of: ..............................

and the certificate shall entitle him or her to practise as a land surveyor in the province.

RSN1970 c198 s24

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Oaths of office

25. (1) An applicant after having been granted a certificate and before registration shall take and sign the oath of allegiance and the official oath as prescribed by the Oaths of Office Act.

(2) The oath of allegiance and the official oath shall be forwarded to the secretary and shall be deposited by the secretary with the Department of Environment and Lands when the applicant has been registered.

RSN1970 c198 s25; 1988 c43 Sch A

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Dismissal or suspension of members

26. (1) The council may, in its discretion, suspend or dismiss from the association a land surveyor whom it finds guilty of gross negligence or corruption in the execution of the duties of his or her office but the council shall not take action until a complaint made under oath or affirmation has been filed with the secretary and a copy of the complaint forwarded to the person accused, and the council shall not suspend or dismiss a land surveyor without having previously summoned him or her to appear in order to be heard in his or her defence or without having heard the evidence offered in support of the complaint and on behalf of the surveyor inculpated, and all evidence shall be taken down by a competent stenographer as in the case of evidence taken in the Trial Division.

(2) A surveyor suspended or dismissed may within 1 month after the order or resolution of suspension or dismissal appeal to the Lieutenant-Governor in Council against the order or resolution by giving 7 days' notice to the council and the Lieutenant-Governor in Council and the evidence taken under subsection (1) shall be filed in the Department of Environment and Lands and the Lieutenant-Governor in Council may on the appeal make the order or direction as to the appeal and as to costs that justice may require.

(3) Unless the suspension or dismissal is set aside or the council or the Lieutenant-Governor in Council otherwise orders, a surveyor so suspended or dismissed shall not practise as a surveyor until after the appeal has been disposed of, except where the time for which he or she was suspended has expired.

(4) The council may in its discretion suspend or dismiss from the association a member and remove his or her name from the register where the member has been convicted of a crime and there is no appeal to the Lieutenant-Governor in Council.

(5) Where the council thinks it appropriate it may direct the registrar to restore to the register a name or entry erased from it, either without fee or on payment of a fee, not exceeding the arrears of fees due the association by the person, that the council may fix, and the registrar shall restore the name or entry accordingly.

RSN1970 c198 s26; 1986 c42 Sch A

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Register

27. The registrar shall keep a register, to be known as the Surveyors' Register, of all persons entitled to be registered under this Act and shall enter opposite the names of all registered persons who have died a statement of the fact and shall make the necessary alterations in the addresses of persons registered, and shall keep the register in accordance with the by-laws and the orders and regulations of the council.

RSN1970c198s27

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Fees to be paid before registration

28. (1) A person shall not be registered for a year unless he or she has previously paid to the secretary the required fees and complied in all respects with the by-laws but a person having allowed his or her registration to lapse by default in payment of fees may have his or her name entered on the current register upon application to the secretary and upon payment to the secretary of the fees due for the current year, together with a fee of $5.

(2) A name shall not be entered in the register other than that of a person authorized by this Act to be registered, or unless the registrar is satisfied by proper evidence that the person claiming to be entitled to be registered is so entitled, and an appeal from the decision of the registrar shall be decided by the council and an entry which is proved to the satisfaction of the council to have been fraudulently or incorrectly made shall be erased from or amended in the register by order of the council.

(3) The association may by by-law provide that a land surveyor who has been in the actual practice of the profession for a period of 35 years or more and has during the entire period been a qualified land surveyor may be exempted from the payment of the annual membership fee to the association.

RSN1970 c198 s28

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Improper use of words implying registration

29. (1) A person, unless registered as provided in this Act, shall not make or use the name or title of Newfoundland Land Surveyor either alone or in combination with other words or a name, title or description implying that he or she is registered under this Act.

(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $50 for the 1st offence and not exceeding $100 for each subsequent offence.

RSN1970 c198 s29

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Publication of register of practising surveyors

30. (1) The registrar shall in every year print, publish and keep for inspection at his or her office, free of charge, under the direction of the council, a correct list of the names, in alphabetical order, together with the addresses of all persons appearing on the register on February 1 in every year.

(2) The register, and a copy of the list in accordance with subsection (1), is, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, evidence in all courts that the persons specified are registered according to this Act, but in the case of a person whose name does not appear in the copy a certified copy signed by the registrar of the entry of the name of that person in the register is evidence that he or she is registered under this Act, and a copy of the list shall immediately upon being printed in accordance with subsection (1) be sent to the Department of Environment and Lands.

(3) A plan of the survey of land in the province shall not be accepted unless it is properly executed by a surveyor whose name appears on the current register.

RSN1970 c198 s30; 1988 c43 Sch A

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Penalty for falsification of register by registrar

31. Where the registrar wilfully makes or allows to be made a falsification in a matter relating to the register or wilfully omits to make an entry in the register that should be made, he or she is guilty of an offence and liable upon summary conviction to a fine of not less than $20 and not more than $50 and in default of payment to imprisonment for a period of 6 months.

RSN1970 c198 s31

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Penalty for fraudulently obtaining registration

32. A person who wilfully obtains or attempts to obtain registration under this Act by making a fraudulent representation or declaration either orally or in writing that he or she is entitled to registration is guilty of an offence and liable upon summary conviction to a fine of not less than $20 and not more than $50, and in default of payment to imprisonment for a period of 6 months, and the council may remove the name of the offender from the register.

RSN1970 c198 s32

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Recovery of fees and fines

33. All fees payable to the association under this Act may be recovered as ordinary debts due the association.

RSN1970 c198 s33

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Mailing of notices and documents

34. (1) Notices and documents required to be sent under this Act may be sent by registered mail and shall be considered to have been received at the time when the letter containing the notice or document would be delivered in the ordinary course of mail, and in proving the sending, it is sufficient to prove that the letter containing the notice or document was prepared and properly addressed and mailed.

(2) The notices and documents may be in writing or in print or partly in writing and partly in print and when sent to the council or other authorities shall be considered to be properly addressed if addressed to the council or authority at the principal place of business of the council or authority and when sent to a person registered under this Act shall be considered to be properly addressed if addressed to the person according to his or her address registered in the register of the association.

RSN1970 c198 s34

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Application of fees, etc.

35. (1) Money arising from fees payable on registration or from the annual fees or from the sale of copies of the register or otherwise shall be paid to the registrar to be applied in accordance with the by-laws that may be made by the council for defraying the expenses of registration and other expenses of the association.

(2) The council may invest a sum not spent as above in trustee investments in the name of the Association of Land Surveyors of the Province of Newfoundland and income derived from the invested sums shall be added to and considered as part of the ordinary income of the association.

(3) The association may also use surplus funds or invested capital for the rental or purchase of land or premises or for the building of premises to serve as offices, lecture rooms, libraries or for other public purposes connected with land surveying.

RSN1970 c198 s35

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Accounts and audits

36. The registrar shall enter in books to be kept for that purpose a true account of all sums of money received by him or her and paid under this Act and the account shall be audited by the auditors and submitted to the council and association at the time that they may require.

RSN1970 c198 s36

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Acting as professional agent of unqualified person

37. A land surveyor, who knowingly and wilfully acts as a professional agent of a person not qualified to practise as a land surveyor or uses or allows his or her name to be used in an agency or acts in a way that allows an unqualified person to practise as a land surveyor in the province or which is calculated to or does or may lead the public or a person to believe that that unqualified person is authorized to practise as a land surveyor or who falsely certifies as to the service under articles of a student when the service has not been actually performed in the manner intended and required by this Act, is liable to a charge of misconduct in the execution of the duties of his or her office and to discipline in addition to other liabilities which he or she may incur by the misconduct.

RSN1970 c198 s37

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No action to be taken against association in certain cases

38. An action does not lie against the association or the council or a disciplinary committee or a member of the council or disciplinary committee or an officer of the association for proceedings taken in good faith or orders made or enforced under the disciplinary provisions of this Act or under the by-laws.

RSN1970 c198 s38

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Liability of members is limited

39. A member shall not be personally liable for a debt of the association beyond the amount of his or her unpaid dues or subscriptions, where the member has not contravened this Act, but all property, real, personal or mixed, shall be liable for the payment of the debts of the association.

RSN1970 c198 s39

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Seal

40. A person registered as a member under this Act shall have a stamp, the impression of which shall bear the name of the member, and the words "Newfoundland Land Surveyor, Province of Newfoundland" with which he or she shall stamp all official documents and plans prepared or approved by him or her.

RSN1970 c198 s40

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