CHAMBER OF ARCHITECTS REGULATIONS

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 390.01

CHAMBER OF ARCHITECTS REGULATIONS

12th June, 1920

GOVERNMENT NOTICE 202 of 1920, as amended by: Government

Notice 72 of 1934; Act LVIII of 1974; Legal Notice 148 of 1975; Act XIII of

1983; Legal Notice 20 of 1989; Act VIII of 1990; and Legal Notices 425 of

2007 and 116 of 2010. Incorporating also Government Notice 264 of 1969.

The title of these Regulations is Architects Regulations.

(Regulation 11)

Regulations made by the Chamber of Architects

and Civil Engineers

1. The Chamber of Architects and Civil Engineers is

constituted in terms of the Architecture and Civil Engineering

Professionals (Periti) Act by means of Government Notice No. 202

of the 12th June, 1920 and is intended for the advancement of the

profession, the defence of its rights and for keeping high its

prestige.

2. The Chamber shall have its own seat wherein all meetings

shall be held unless decided otherwise by the council from time to

time. This seat shall be kept open on all working days during

normal working hours.

3. Membership of the Chamber shall be open to all such

persons as hold the warrant to practise in Malta as architects and

civil engineers and this in compliance with the definition contained

in the Architecture and Civil Engineering Professionals (Periti)

Act. All such persons will qualify as full members.

4. Provision shall also be made for honorary and

corresponding members in the case of such persons who, having

obtained the warrant referred to in regulation 3 above, are residing

a b r o a d . H o n o r ar y m em b er s h i p m a y al s o b e g r an t ed b y t h e

committee, hereinafter referred to as the council, to any such

person living in Malta or abroad, who according to the unanimous

opinion of the council, with or without a local warrant to practise as

architect or civil engineer, has in the past contributed towards the

advancement of these professions.

5. Full membership shall be applied for in writing to the

honorary secretary of the Chamber who will in turn submit such

application to the council within thirty days of its receipt. On

acceptance by not less than two-thirds of the members of the

council present at the first meeting held within the thirty days

referred to above, the applicant shall be informed in writing and

requested to pay an admission fee of two euro and thirty-three

cents.

6. The annual subscription fee shall be nine euro and thirty-

two cents payable, if so desired, in four equal instalments of two

euro and thirty-three cents every three months. Such subscription is

compulsory from year to year up to the 31st December of each year.

No subscription as such, other than the two euro and thirty-three

cents admission fee, shall be paid by new first time members for

the period up to the end of the year during which th eir full

membership was accepted by the council.

7. In default of the payment of two consecutive quarterly

subscriptions, a full member may be refused further membership of

the Chamber saving any other right of action for the enforcement of

payment of the amounts due.

8. Any person desiring to terminate his full membership of

the Chamber shall give notice in writing to the honorary secretary

thirty days before the date when his membership fees are due, in

default of which he shall be deemed to have renewed his

membership for a further period of one year.

9. Only full members are eligible to form part of the council

and they shall have the right of one vote at its election.

10. Every member has a right to one vote at any of the

meetings.

11. All full members shall comply with the regulations. All

persons holding a warrant to practise as architects and civil

engineers shall comply with the Code of Professional Conduct

contained in the First Schedule to these Regulations and with the

recognised Tariff of Fees contained in Tariff K of Schedule A to the

Code of Organization and Civil Procedure. Failure to do so will

imply any such action by the council as its members may on

consideration of the case decide to take to ensure full compliance.

Such action will include the admonition of any person holding a

warrant to practise as architect and civil engineer or the suspension

of any such person from the exercise of the profession for a period

not exceeding twelve months or the suspension for any time or

removal of such person from the membership of the Chamber, if he

is a member. Any decision involving suspension from the exercise

of the profession shall be published in the Government Gazette as

provided in regulation 6 of the Chamber of Architects Regulations.

The Chamber of Architects having for its object the well-

being and the progress of the profession of architects and civil

engineers shall consist of all persons holding a warrant from the

President of Malta to exercise that profession, who shall conform

with these Regulations and with any other which the Chamber may

make under these Regulations.

Code of Professional Conduct

1. A member must not hold, assume or consciously accept a

position in which his interest is in conflict with his professional

duty.

2. A member is remunerated solely by his professional fees

payable by his clients and/or by his salary payable by his employer.

He is debarred from any other source of remuneration in connection

with the works and duties entrusted to him. It is the duty of a

member to uphold and apply the scale of professional charges

payable to architects and civil engineers as per Tariff K of Schedule

A to the Code of Organization and Civil Procedure.

3. A member may allow signed illustrations and descriptions

of his work to be published in the press, but he shall not give

monetary consideration for such insertions.

4. A member must not attempt to supplant another member,

nor must he compete with another architect by means of a reduction

of fees or by other inducements.

5. A member, on being approached or instructed to proceed

with professional work upon which another member was previously

employed, shall notify the fact to such architect.

6. No member shall use his position on any board granting

building licences in order to obtain for himself a permit to carry out

works.

7. In all cases of dispute between building owner and

contractor, a member must act in an impartial manner. He must

interpret the conditions of a contract with entire fairness as between

the building owner and the contractor.

8. A member should not take part in an architectural and civil

engineering competition in respect of which the Chamber has

declared that members must not take part.

9. A member, on handing over his practice to another member

due to his having taken up a temporary or permanent full time

employment with the Government, will not m ake use of his

appointment to the advantages of the practice he has handed over.

CHAMBER OF ARCHITECTS

SECOND SCHEDULE Emblem

The management and administration of the Chamber of

Architects shall be entrusted to a committee appointed yearly by

the Chamber, and composed of ten members, who will among

themselves elect a president, a vice-president, a secretary and a

treasurer; six to form the quorum. The names of the members of the

committee shall be published in the Government Gazette.

The committee of the Chamber of Architects shall

correspond with the Government and vice-versa on all matters

concerning the profession, as well as on other subjects of public

interest.

The Chamber of Architects shall be responsible to meet the

obligations and to fulfill the powers, functions and responsibilities

attributed to a competent authority in terms of articles 4(c) and

4(e), article 6(3), article 7 and article 8 of the Services (Internal

Market) Act.

(1) The said committee shall, of its own initiative or on the

complaint of any person, enquire into the professional practices of

architects and civil engineers whether or not belonging to the

Chamber, which are considered inconsistent with the dignity of

their profession, and into abuses or failures imputed to them in the

exercise of their profession or in connection with professional

affairs.

(2) In the conduct of an inquiry in accordance with the

provisions of sub-regulation (1) of this regulation, the president of

the said committee shall have the power to administer the oath to

any witness and to any person concerned in the inquiry, and require

them to give evidence

Provided that no person giving evidence before the said

committee may be compelled to answer any question which tends

to expose him to any criminal prosecution, and every such person

shall, in respect of any evidence given by him before the said

committee be entitled to the same privileges to which a witness

giving evidence before a court of law is entitled.

Where, in the opinion of the committee any one of the

architects and civil engineers referred to in the preceding regulation

is found responsible of such practices, abuses or failures as have

been indicated in the foregoing regulation, it shall have the power

to punish him with admonition or suspension from the exercise of

the profession for a period not exceeding twelve months, or with

suspension for any time or removal from the membership of the

Chamber of Architects. Any decision involving suspension from

the exercise of the profession shall be published in the Government

Gazette.

No decision of the committee shall, under the provisions of

the foregoing regulation, be taken against an architect and civil

engineer unless he shall have been given full opportunity to

exculpate himself, and no such decision shall be valid unless there

shall have been in favour thereof the votes of not less than two-

thirds of the members present at the committee.

Any architect and civil engineer who has been awarded

punishment under regulations 5 and 6 will have the right to appeal

against it to the Court of Appeal, provided he files an application

for that purpose within fifteen days from the notification of the

award to him. The Court of Appeal shall have power to reverse and

to modify the award of the committee of the Chamber of

Architects, and to give judgment on the costs of the appeal.

The decisions pronounced by the committee of the

Chamber of Architects, or by the Court of Appeal, in terms of

regulations 6 and 7 shall not prejudice any action, which might be

ex er ci sed u n d er t h e C r im in al C o de o r u n de r an y o th er l aw

applicable to the case.

Should any architect and civil engineer who has been

suspended from the exercise of his profession perform, within the

period of such suspension, any act which implies the exercise of his

profession, he shall become liable, on conviction before the Court

of Magistrates (Malta), or the Court of Magistrates (Gozo), to the

punishments established by the Criminal Code for contraventions.

The Chamber of Architects shall have the power to make

regulations regarding the functions and the duties of the Chamber,

o f i t s c o m m it t e e , t h e m e e t i n g s o f t h e C h a m b e r a n d o f t h e

committee, the procedure to be followed in connection with such

meetings, the payment of a subscription by the members of the

Chamber, and such other regulations as will be deemed necessary

or useful for the maintenance of the Chamber and the furtherance

of its object. Such regulations before coming into force, must be

submitted to and approved by the Government.

No decision of the council shall, under the provisions of

the above-mentioned regulations, be taken against a member of the

profession unless he shall have been given full opportunity to

exculpate himself and no such decision shall be valid unless there

shall have been in favour thereof the votes of not less than two-

thirds of the members present at the council meeting with a

minimum of six persons present as a quorum.

Any member of the profession, whether a member of the

Chamber or not, who shall have so been found guilty will have the

rig ht of appeal to th e Co urt of Ap peal pr ovid ed h e f iles an

application for that purpose within fifteen days from the receipt of

the council’s decision. The Court of Appeal shall have the power to

confirm, modify or reverse the decision of the council and to give

judgment on costs.

The decision pronounced by the council or by the Court of

Appeal shall not prejudice any action which might be exercised

under the Criminal Code or under any other law applicable to the

case.

Should any person who has been suspended from the

exercise of his profession perform, within the period of such

suspension, any act which implies the exercise of his profession, he

will become liable, on conviction before the Court of Magistrates

(Malta), or the Court of Magistrates (Gozo), to the penalties

established by the Criminal Code for contraventions.

The council shall consist of ten full members elected by the

vote of at least twenty members at a general meeting to be held

during the month of December.

Following the election of the council, the full members

elected shall between them nominate the president, the vice-

president, the honorary treasurer and the honorary secretary.

The president shall have the power to

(a) call all meetings whether general or of the council;

(b) preside over such meetings;

(c) explain the matters to be discussed and the questions

to be decided;

(d) ensure the execution of the decisions taken;

(e) ensure that minutes of the meeting are kept and at the

next meeting to demand that these are read out to the

members present to ensure their correctness;

(f)

to submit at the December general meeting called for

the election of the new council, a report on the work

done by the Chamber during that year;

(g) to represent the Chamber on all occasions.

The vice-president shall in the absence of the president, act

in his stead and shall at that moment exercise the same powers.

The honorary treasurer shall administer the finances of the

Chamber. He shall also ensure the collection of all membership fees

and shall represent the Chamber in all judicial matters.

The treasurer shall keep proper books of accounts and at

the December general meeting he shall submit a full statement

supported by vouchers for the examination of all the members

present who, for this purpose, shall amongst themselves appoint

two auditors to examine the books.

The auditors will be empowered to request any further

information from the honorary treasurer as they deem necessary.

No member may incur any expenditure on behalf of the

Chamber without the authorisation of the honorary treasurer which

authorisation, however, will not be withheld if in fact this is

sanctioned by at least seven members of the council, who will have

taken a decision on the matter during a meeting of the council. The

honorary treasurer may delegate any of his duties to the permanent

secretary, this however, shall be subject to the approval of the

president.

The honorary secretary shall be in charge of all

correspondence and all communications with the members as well

as with non-members, excluding such correspondence as may refer

to financial matters which shall as such be dealt with by the

honorary treasurer.

The honorary secretary shall keep the minutes of every

meeting as well as the full name, qualifications and address of

every member, whether full member, honorary or corresponding.

The honorary secretary shall look after the archives of the

Ch amb er, which ar ch ives sh all includ e all cor resp ond en ce,

documents, books (excluding books of accounts) and generally also

any records which he may from time to time be called upon to keep

on the deliberations activities and operations of the Chamber.

In the absence of the secretary, the president, or the person

acting in his stead, may appoint any other member of the Council to

act in this capacity.

The honorary secretary may, subject to the approval of the

president delegate any of his duties to the permanent secretary.

The president, and in his absence, the vice-president, shall

fix the date, time and venue of all general meetings.

On receipt by the president of a written request for a

general meeting signed by at least ten full members, he shall

within, twenty-one days of such receipt, call a general meeting for

the purpose of discussing the matter referred to in the signed

request.

The quorum for a general meeting shall be twenty full

members besides the president or the vice-president, it being

understood however that if when the meeting is first convened a

quorum cannot be formed, a second meeting shall be called during

which any decision taken shall be valid irrespective of the number

of persons present.

A general meeting shall be notified to all full members by

means of a circular signed by the honorary secretary and mailed at

least six days before the date on which the meeting is to be held.

Such notification shall give a clear indication of the subject matter

to be discussed but the president may allow the discussion of any

other matter which in his opinion is considered of an urgent nature.

There shall be held during every year at least one general

meeting during the month of December.

All decisions shall be taken by a majority of votes except

in the case of a change in these Regulations or in the Code of

Professional Conduct, when the vote of at least two-thirds of the

members present shall be required to validate any decision.

In the case of equality of votes, the president shall have a

casting vote in addition to his ordinary vote.

In the case when both the president and the vice-president

cannot attend a general meeting, the Chair shall be taken by any

member elected by the meeting.

The president shall fix the date, time and venue of all

council meetings.

On receipt by the president of a written request for a

council meeting signed by at least four council members, the

president shall, within seven days, call such meeting for the

purpose of discussing the matter referred to in the signed request.

Without prejudice to regulation 12 of these Regulations the

quorum for a council meeting shall be six members, provided

however, that such meeting can still be held if after thirty minutes

for the time fixed for the meeting at least four members are present.

In the absence of the president or vice-president, the members may

amongst themselves appoint a chairman for the meeting.

Except in cases considered urgent by the president, council

meetings shall be notified in writing to all council members at least

five days before the date of the meeting and such notification shall

give a clear indication of the subject matter to be discussed. The

president may however allow discussions on any subject

considered to be of an urgent nature.

Decisions shall be taken by a majority of votes. In case of

an equality of votes, the president shall have a casting vote in

addition to his ordinary vote.

Any vacancies which may occur in the council shall be

filled within thirty days, through the adoption of the full member

who at the last general meeting had attained the next highest

number of votes.

Any person who ceases for any reason to remain a full

member of the Chamber shall forfeit any right or privilege he

would have enjoyed as a full member.

Every member shall be kept responsible for any damage,

caused by him or through his negligence, to the property of the

Chamber.

The management and administration of the Chamber shall

be the full responsibility of the council.

The council of the Chamber shall consult with the

Government and vice-versa on all matters affecting the profession

in all its aspects as well as on all such matters as are of public

interest and related to the profession.

The council may at its own discretion appoint a permanent

secretary on a salaried basis, provided however that in this case the

approval of at least eight members of the council shall be obtained.

In the case of this appointment, however, the person so employed

shall hold office only up to the next December general meeting,

provided however that such appointment may be renewed by the

incoming council again with a vote of eight members in favour of

doing so.

The Chamber of Architects and Civil Engineers adopts as

its emblem the design shown in the Second Schedule to these

Regulations.

SCHEDULES