1.    CODE OF CONDUCT
2.    CONFLICT OF INTEREST
3.    JURISDICTION OF DISPUTES
4.    DISCIPLINE

The Code of Conduct for the Battle River Soccer Association applies to all persons involved with the sport of soccer in the Battle River District.  The term Members, as used in Section 1, includes but is not limited to:

• All Youth and Senior Players, Team Officials and Game Officials;
• All Members as defined through the Bylaws or Policies of each Club; and
• All other individuals who may become involved such as Parents and Spectators.

Members have an obligation not only to abide by the By-Laws and Operating Policy of the Association but also to act in a manner that evidences their commitment to the principles and intent of the By-Laws and Operating Policy.

All members should expect to be treated equitably and fairly in all matters.  Members shall not discriminate against other members by means of different, unequal or inconsistent treatment applied to individuals or segments of the members.

Private interests shall not provide the potential for or the appearance of an opportunity for benefit, wrongdoing or unethical conduct.  It is important to emphasize that conflict of interest relates to the potential for wrongdoing as well as to actual or intended wrongdoing.

Information or data entrusted to members for use in their capacity or position shall not be disclosed or disseminated in a matter that may cause embarrassment to the Association, or that betrays a trust or confidence. (FOIP)

Members shall at all times exhibit deportment that maintains the Association’s reputation, and shall at no time harm or hinder the Association or its ability to represent the sport.

No member shall harass another member by actions that include, but are not limited to, unwelcome remarks, invitations, requests, gestures or physical contact that, whether indirect or explicit, has the purpose or effect of humiliating, interfering with or creating an intimidating situation for the other member.  Harassment will be considered any such inappropriate behavior, be it ethnic, religious or sexual in nature.

The interaction or involvement of members under the jurisdiction of the Association shall not result in threats, intimidation, or inflicted physical distress between such members, whether implied or explicit.

On election to the position of a Director of the Association or a Director of a Member of the Association, the newly elected director, shall immediately disclose in writing any personal, professional or business activity that may be construed as a potential conflict of interest, and periodically thereafter update such disclosure.

A Director of the Association or a Director of a Club of the Association shall not permit his/her own interests to conflict in any way with his/her fiduciary responsibilities to the Association.

A Director of the Association or a Director of a Club of the Association shall not benefit directly or indirectly from any transaction with the Association, unless it is to the clear advantage of the Association as determined by the Board of the Association.

A Director of the Association or a Director of a Club of the Association shall declare a conflict of interest and abstain from voting on any discussion matter relating specifically to his/her involvement with another soccer organization, private business interest or outside not-for-profit charitable organization.

A volunteer Director of the Association or a volunteer Director of a Club of the Association shall not receive compensation for his/her services, except for compensation for out-of-pocket expenses incurred in the performance of his/her duties on behalf of the Association.

Any deviation or perceived deviation from these Conflict of Interest Rules shall be acted upon only if reported in writing by the complainant to the Association concerned.

Any Director who, by personal or business conduct violates any part of section 1 may be suspended from the Board of Directors by two-thirds majority vote of the entire Board of the Association concerned after an investigation has been made at which the Director concerned has been given a proper hearing with a full opportunity to explain his/her action.  When such a hearing is being initiated, notice of such hearing shall be given to all concerned in writing, not less than 7 days before such hearing.  Such suspension will remain in effect until ratified by the membership of the Association concerned at its next General Meeting.

All Members, Affiliates, Registrants, Clubs, Players, Referees or Officials shall not refer disputes with the Association or any other soccer Association to a court of law but shall be required to submit any disagreements to the jurisdiction of the Association.

a.    General

i.  The Disciplinary Guidelines and Procedures for the Battle River Soccer Association applies to all persons involved with the Sport of Soccer in the Battle River District.  The term Members, as used in this Section, includes but is not limited to:

• All Players, Team Officials and Game Officials;
• All Members as defined through the Bylaws or Policies of each Club; and
• All other individuals who may become involved such as Parents and Spectators.

ii.  BRSA Members may only take part in or attend games on condition that they observe the By-laws, Rules and Regulations of the Battle River Soccer Association (BRSA) and Alberta Soccer Association (ASA).  Failure to comply with any of the aforementioned shall be considered Misconduct and shall be dealt with by a BRSA Discipline Committee.

iii.    Clubs shall be held responsible for the actions of the BRSA Members associated with the Club.

iv.    Certain forms of Misconduct are beyond the auspices of the BRSA Discipline Committee process as it is more appropriate for a different level of authority to deal with these, as follows:

a)    Cases of misconduct involving alleged physical assault, attempted physical assault or threatening behavior towards a Game Official by any BRSA Member shall be dealt with by the Alberta Soccer Association.  The term Game Official, as used in this Section, is defined as a uniformed Referee or Assistant Referee while officiating in a sanctioned game that is about to begin, is in progress or has just concluded.

b)    Cases of misconduct involving alleged or attempted physical assault towards any person other than a Game Official by any BRSA Member shall be considered prima facie as a matter for criminal investigation and as such will be dealt with by the RCMP or other appropriate Police Authority.  Upon the outcome of such investigation, the Board of Directors of Battle River Soccer Association shall determine if any or further disciplinary action is warranted in a given case, at the discretion of their majority.

Notwithstanding either of the circumstances provided for above, if a Member’s behavior also includes the commission of a Prohibited Adult Dispute as outlined in item c) i) through iv), that Member shall still be subject to the immediate automatic disciplinary action(s) noted in item c) v) and vi) herein.

 v)    In addition to matters referred to in any other Bylaw, Rule or Regulation of the BRSA and ASA it shall be misconduct if any BRSA Member is proved at a Hearing of  a Discipline Committee to have done, permitted or assisted in doing or permitting any of the following:

1. Bet on any game other than on registered lotteries or pools;
2. Offered or attempted to offer, directly or indirectly, any consideration whatsoever to any BRSA Club, Team, Team Official, Player, Official of the BRSA or to any Game Official with a view to influencing the results of any game or accepting any such consideration; or
3. Committed any act or made any statement either verbally or in writing, or been responsible for conduct, continuing misconduct or any other matter which, in the opinion of  a Discipline Committee, is considered to be unsportsmanlike, insulting, improper behavior or likely to bring the game into disrepute.

vi)    Misconduct, for the purposes of the BRSA Discipline policy, will be referred to in one of three manners: 1) Game Infractions, (specifically in Battle River Outdoor Tier IV League play);  2) Prohibited Adult Disputes or 3) all other cases of Misconduct.  All other cases of Misconduct will include those other than specific Game Infractions and Prohibited Adult Disputes.  These shall subsequently be referred to as Complaints.

b.)    Game Infractions

i)    Subsequent to the start or conclusion of a game, the Referee has jurisdiction over players from the time they enter on to the field of play until the time they leave the field of play.

ii)    Game Infractions will be issued by Referees as either Cautions (Yellow Cards) or Ejections (Red Cards).

iii)    Game Infractions issued during a game will be recorded by the Referee on the Game Sheet and subsequently forwarded to the Administration of BRSA within forty-eight (48) hours of the completion of the game.  If required, further information on the specifics of the Infraction may be provided by the Referee on the Game Sheet or on an ASA Misconduct Report.

iv)    BRSA will keep a permanent record of Game Infractions issued during a Season.  The BRSA Administrator shall advise the Co-ordinator of the Discipline Committees of additional Game Suspensions.  It will be the responsibility of the Co-ordinator to notify the Team Officials by telephone of additional Game Suspensions.

v)    Team Officials will hold responsibility for ensuring that all additional Game Suspensions are met by the Player.

vi)    Players serving any additional Game Suspensions resulting from Game Infractions are prohibited from playing with any Team(s) until the suspension has been served with games of the Team that the Player was registered with at the time of the offense(s).

vii)    For additional Game Suspensions, the Player may choose to accept the terms of the suspension or request a Discipline Hearing to review the circumstances.

viii)    If any further action is required in relation to Game Infractions, the Co-coordinators responsible for ensuring that the process is completed satisfactorily, including, if applicable, keeping the Committee Members dealing with that case informed.

c.)    Prohibited Adult Disputes

i)    It is an absolute policy of the Battle River Soccer Association that no adult Member should ever be involved in a verbal dispute, argument, disagreement or heated exchange of words with any other person or persons within the sight and sound vicinity of any youth soccer player attending a sanctioned game or practice.

ii)    Any breach of this policy, regardless of who initiated, incited or perpetuated the exchange of words, shall constitute an offense on the part of any and all adult Members involved in such a dispute.

iii)    Notwithstanding that any given case of Misconduct may, by virtue of the provisions contained in clause a) iv) herein, be referred to be dealt with by a more appropriate authority, it is a distinct and separate policy of the Battle River Soccer Association that the commission of any Prohibited Adult Dispute shall, in and of itself, be dealt with and punishable as specifically prescribed in clause c) herein regardless of any decision later rendered by the other authority.

iv)    The matter of whether a Prohibited Adult Dispute has occurred or not is a matter of fact that is determinable only by the independent opinions of two or more adult persons in attendance.  The Member(s) will be notified by telephone call from the Co-ordinator of the Discipline Committees as soon as such factual evidence is produced and received.

v)    The following immediate automatic disciplinary actions shall apply to Members committing this offense:

• First Offense            2 Game Suspension
• Second Offense            Prohibition for remainder of current season

vi)    If an adult Member deemed to have committed a First Offense only chooses to contest the automatic 2 Game Suspension above, a specially convened Discipline Hearing shall be arranged before the commencement of that individual Member’s next sanctioned game.  If the Hearing concludes that a Prohibited Adult Dispute did in fact occur, regardless of fault or whoever may have initiated, incited or perpetuated such exchange, the number of games from which that Member is suspended shall double from two (2) to four (4).

vii)    Except as denoted in v) above, no adult Member who is deemed to have committed this offense shall be entitled to any further Disciplinary Hearing or Appeal process whatsoever notwithstanding any other provision otherwise contained in this Section.

d.)    Cautions (Yellow Cards)

i)    All Players will begin each Soccer Season with a clean record.  Accumulated Cautions will be removed from their record at the start of the new Season.

ii)    A second Caution received by a Player during a single game will be dealt with as an Ejection. The Player or Team Official must remove themselves from the field of play immediately; failure to do so will result in a Discipline Hearing.  For the purpose of accumulated Cautions during the Season, this will be tracked as one (1) Yellow Card and one (1) Red Card.

iii)    The following Suspensions for Cautions accumulated during a season shall be apply:

• three (3) Cautions    1 game Suspension
• 2 additional Cautions     1 game Suspension
• 1 additional Caution    2 game Suspension
• 1 additional Caution     4 game Suspension and a Discipline Hearing

iv)    When a Player records 3 Cautions during a Season, the BRSA Administrator will notify the Co-ordinator of the Discipline Committees, who will notify the Player by telephone of the suspension. 

v)    Players cautioned on the field of play and not sent out of the game shall not be dealt with by the Discipline Committee until the seventh (7th) such caution has been noted, unless it is contained in the report of the Referee.

e.)    Ejections

i)    Any Team Official or Player receiving a Red Card during the course of a game must leave the field of play immediately; failure to do so will result in a Discipline Hearing.  The Team Official or Player may not reenter or return to the field of play during the game.

ii)    Additional BRSA Suspensions for actions against Game Officials:

a.)    Abusive, offensive and/or insulting remarks:

• First Offense             2 game suspension
• Second Offense             4 game suspension
• Third Offense             Discipline Hearing

b.)    Deliberate physical contact, attempted physical contact or threats will result in an immediate suspension pending outcome of ASA hearing.

iii)    Additional BRSA Suspensions for actions against Players and/or Team Officials:

a.)    Abusive, offensive and/or insulting remarks:

• First Offence             1 game suspension
• Second Offence             2 game suspension
• Third Offence             Discipline Hearing

b.)    Serious Foul Play, (First Offense/ Second Offense):

• Dangerous tackle   2 games     4 games
• Charging                2 games     4 games
• Push from behind  2 games     4 games
• Boarding                3 games     6 games
• Kick opponent        3 games     6 games
• Cynical Foul            1 game      2 games
• Hand Ball Preventing a Goal    1 game     2 games
• Extenuating Circumstances       Hearing     Hearing

c.)    Violent Conduct with intent to injure, (First Offense/Second Offense):

• Attempt to strike   2 games     6 games
• Strike                    6 games    10 games
• Punch                    6 games     10 games
• Elbow                   6 games     10 games
• Push                      5 games     8 games
• Kick                      4 games     10 games
• Throw object that strikes   6 games     10 games
• Cause bodily harm             Hearing     Hearing
• Bite/scratch/gouge             Hearing     Hearing
• Drawing blood                   Hearing     Hearing

d.)    Fighting, (First Offense/Second Offense):

• Cause bodily harm  Hearing     Hearing
• Instigator                 Hearing     Hearing     
• Retaliator                 Hearing     Hearing
• Head Butt                 8 games     16 games
• Spit at/on                 1 Year         Life Suspension

iv)    Additional BRSA Suspensions for specific actions, (First Offense/Second Offense):

• Illegal entry onto field     8 games     Hearing
• Return after Ejection       Hearing     Hearing
• Dissent:
  • Gestures  3 games     Hearing
  • Verbal     2 games     Hearing

v)    The BRSA Administrator will notify the  Co-ordinator of the Discipline Committees about all Ejections, and the Co-ordinator will in turn communicate the applicability and term of the suspension by telephone call to the disciplined individual.

vi)    Team Officials ejected from the game shall be dealt with in the same manner as outlined for the Player.

f.)    Complaints

i)    All Complaints must come in writing to the  Co-ordinator of the Discipline Committees.  

ii)    The Co-ordinator will attempt to resolve any Complaints through the President of the respective Club from which the Complaint originates.  If this is not feasible or the Co-ordinator is unable to resolve it in this manner, then the Co-ordinator will establish and correspond with a Discipline Committee in order to get resolution.

g.)    Discipline Hearings

i)    When a Hearing is called by a Discipline Committee, the Accused shall be informed of the time, date, and place of such Hearing by the Club representative after such notice has been provided from the Chair of that Discipline Committee.  Once notice is proved to the Club representative, it shall then be the Club representative’s duty to ensure that the Accused are duly informed.  Other Members required to be present shall be given notice directly by the Chair of the Discipline Committee.

ii)    A representative may speak at the Discipline Hearing on behalf of a Member if they so desire.

iii)    A minimum of forty-eight (48) hours notice will be given for attendance at a Discipline Hearing for any Members called to appear.  Members have the right to waive their attendance.  The onus is upon the Member to contact the Chair of the Discipline Committee if they wish to waive their attendance.

iv)    Any Member or representative failing to appear before a Discipline Hearing after due process has been served will be fined fifty dollars ($50.00).  The fine may be waived where extenuating circumstances are demonstrated.

v)    Legal counsel may only accompany the accused with permission of the BRSA.

vi)    A Hearing by the Discipline Committee shall have no less than three members, one of whom shall act as Chairman.

vii)    One of the Members of the Discipline Committee shall prepare a Report on the Complaint.

viii)    Discipline Hearings shall be conducted as follows:

a.)    One of the Discipline Committee Members shall act as the Recording Secretary or a non-voting Secretary, (not one of the Discipline Committee), shall be appointed to be present for the Hearing.  The Chair of the Discipline Committee shall act as Chair of the Hearing, or another Discipline Committee Members will act in his absence.

b.)    The Chair shall state the Offense.

c.)    The Report will be read by a Member of the Discipline Committee.

d.)    The Accused shall be allowed to make submissions in regards to the Offense.

e.)    The Accused and the Discipline Committee Member writing the Report shall have the opportunity to call witnesses limited in number at the discretion of the Chair.  Discipline Committee Members may question the accused or any witnesses related to the Complaint.

f.)    The Accused shall be allowed to make any final summations before withdrawing.

g.)    If the Discipline Committee requires further evidence, the Hearing will be adjourned pending a follow-up investigation.  The Committee must reconvene at the earliest opportunity and arrive at a decision.

h.)    The Discipline Committee will decide on the case by considering the Report and evidence provided.  If required, the Accused shall be notified in writing of the result of the Discipline Hearing.

ix)    The decision of the Discipline Hearing shall be made and sent to the Accused no later than fifteen (15) working days after the Hearing.

x)    The decision of the Discipline Committee may be appealed to the Board of Directors of the BRSA.

h.)    Appeals

i)    Appeals of Discipline Committee decisions must be made in writing to the President of the Battle River Soccer Association.  The President will take the Appeal forward to the Board of Directors.

ii)    Appeals must come within forty eight (48) hours of notification of the decision, excluding weekends and statutory holidays.  It must be accompanied by an Appeal fee of one hundred and fifty dollars ($150.00).  This fee will only be returned if the Appeal is upheld by the Board of Directors.

iii)    Decisions of a Disciplinary Committee shall not be suspended pending the Appeal, unless so ordered by the Board of Directors.

iv)    Members may check with the President before submitting an Appeal so that they can be made aware of current regulations regarding it, thereby avoiding the misfiling of their Appeal.

v)    The President shall have the power to determine the manner in which the Appeal is heard.

vi)    An Appeal in regards to the decision of the Board of the Directors may be made in writing to the Agent (official representative) of the Alberta Soccer Association as per the guidelines of ASA.

i.)    Protests

i)    Protests in regards to games must be made in writing to the Co-ordinator of the Discipline Committees within forty-eight (48) hours of the completion of the game.  It must be accompanied by the Protest fee of fifty dollars ($50.00), which will be refunded only if the Protest is upheld.  No written document can be considered as a Protest unless it is accompanied by the stated fee and is received within the proper time limit.

ii)    If required, a Protest Hearing may be held by a Discipline Committee.  All parties directly involved in a Protest Hearing shall be notified and have the option to attend the proceeding.

iii)     A Disciplinary Committee shall be established to review the circumstances as required, make a ruling, and notify the involved parties of the decision.

j.)    Bonds

i)    Bonds are posted by a Member to ensure that they will comply with the Rules and Regulations of the BRSA or any terms as outlined by the bond.

ii)    Bonds must be posted by the date indicated as a condition of the bond.

iii)    Bonds will be held in trust, by the BRSA, for the term of the bond.

iv)    Any Member wishing to contest a bond must make application in writing to the Co-ordinator of the Discipline Committees within forty-eight (48) hours of the bond being issued.

v)    In the event that the said Member subsequently contravenes any of the terms of the bond, the bond may be forfeited.

vi)    The bond will be returned to the Member once the term is successfully completed.

vii)    No interest will be paid on any bonds, returned or not, by the BRSA.

k.)    Fines

i)    All fines must be paid within the time allowances made by the BRSA.

ii)    Members with outstanding fines are considered suspended until the fine is paid in full.

iii)    Any Member wishing to contest a fine must make application in writing to the Co-ordinator of the Discipline Committees within forty-eight (48) hours of the fine being issued.

All fines incurred by any Member must be paid in full before the concerned may resume any activity within the District related to the Sport of Soccer.