Conduct Review - Code of Procedure

NRL National Code of Conduct

All competition matches, and Rugby League activities sanctioned and/or run under NSW Community Rugby League are subject to the conditions as laid out in the official National Rugby League (NRL) “National Code of Conduct” See Section 5.3 of this manual.

Important – every person who attends a Rugby League match does so with the permission and license of the home club and/or League. Breaches of this Code of Conduct may result in penalties up to and including a fine, loss of team match points and/or suspension of the perpetrator and/or child. Clubs are responsible for the conduct of their players, parents/careers, coaches, officials and spectators.

1. Objectives

1.1 Provide fair and just procedures, conducted expeditiously and in compliance with natural justice to hear and determine charges and for imposing penalties.

1.2 Proceedings are in good faith and on applicable merits in each case and promote uniformity and consistency of approach in sentencing.

1.3 Provide a safe system of procedures for the protection of all persons appearing at hearings.

1.4 Recognise and enforce disqualifications, suspensions, and penalties imposed on persons in all competitions and activities.

2. Amendments to Policy Statements

2.1 The provisions of this code may be amended by the NSWRL from time to time and policy statements regarding operations and provisions of this code issued in such manner as the NSWRL sees fit.

2.2 Without limiting the scope of clause 2.1 above, the NSWRL may implement amendments to this Code from time to time in order to facilitate the operation of this Code in relation to rugby league competitions, matches and related activities conducted in regional and rural areas of NSW and the ACT. These measures may include, without limitation, the defining of the roles and functions of the Regional Area Managers, to be performed in respect of the implementation and operation of this Code. 

3. Chairperson and Conduct Review Committee

3.1 As soon as practicable after the Annual Competition Review meeting each year, the Committee of the competition and/or board of the League will appoint a Conduct Review Committee and appoint one of the members as Chairperson.

4. Functions of Conduct Review

4.1 The functions of the Conduct Review Committee are to hear and determine such charges for an offence and such investigations as are referred to it for decision and in the discharge of its functions shall at all times act independently, impartially, fairly and openly, except where to do so would be unfair to the person appearing.

5. Conduct Review By-Laws

5.1 Conduct Review By-Laws that are appended to this Code is a guide only for the Conduct Review Committee with the Chairperson when necessary, having the discretion to interpret such guidelines as he/she thinks fit.

6. Administration

6.1 The Incident Review Coordinator (to be appointed by the League Board and/or Competition Committee) will be responsible for the administration of the Conduct Review Code of Procedure and the following duties:

6.1.1 Review all acts of misconduct and other incidents and breaches of the NRL National Code of Conduct.

6.1.2 Investigate, examine and consider any conduct by a player, official or other person(s) that may constitute an offence.

6.1.3 Recommend and/or take action where considered appropriate.

6.1.4 Report exceptions, concerns and matters in interest to the Competition Committee and/or League Board.

6.1.5 Generally, proceed in accordance with the requirements of this rule.

6.1.6 Grading of any charges.

7. Guidelines for the Incident Review Coordinator

7.1 The Incident Review Coordinator will review all incidents of misconduct involving and surrounding players, officials and other persons and where necessary shall ascribe adjudication (which could include penalty issued via an Adjudicated Breach Notice) for each one having regard to the following:

a) Whether there is substantial and reliable evidence to justify a charge.

b) The extent to which the person is to blame for the incident is considered.

c) The seriousness or conversely the triviality of the persons conduct.

d) Whether any other person was injured in the incident.

e) Whether the offending person was provoked.

f) The previous conduct of the offending person.

g) Any mitigating or aggravating circumstances.

 General Offences 

7.2 For the purpose of this Code, an offence is constituted by any instance of misconduct and such other conduct as may, from time to time, be deemed by the Incident Review Coordinator or Conduct Review Committee to constitute an offence.

Consequences

7.3 A person will be deemed to have been charged with an offence immediately when such person is informed (verbally, in writing or electronically) by the Secretary of that person’s club (or the club that person has some connection with) or by the local League Administrator with the Incident Review Coordinator having absolute discretion in determining the definition of the words ‘some connection’.

Grading of Charges

7.4 The Incident Review Coordinator will determine the grading of charges as either ‘Low’, ‘Medium’ or ‘High’ taking into account rules 6.1 – 7.1 inclusive.

Notification of Charge

7.5 Following receipt by the club of the person’s charge by email from the Local League Administrator, it will be the responsibility of the club Secretary (or designated person) to contact the person concerned and communicate details of the charge, the hearing arrangements and other relevant information to the person.

Details of Charge

7.6 In the notification of charge (Notice of Charge Appendix 2) email sent from the Local League Administrator to the person’s club Secretary, brief details of the charge against the person and the date and venue the incident occurred will be provided including hearing arrangements. Full details of the complaint will be provided to the person at the hearing, together with ample opportunity to ask questions and to cross-examine witnesses, should that be necessary.

Response to Charge and Breach Notice

7.7 Following notification of the charge or the issuing of an Adjudicated Breach Notice, the person charged may respond by:

7.7.1 Taking an early guilty plea which overcomes the need to appear before the Conduct Review Committee. 

7.7.2 Pleading guilty to the offence but dispute the grading, (or in the case of an Adjudicated Breach Notice the penalty issued).

7.7.3 Pleading not guilty and have the matter go before the Conduct Review Committee.

If the person elects to plead not guilty, the person, the complainant and witnesses will be required at the hearing and the matter will go into evidence.

Persons pleading guilty to an offence but disputing the grading will be required to appear before the Conduct Review Panel to explain their actions, advise of any extenuating circumstances that existed and discuss the disputed grading and or penalty. The complainant and witnesses will not be required to attend the hearing.

Reasonable Time to Respond

7.8 In regard to Medium or Low-Grade charges at least five (5) days’ notice of the proposed hearing will be given to enable the person charged to consider all options, and if necessary, prepare for a hearing and to enable the Competition League to deal with the matter as soon as possible. For High or Serious Graded charges an extended minimum period of notice may apply.  A person under investigation or charged maybe subject to provisional action as set out in Section 7.15.

No Contest

7.9 When a person elects not to contest the offence charged, the making of that election does not constitute an admission on their part that the alleged offender is guilty, or otherwise responsible for, the conduct charged but, rather it is an indication that alleged offender has chosen for one reason or another not to contest the charge. The Conduct Review committee may adjudicate on the matter in the absence of that person as set out in Section 6.1 of the Code of Conduct Discipline Procedures. 

Merit Opportunity (Deduction) of Penalty

7.10 Should a person charged elect to plead guilty and that person advises such intention to the Incident Review Coordinator within timeframe, the following deduction of penalty will be considered:

7.10.1 The penalty maybe reduced by the Conduct Review Committee by one match.

7.10.2 A further reduction of one match may be applied if the person has no prior convictions during the past two (2) years.

Persons Failing to Respond or Attend Conduct Review Hearing 

7.11 Should a person fail to respond by the time limit prescribed, the charge will be automatically set down for hearing before the Conduct Review Committee. The committee will be so informed and any merit opportunity (i.e. deduction of penalty) no longer available.

Should a person be charged with an offence fail to appear, the committee may proceed to hear and determine the charge and the penalty in the absence of the person as set out in Section 6.1 of the Code of Conduct Discipline Procedures. 

The committee reserves the right to suspend the registration of a player whose parent or legal guardian commits an offence and fails to appear.

Proceedings Not to Be Invalidated 

7.12 Proceedings shall not be invalidated or subject to appeal, merely due to any defect whether of substance or form in any notice or because of non-compliance by the Competition / League with any provision of this Code, unless the Chairperson so directs.

Documentation 

7.13 The following documentation (electronic and/or hard copy) will be recognised and retained by the Incident Review Coordinator and League Administrator:

Form 1         Letter(s) of complaint or Incident Report(s) to League.

Form 2         Notice of Charge from Competitions/League Administrator to club.

Form 3         Response from club or person to League.

Form 4         Conduct Review hearing (record of evidence at the hearing).

Form 5         Conduct Review report (results of matters circulated to clubs).

Primary and Alternate Charges 

7.14 In all matters, the Incident Review Coordinator has an option to issue both a primary and alternate charge with regards to any Incident Report received.

Provisional Action

7.15 Provisional Action is designed to keep members safe by removing or monitoring a person from Community Rugby League who may pose a potential risk of ongoing harm to others. Provisional Action can be taken at any time during the incident review process at the discretion of NSWRL.

8. Code of Conduct Review By-Laws

Conduct Review hearings are held weekly commencing at 6.00pm (on a day determined by the Local League). A quorum for a hearing is three (3).

All Conduct Incident reports must be received by the League/Competitions Administrator by no later than 4.00pm on the Tuesday following the incident. The Conduct Review Coordinator reserves the right to seek further evidence, reports and statements following on from an initial incident report or notification with no restrictions on time frames.

Disciplinary proceedings before the Conduct Review Committee are not bound by the rules of evidence usually applicable to proceedings in the court of law.

8.1 The Conduct Review Committee adjudicates on disciplinary matters such as breaches of the NRL National Code of Conduct, other than judiciary matters. When a player, coach, trainer, manager or other official is in breach of the NRL National Code of Conduct, the person concerned may be required to appear before the Conduct Review Committee.

8.2 If a referee is a complainant, the referee will advise the Incident Review Coordinator of his/her local district or regional Referees’ Association of the incident. The Secretary will, in-turn, advise the League Administrator. If the complainant is a club official or other person, it should be sent through the complainant’s club Secretary.

8.3 Clubs should appoint at least one responsible person to be their representative at Code of Conduct Review hearings. On some occasions, a player’s coach may also attend and if the player is under 16 years of age, the player’s parent or guardian may attend, however, only one person may represent the person appearing during the hearing proceedings.

8.4 There is no objection to a solicitor or other legal representative attending the hearing with the defendant, however, that person is there at the discretion of the Chairperson and is unable to cross-examine or question witnesses and is in attendance in an advisory capacity only.

8.5 A party may attend in person, or if that is impractical, the party may attend via an electronic platform (Teams / Zoom / Webex etc).

8.6 In the event that the Code of Conduct Review Committee cannot convene on normal hearing nights, the person appearing may be allowed to continue with an active League involvement pending appearing on another date, unless the Incident Review Coordinator or Conduct Review Committee Chairperson decides otherwise. The Chairperson may, from time to time, adjourn a hearing in such a manner and upon such terms as the Chairperson deems fit.

8.7 A person must have a reasonable excuse for asking for an adjournment of a hearing, in which case, the committee may use its own discretion. If an adjournment is agreed to, the person concerned may not continue with an active League involvement until the matter is heard, unless the Incident Review Coordinator or Conduct Review Committee Chairperson decide otherwise.

8.8 The Code of Conduct Review Committee may cite any player or person for misconduct or other breaches they become aware of during the taking of evidence at hearings.

8.9 Conviction records are checked prior to each hearing and adjusted after the hearing has concluded. A list of all persons who appeared together with the adjudication results is communicated to all clubs following the hearing.

8.10 It is League policy not to call children of tender years (Under 12) to hearings unless it is absolutely necessary. The Chairperson has discretion in deciding if a child of tender years should be called to a hearing, and in lieu of such attendance, may admit documented evidence if it is available and direct the committee to evaluate such evidence at the appropriate time.

8.11 It is League policy not to admit video, DVD, laptop (or similar) electronic evidence into a hearing or investigation unless it has a direct bearing on the matter being investigated. The Chairperson has discretion in deciding if such evidence should be admitted, and in lieu, may admit documented or verbal acknowledgement of the content of such evidence and direct the committee to evaluate such evidence at the appropriate time.

8.12 It is policy not to support an excessive number of witnesses attending hearings on behalf of the defendant or the complainant. The Chairperson has the discretion to restrict the number of witnesses to a reasonable number and to acknowledge the evidence such witnesses may provide and to direct the committee to evaluate such evidence at the appropriate times.

8.13 Witnesses who are identified in the letter of complaint or other documents may be called to give evidence at a hearing. It is a breach of the rules for a witness after being summoned to refuse or not attend a hearing.

8.14 The Chairperson, when necessary, has the discretion to interpret the Code of Conduct Review Guidelines and By-Laws as he/she thinks fit.

9. Code of Conduct Review – Hearings Procedure

9.1 The club representative and person appearing are called into the hearing room where the Chairperson explains the purpose of the hearing.

9.2 The person appearing is made aware of details of the complaint and is asked for a plea by the Chairperson.

9.3 If the person appearing pleads ‘Guilty’, the complainant and witness(s) may not be called. The person appearing will have an opportunity to offer an explanation and any other constructive and character information of his/her choice.

9.4 If the person appearing pleads ‘Not Guilty’, a full hearing of the complaint will take place with evidence taken from all witness(s), the complainant and the defendant.

9.5 Witnesses shall remain outside the hearing room until called upon by the Chairperson to give evidence

9.6 Following the taking of evidence in a not guilty matter, the committee will first decide on the guilt or otherwise of the defendant and then decide the penalty.

9.7 Prior to the committee retiring to consider guilt or otherwise and penalty, the defendant will have an opportunity to advise of character information and other evidence on his/her behalf.

9.8 The Chairperson will not allow anyone to interrupt (or talk over), belittle, insult or ridicule another and will insist on everyone receiving natural justice and being treated in a decent and fair manner. Anyone in breach of this clause may be called before the Code of Conduct Review Committee on a complaint of misconduct.

9.9 Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Code of Conduct Review Committee may appeal therefrom to the Appeals Committee, by forwarding a Notice of Intention to Lodge a Leave to Appeal Application to the Judiciary Administrator by 5.00pm on the next business day following receipt of the Notice of Outcome, on one or more of the following grounds:

a) With respect to the issue of guilt: that there was an error of law or that the decision was unreasonable or insupportable having regard to the evidence presented to the Code of Conduct Review Committee in the hearing. 

b) With respect to the issue of penalty: that the penalty imposed by the Judiciary was manifestly excessive.

In relation to all such appeals:

c) A person who wishes to appeal from a decision of the Code of Conduct Review Committee must first obtain leave to do so from the Appeals Committee Chairperson. 

d) The Appeals Committee Chairperson shall not grant leave for the person to appeal unless he/she forms the view in their absolute discretion that the person has good prospects of success on the hearing of that appeal. 

e) Unless otherwise ordered by the Appeals Committee Chairperson, neither an application for leave to appeal nor an appeal by a person to the Appeals Committee shall operate as a stay of the decision of the Code of Conduct Review Committee which is the subject of the appeal or the application for leave to appeal. 

f) Proceedings shall not be invalidated or subject to appeal, merely by reason of any defect whether of substance or of form in any notice or by reason of non-compliance by the Competition/League with any provision of this Code, unless the Chairperson so directs. 

g) The Appeal Fee is $500.00 and should be attached to the completed NSWRL Community Football Appeal Application Form when it is lodged. The fee can be paid in cheque, by cash or direct debit and is only refundable at the discretion of the Appeals Committee if the appeal is upheld.

9.10 Where the reported person has in a request in writing consented to the Tribunal’s investigating a report in their absence, the following additional rules shall apply where applicable:

a) The presiding Chairperson shall pronounce a plea on behalf of the reported person as the request in writing directs.

b) The request in writing shall be read to the Committee. 

c) The committee will retire to consider guilt or otherwise and the penalty to be imposed.

10. Code of Conduct Review – Penalties 

10.1 Where the penalty is, or includes, a period of suspension, the period of suspension may be expressed as either a number of competition matches, or alternatively a period of time during which the person is suspended from participating.