Renewal of your firm s ACCA/AAPA auditing certificate for 2013

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1 Renewal of your firm s ACCA/AAPA auditing certificate for 2013 Your 2013 firm's* auditing certificate renewal must be completed in all circumstances and should be submitted as soon as possible. (* The term "firm" encompasses partnerships, limited liability partnerships and limited companies throughout this letter and the accompanying documentation.) Electronic submission You may submit your firm s auditing certificate renewal online via myacca, available through our website: You are able to access myacca by entering your firm s ACCA reference number and firm s passcode. The renewal process A firm which holds, or intends to seek to hold, audit appointments (whether in the firm s name or in the names of individual partners/directors) must hold an ACCA/AAPA auditing certificate or an equivalent certificate issued by another Recognised Supervisory Body under the UK Companies Act A firm holding an ACCA/AAPA auditing certificate is entitled to include the statement Registered as auditors by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants on its stationery. A firm intending to cease holding an ACCA/AAPA auditing certificate must still submit a renewal, with the appropriate section detailing the firm's new audit registration arrangements, if any, completed. Firms intending to cease trading should note that the Global Practising Regulations place continuing obligations on partners/directors, including the requirement to arrange run-off professional indemnity insurance for a period of six years following cessation of practice. The renewal process has been made as straightforward as is consistent with legislative and other regulatory requirements. In addition to providing your confirmation and understanding of the conditions for renewal, you are required to submit details of: Continued

2 Page 2 any changes to your firm's address(es) or composition; the number of audit appointments held and whether the firm has any public interest audit clients **; confirmation as to which non-aapa partners/directors, if any, hold an appropriate qualification for audit ; and any non-partners/directors (i.e. consultants, employees, sub-contractors) responsible for signing audit reports. (**Please refer to the Audit Client Information (UK) form for details of public interest audit clients. An appropriate qualification for audit means that a Recognised Supervisory Body under the Companies Act 2006 has specifically confirmed that an individual is qualified to conduct audit work. AAPA confirms this status through the issue of the non-statutory practising certificate and ACCA through the issue of the practising certificate and audit qualification. Arrangements among other bodies vary, with some issuing certificates and others providing written confirmation. If in any doubt as to a partner s or director s audit status, you must obtain appropriate confirmation from his/her professional body.) If your firm is a limited company, you must also supply, on the Audit Register Information (UK) form, a complete list of shareholders, stating the percentage of shares and any professional qualifications each holds. The document headed "Conditions for the renewal of an ACCA/AAPA firm's auditing certificate 2013" is an integral part of the renewal. In submitting the renewal, your firm will be agreeing to comply with the undertakings contained in this document and to be bound by the ACCA/AAPA Global Practising Regulations made thereunder (and/or any subsequent regulations replacing or amending, in full or part, these regulations). Continued

3 Page 3 Audit client information All firms holding an ACCA auditing certificate are required to complete and return the Audit Client Information (UK) form in respect of all UK audits and other appointments which require a report by a registered auditor (e.g. solicitors accounts rules). Alternatively, this information can be submitted online via myacca at the same time as the firm s auditing certificate renewal. The information provided will enable ACCA to: collate information on audits to aid in its allocation of monitoring visits; and provide information to the UK Financial Reporting Council - Professional Oversight Team (FRC-POT) Auditor s resignation statements You are reminded that auditors who cease to hold office for any audits carried out under the Companies Act 2006 or to entities listed in s1210 of the Companies Act 2006, are required to notify the appropriate audit authority. This is a requirement of s.522 of the Companies Act The 'appropriate audit authority' will either be ACCA, where it concerns a 'non-major audit' (essentially private limited companies) or the FRC-POT, where it concerns a 'major audit' (essentially listed companies). In the case of 'non-major audits', notifications are required where firms cease to hold office before the end of their term of office. In such cases firms should notify ACCA within 14 days of the date on which the auditors' statement of circumstances has been filed at the client's registered office. In the case of major audits, notifications to FRC-POT should be at the same time as the statement of circumstances is filed at the client's registered office. In both cases a copy of the statement should be provided with the notification. Continued

4 Page 4 Firms are required to confirm, on the Audit Client Information (UK) form or online via myacca, whether they have ceased to hold office as auditors to any clients before the expiry of their normal term of office and, if so, to notify ACCA immediately if they have not already done so. All firms holding ACCA auditing certificates for the UK are required to complete this section of the form. Any notifications should be sent to Governance - Regulation, ACCA, 29 Lincoln s Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3EE or by to [email protected]. Further information about the requirement on auditors to notify the appropriate audit authority can be viewed at www2.accaglobal.com/pubs/members/publications/technical_factsheets/downlo ads/142.pdf. Guidance on notifications to FRC-POT can be viewed at Audit/Notification-of-change-of-auditor.aspx. Technical queries regarding this matter should be directed to ACCA s Technical Advisory section on Register of Statutory Auditors (UK) The web-based Register of Statutory Auditors can be viewed online at To ensure that the information published on the register is correct all firms holding ACCA auditing certificates for the UK are required to complete and return the Audit Register Information (UK) form. Alternatively, you may submit this information online via myacca at the same time as the firm s auditing certificate renewal. The fee for an ACCA/AAPA auditing certificate for 2013 is 393 per partner/director. If you do not wish to provide payment when submitting your renewal ACCA can send you an invoice for the fee. You may settle this invoice by cheque or by providing credit/debit card details. However, should you choose not to provide payment when submitting your renewal you should note that your 2013 certificate will not be despatched (and your authorisation will not be valid) until the invoice has been settled. Therefore, to ensure your firm remains eligible to undertake audit work on 1 January 2013, you should submit your renewal and payment as soon as possible. Continued

5 Page 5 A firm which fails to submit a renewal, or pay an invoice raised in respect of a renewal, by 31 December 2012 will be subject to a late submission penalty fee of 65 (per firm) in addition to the standard renewal fee and may become liable to disciplinary action. You should also note that it will not be possible to complete the processing of an auditing certificate renewal until all AAPA partners/directors in the firm have submitted their individual non-statutory practising certificate renewals. Renewals for individual partners'/directors' 2012 non-statutory practising certificates can be submitted online through myacca. Please do not hesitate to contact Authorisation on 0141 (or ) (fax 0141 (or ) , [email protected]) if you require any further information or assistance regarding the renewal of your firm s auditing certificate.

6 Conditions for the renewal of an ACCA/AAPA firm's auditing certificate 2013 If you have been subject to matters within the terms of bye-law 8 and Governance Professional Conduct at ACCA is aware of this, you may sign and submit the renewal form. If you are concerned that you may be subject to matters under bye-law 8 of which Governance Professional Conduct is not already aware, please notify ACCA in writing to [email protected] or 29 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3EE. Following this notification you may sign and submit the renewal form. In signing the 2013 firm's auditing certificate renewal form I confirm that my firm will abide by the provisions of the Chartered Certified Accountants' Global Practising Regulations 2003 (and/or any subsequent regulations replacing or amending, in full or part, these regulations) and that in particular: A Fit and proper persons none of the matters or events referred to in the Chartered Certified Accountants' Global Practising Regulations (GPR) 8 applies to my firm or to any person referred to in regulation 13 of the UK Annex; B Professional indemnity insurance my firm holds professional indemnity insurance as required by GPR9 and regulation 14 of the UK Annex to the GPRs and, following the expiry of my firm's current policy, my firm will renew it on terms complying with that regulation; C Maintenance of competence all persons responsible for audits undertaken by my firm are aware of GPR 10 and I will ensure that they maintain an appropriate level of competence through continuing professional development in accordance with regulation 15 of the UK Annex to the GPRs; D Continuity of practice my firm has made arrangements complying with GPR 11 for the continuity of the practice in the event of the firm's dissolution, winding-up or liquidation, either in the partnership agreement or memorandum and articles of association, or by entering into a written agreement with another firm; E Notification my firm agrees to comply with GPR 12 and to notify in writing to ACCA all matters specified in that regulation and will provide such notification at least 28 days in advance of the relevant event where applicable. I undertake to notify ACCA immediately in the event of any information previously supplied to it in support of my application ceasing to be true, accurate or complete, or in the event of any change in circumstances, or any event that may call into doubt the validity of my application, or the continuation of any certificate granted; F Conduct of practice my firm will comply with GPR 13, regulation 18(1) of the UK Annex to the GPRs, ACCA's Code of Ethics and Conduct and all technical standards/guidelines applicable to its work; G Monitoring my firm is aware of the requirements of GPR 14 and regulation 20 of the UK Annex of the GPRs and will supply all such information as is necessary to enable ACCA to complete its monitoring and quality assurance programme, ACCA Quality Checked, efficiently; H Control of partnership/incorporated firm I confirm that the partnership/incorporated firm is controlled by qualified persons within the meaning of regulation 8 of the UK Annex to the GPRs by virtue of the fact that under the firm's constitution/partnership agreement/memorandum and articles of association, matters are decided on by the exercise of voting rights and a majority of such voting rights are held by persons who: i are qualified persons; and ii spend a material amount of time working in the firm; I Disclosure of information and register of auditors my firm will comply with GPR 15 and regulation 19(1) of the UK Annex to the GPRs and will supply to ACCA all necessary information in accordance with the Companies Act J Anti money laundering my firm will comply with the requirements of relevant money laundering legislation and regulation, including specifically that: my practice has a nominated officer to take responsibility for compliance there are procedures in place to gather and retain evidence of the identification of all clients principals and staff in my practice receive appropriate training ongoing compliance monitoring is carried out suspicions of money laundering are reported as required by law. (Where reference is made to the GPRs, applicants applying to renew auditing certificates valid in the UK should note that they must also comply with the UK Annex to the GPRs). This document is an integral part of the 2013 renewal form. A false or misleading statement on any part of the renewal form may constitute grounds for disciplinary action being taken against you and/or your firm. AAPA FAC Notes

7 ACCA Audit Firms Audit Client Information (UK) 2013 This form must be completed by each firm which is registered as auditors by ACCA in respect of all UK audits and other appointments which require a report by a registered auditor. Please return your completed form to Authorisation, ACCA, 2 Central Quay, 89 Hydepark Street, Glasgow G3 8BW. Additional copies of this form can be downloaded from ACCA s website at and then choosing the link 'Forms for practitioners'. Alternatively, you may submit your firm's audit client information online when submitting your renewal. If your firm does not undertake any audit or other work which requires a report by a registered auditor you must still complete and return this form, or submit online, with the appropriate sections duly completed. The purpose of this form is to enable ACCA to: collate information on audits to aid in its allocation of monitoring visits meet its obligations as a Recognised Supervisory Body provide information on audit of entities within the scope of the Audit Inspection Unit of the Financial Reporting Council Professional Oversight Team. AI1 FIRM'S DETAILS Name of firm Firm s ACCA reference number (if known/applicable) AI2 CLIENT INFORMATION Total number of UK audit clients and other appointments which require a report by a registered auditor Number of UK public interest audit clients (please refer to the guidance at the end of the next section) AI3 AUDITS (Please list below all UK audit appointments and other appointments which require a report by a registered auditor) Please continue on a separate sheet if necessary Name of client Type* Business sector Turnover ( ) * Please use the key overleaf to identify entities which fall under the following categories

8 AI3 AUDITS (continued) Name of client Type* Business sector Turnover ( ) KEY N Non-public interest entity P Public interest entity. This includes specifically those entities listed below and may also include other clients which, in accordance with your firm's own policy, you consider to be a public interest entity (eg entities that you consider are of significant public interest because of their business, their size, their number of employees or their stakeholders) O Other report required by a registered auditor (eg solicitors' accounts rules) For a public interest entity, please indicate if it falls into any of the categories listed below. P1 All UK incorporated companies with listed equity and/or listed debt P2 AIM or Plus-quoted companies incorporated in the UK with a market capitalisation in excess of 50 million P3 UK unquoted companies, groups of companies, limited liability partnerships or industrial and provident societies with group turnover in excess of 500 million: P4 UK incorporated banks not already included in any other category P5 Private sector pension schemes with either more than 1,000 million of assets or more than 20,000 members P6 Charities with incoming resources exceeding 100 million P7 Friendly Societies with total net assets in excess of 1,000 million P8 UK building societies P9 UK Open-Ended Investment Companies and UK Unit Trusts managed by a fund manager with more than 1,000 million of UK funds under management P10 Mutual Life Offices whose 'With-Profits' fund exceeds 1,000 million AI4 AUDITOR'S RESIGNATION STATEMENTS Has the firm ceased as statutory auditor for any audits carried out under the Companies Act 2006 or to entities listed in s1210 of the Companies Act 2006 (eg banks, insurers, partnerships where all the partners are companies, building societies, Lloyds syndicates or limited liability partnerships)? Yes No If the answer is Yes and you have not notified ACCA (or the Financial Reporting Council Professional Oversight Team in the case of 'major' audits and their subsidiaries) that you have ceased to hold office, together with the reasons, then you should do this immediately. In general, notifications are required within 14 days of the date on which the auditors statement of circumstances has been filed at the client's registered office, a copy of which should be provided with the notification. This is a requirement of s522 of the Companies Act 2006 and non-compliance is a criminal offence. Notifications should be sent to Governance Regulation, ACCA, 29 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3EE, or by to [email protected] Further guidance can be obtained from technical factsheet 142, available on ACCA's website. AI5 CONFIRMATION Before signing this form, please refer to the guidance on the enclosed conditions On behalf of my firm I confirm that the information given in this form is true, accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief after making all reasonable enquiries. I understand that a false declaration on this form may lead to disciplinary action being taken against me and/or my firm. I further confirm that neither I nor the firm nor any of its partners/directors/responsible individuals have been subject to any criminal, disciplinary, regulatory or any other matters within the terms of bye-law 8 (liability to disciplinary action) that may call into doubt my firm's eligibility to hold an auditing certificate, which have not already been brought to the attention of Governance Professional Conduct at ACCA. I understand that the UK Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 does not apply to the accountancy profession, and that I am therefore required to disclose spent convictions. I am aware of, and will abide by, my continuing obligation to draw any such matters to ACCA's attention. Contact partner's/director's signature Date For office use only Processed by Date

9 ACCA Audit Firms Audit Register Information (UK) This form must be completed by each firm which is registered as auditors by ACCA in the UK. Please return your completed form to: Authorisation, ACCA, 2 Central Quay, 89 Hydepark Street, Glasgow G3 8BW. Alternatively, you may submit this information online when submitting your renewal. The purpose of this form is to enable ACCA to obtain additional information about your firm for the UK Register of Statutory Auditors. Failure to return the form may lead to incorrect information being published on the register. AR1 FIRM'S DETAILS Name of firm Firm s ACCA reference number (if known/applicable) AR2 OTHER AUDIT REGISTRATIONS Does your firm hold audit registration with any EEA this is any country that is an EU member state and Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway and Gibraltar competent authority or non-eea authority? Yes No If Yes, please provide: Name of authority Registration number with authority If your firm is registered with more than one EEA competent authority or non-eea authority, please provide the above information on a separate sheet. Do any of the partners/directors/responsible individuals in your firm hold audit registration with any EEA competent authority or non-eea authority? Yes No If Yes, please provide: Name Membership number (if known/applicable) Name of authority Registration number with authority Please provide the above information for each partner/director/responsible individual on a separate sheet, as appropriate. AR3 management board Does your firm have a management board? Yes No If yes, please provide the names and qualifications of the members of the board (continue on a separate sheet if necessary)

10 AR4 NETWORKS Is your firm a member of a network? Yes No If Yes, please provide: Name of the network Names and addresses of the other members of the network (continue on a separate sheet if necessary) Names and addresses of the affiliates of those members. Alternatively, please provide the website address or the address of any other place where this information is available to the public (continue on a separate sheet if necessary) AR5 SHAREHOLDER DETAILS Limited companies only I enclose an up-to-date list of shareholders showing name(s), qualification(s) and number of shares held (NB If your firm has incorporated and you have not notified ACCA you must submit an incorporation notification form, which can be downloaded from ACCA's website at AR6 CONFIRMATION On behalf of my firm I confirm that the information given in this form is true, accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief after making all reasonable enquiries. I understand that a false declaration on this form may lead to disciplinary action being taken against me and/or my firm. I further confirm that neither I nor the firm nor any of its partners/directors/responsible individuals have been subject to any criminal, disciplinary, regulatory or any other matters within the terms of bye-law 8 (liability to disciplinary action) that may call into doubt my firm's eligibility to hold an auditing certificate, which have not already been brought to the attention of Governance Professional Conduct at ACCA. I understand that the UK Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 does not apply to the accountancy profession, and that I am therefore required to disclose spent convictions. I am aware of, and will abide by, my continuing obligation to draw any such matters to ACCA's attention. Contact partner's/director's signature Date For office use only Processed by Date

11 Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for practising members ACCA requires all members*, regardless of their role, to obtain CPD in areas relevant to their work; to maintain competence in professional ethics; and to keep their business and finance knowledge up to date. It is essential that practising members maintain competence in their areas of technical specialism, and obtain an appropriate proportion of CPD in those areas. Members holding an ACCA practising certificate and audit qualification must ensure they maintain their competence in audit even if no audit work is currently being undertaken. Members in spare-time practice who have other occupations outside of public practice must ensure that, in addition to maintaining their competence in the areas of their practice, they also undertake an appropriate proportion of CPD in relation to their other role or roles. This guidance sheet has been designed to support practising members with planning, completing, and documenting their CPD activity in accordance with ACCA s CPD policy. A set of common misconceptions about CPD is also included. Relevant CPD It is important that you undertake sufficient and relevant CPD. In order to ensure that CPD is effective, it is recommended that you reflect on your learning needs, act on these and subsequently assess the effectiveness of the CPD undertaken. You must not only obtain relevant CPD, but also keep documentation which clearly sets out the relevance to your current or future role. PLAn, DO, REVIEW Approaching your CPD methodically will ensure that the CPD you undertake is relevant to your professional circumstances, and derives the most value for you. The chart below will help you gain maximum value from your CPD, offering practical advice to help you think about maintaining and developing your knowledge and skills. keeping evidence of your CPD All members are required to keep evidence of their participation in the appropriate CPD route for three years as it may be required as part of ACCA s CPD review process. If you follow the unit route, you are required to maintain comprehensive evidence of your verifiable CPD units as well as a record of the non-verifiable CPD you have undertaken. You need to maintain evidence to show that your verifiable CPD was relevant and meaningful to your specific development needs. You should keep a record which shows why you chose the activity, how you will apply the learning and evidence of the learning outcome. To help you, ACCA has developed an online evidence record which you can access by logging in to myacca. Alternatively, you may wish to keep records in your own format. If you are following the unit route part-time/semi-retired you must firstly ensure that you meet ACCA s guidelines for parttime/semi-retired status. Practising members may only take this route if they are not responsible for audit or other regulated report work, and can show that they have technical support in carrying out their duties. In addition, any member taking this route cannot be involved in the preparation or presentation of accounts investors may rely on; it is also closed to nonexecutive directors of listed companies. Members following this route will need to keep a summary of non-verifiable CPD and evidence of the verifiable CPD undertaken with an explanation as to why it is a relevant and appropriate amount. ACCA will expect members to provide evidence of the number of hours worked, and confirmation that they are not working in a role that doesn t fall under the policy guidelines. To help you, ACCA has developed a CPD evidence checklist that you may wish to use to demonstrate why the activities you undertook were sufficient for your needs. Plan Do Review What are the areas you could develop to help you support your clients more effectively, or make a positive impact on your business? What are the technical and business skills you will need? What knowledge and skills will you need to maintain or develop in the next 6 12 months? Will the activities you ve identified meet your and your clients needs? Have you thought about a range of different learning activities (e-learning, coaching, networking?) Can you make an impact by developing skills to support others? (your employer or business, junior staff or ACCA trainees, the community?) Did your activity meet your needs? Can you apply your learning in the workplace, for example by satisfying your clients needs? Has there been a positive impact on your business? Do you need to undertake additional activity or was the CPD you undertook sufficient and effective? Would you do anything differently next time? Are there additional needs you ve identified which you should act upon? * Firms holding an ACCA auditing certificate and/or firms which are regulated by ACCA to carry on exempt regulated activities in the UK or holding an ACCA investment business certificate (Ireland) must require the individuals who are partners or directors or agents of the firm who are not members but who are responsible for the firm s audit work or carry on exempt regulated activities in the UK or investment business in Ireland on behalf of the firm to comply with ACCA s CPD policy.

12 If you follow the ACCA Approved Employer professional development route, you should keep evidence of your employment and evidence of your participation with your employer s development and appraisal processes. ACCA reserves the right to confirm with your employer that you followed their learning and development programme. If you follow the other IFAC body route, you should keep evidence of your membership of your other accountancy body and evidence of participation with their CPD requirements. If the other professional body has successfully reviewed your CPD evidence records, you should also keep a copy of the outcome letter. ACCA may ask for a copy of the outcome letter or alternatively a full set of evidence you have kept for your other professional body. What to expect if you are selected for a cpd review Promoting public confidence in professional accountants is vital. ACCA safeguards its reputation and that of its members by requiring that the highest professional and ethical standards are adhered to. In order to ensure that members maintain their knowledge and skills, ACCA conducts reviews of members CPD evidence, selecting a proportion of members annually. It is therefore possible that ACCA will contact you to confirm that you are undertaking CPD activity, irrespective of the CPD route that you follow. ACCA will provide feedback to you on your CPD activities and, where necessary, will give you guidance and support to enable you to meet the requirement. In cases where members do not cooperate with the review process (for example, by failing to respond to communications or submit CPD evidence), they may be removed from the register of members. CoMMon MisConCePtions I don t really need to plan my CPD If ACCA hosts a CPD event, it will definitely count as CPD Planning your CPD will help you to ensure you identify relevant learning. Some members do not plan their CPD and then find themselves having to complete all their activity at the end of the year. Others find that events which are most relevant are already fully booked. Planning will also help you to think about learning mediums other than courses and events while face-toface may be best for some types of learning, e-learning, research, or learning on-the-job may be far more effective for others. It is important that you take personal responsibility for your own learning needs. While ACCA hosts a wide range of CPD events, it is up to you to discern whether the event is relevant and sufficient to meet the needs of your role, business and clients. If an event is not relevant to your role, it will not count towards your CPD. If only some sessions at a conference are relevant to you, you should only include these sessions as verifiable CPD. It doesn t matter too much if the event didn t meet my personal needs I have got the units now If I have a certificate, I don t need to do anything else in terms of evidence I have to attend face-toface events in order to gain verifiable CPD units If an event is not relevant to you, it will not count as CPD. If an event is relevant, but did not meet your learning needs, it is important that you consider further learning interventions. The purpose of CPD is to reassure the public that your professional knowledge and skills are up to date if this may not be the case, consider what further CPD you need. In order for a learning activity to count as verifiable CPD, you must be able to answer the following three questions: 1 How was the learning activity relevant to your role? 2 Can you explain how you will apply the learning in the workplace? 3 Can you provide evidence that the learning took place? The certificate only addresses the third question. You must also be able to answer the first two and keep a record of this information. If you attend an ACCA event, these questions will be on your attendance certificate so you can record your answers easily. Alternatively you can keep evidence in other formats. Any learning activity can count as CPD, on the condition that you are able to answer the first question set out above being able to also answer the second and third question means that it is verifiable CPD. You are not restricted to face-to-face learning, but can take advantage of a wide range of different methods. Example: Lindsay has recently taken on a client who required support in an area Lindsay needed to research. Lindsay undertakes four hours of research and then prepares and delivers the work to the client. The four hours of research become four units of verifiable CPD. The work undertaken for the client is evidence of her learning activity. If this is highly sensitive, she could also ask a partner or colleagues to confirm her learning activity; notes from the client meeting and subsequent invoice would also corroborate her learning. For more information, including full information on verifiable CPD, evidence examples, and a wide range of learning opportunities, go to

13 Bye-law 8: Liability to Disciplinary Action 8 a A member, relevant firm or registered student shall, subject to bye-law 11, be liable to disciplinary action if: i ii iii iv v vi he or it, whether in the course of carrying out his or its professional duties or otherwise, has been guilty of misconduct; in connection with his or its professional duties, he or it has performed his or its work, or conducted himself or itself, or conducted his or its practice, erroneously, inadequately, inefficiently or incompetently; he or it has committed any breach of these bye-laws or of any regulations made under them in respect of which he or it is bound; in the case of a relevant firm, any person has in the course of the business of that firm committed any breach of these bye-laws or of any regulations made under them in respect of which that person is bound; he is a specified person in relation to a relevant firm against which a disciplinary order has been made and which has become effective or which has been disciplined by another professional body or pursuant to some other disciplinary process; he or it has been disciplined by another professional body or pursuant to some other disciplinary process; b c d e Each of the paragraphs in bye-law 8(a) shall be without prejudice to the generality of any of the other paragraphs therein. For the purposes of bye-law 8(a), misconduct includes (but is not confined to) any act or omission which brings, or is likely to bring, discredit to the individual or relevant firm or to the Association or to the accountancy profession. For the purposes of bye-law 8(a), in considering the conduct alleged (which may consist of one or more acts or omissions), regard may be had to the following: i ii iii whether an act or omission, which of itself may not amount to misconduct, has taken place on more than one occasion, such that together the acts or omissions may amount to misconduct; whether the acts or omissions have amounted to or involved dishonesty on the part of the individual or relevant firm in question; the nature, extent or degree of a breach of any code of practice, ethical or technical, adopted by Council, and to any regulation affecting members, relevant firms or registered students laid down or approved by Council. The following shall be conclusive proof of misconduct: vii he or it has made an assignment for the benefit of creditors, or has made an arrangement for the payment of a composition to creditors, or has had an interim order made by the court in respect of him, or is a specified person in relation to a relevant firm which has made such an assignment or composition or been wound up as an unregistered company, or entered into a voluntary arrangement, administration or liquidation, in each case where applicable under the Insolvency Act 1986, or other similar or analogous event has occurred in relation to him or it under applicable legislation; or viii he or it has failed to satisfy a judgment debt without reasonable excuse for a period of two months (and the fact that he or it did not have sufficient funds to discharge the debt shall not be a reasonable excuse for this purpose) whether or not the debt remains outstanding at the time of the bringing of the disciplinary proceedings hereunder. i ii the fact that a member, relevant firm or registered student has pleaded guilty to, or been found guilty of, any offence discreditable to him or, as the case may be, it, or derogatory to the Association or the accountancy profession, before a court of competent jurisdiction in the United Kingdom or before a court of competent jurisdiction any other country where such court s judgments are in the opinion of Council (or relevant committee of Council) relevant; the fact that a member, relevant firm or registered student has been found to have acted fraudulently or dishonestly in any civil proceedings before any court of competent jurisdiction in the United Kingdom or before a court of competent jurisdiction in any other country where such court s judgments are enforceable in the United Kingdom.