LACPA

Article 1: The Lebanese Association of Certified Public Accountants is completely autonomous in formulating its laws regarding internal, administrative and financial matters. The Association practices its discretionary power through different bodies in conformity with the provisions of the Accountancy Profession Act No.364/1994, the rules of procedure and the provisions of the Lebanese laws in general.

Article 2: The certified public accountants, the professional accountancy firms and the trainees registered in the tables and registers of the Association shall abide by the provisions of these rules. Any violation of these provisions, of the provisions of Act No. 364/1994 or of the profession’s customs and ethics and any action that tarnishes its name and dignity will result in the sanctions stipulated in Article 43 of the above-mentioned Accountancy Profession Act.

Article 3: The jurisdiction of the Lebanese Association for Certified Public Accountants is on all the Lebanese territories. The Association includes a Council and a General Assembly that is made up of all certified public accountants registered in the General Table kept by the Association in accordance with Articles 7, 18, 20 and 61 of the Accountancy Profession Act No. 364/1994. The Association also includes a Disciplinary Board, a Pension Fund Committees as well as other Working Committees. For more information on the practicing and non-practicing members:

A- Any natural person registered in the General Table and practicing, in his name or on behalf of a legal person, the auditing profession and giving his opinion on the accuracy and authenticity of financial data. He may be an owner of an auditing firm or office, a partner or an employee in an auditing office.

- Have a permanent elected domicile in a private office or in another accountant’s office. He has the right of electing more than one domicile after having informed the Association, in accordance with Article 12 of Act No. 364/94.

- Practice the profession in person without mandating a third party through proxy. He may, however, hire assistants at his responsibility.

- Sign at his responsibility the works performed by individuals and trainees from within his office.

C- He has the right to sign arbitration and advisory contracts and to conduct scientific, administrative and financial studies in the accountancy field before any public or private body.

A- If he works for any private or public company in an employment prohibited by law or as an employee with a salary, where he acquires any of the following:

C- Are exempted from the provisions of abovementioned paragraphs A and B, the practicing members working for auditing and accounting offices.

- Vote in the Association’s general elections to choose Council members and to stand for the positions stipulated in Article 40 of the Accountancy Profession Act.

- The practicing member may ask the committee in charge of implementing the Peer Review program to get acquainted with the work files and the internal organization of his firm or office in order to obtain a certificate of review delivered by the Association.

- Abide by relevant laws and by all the Association’s rules and regulations especially those stipulating the mandatory practice of the profession in specialized offices.

- Pay the subscription fees. In case he falls behind the payment of the subscription fees for two consecutive years, he will be taken off the general table.

- Inform the Association Council of any change or modification affecting his status as practicing member within the three months that follow the said modification.

- Undergo professional training and follow up all technical developments relating to the profession as of the beginning of 2004, knowing that a minimum of 40 hours of training per year is mandatory for all members aged less than 65 years. Training hours include seminars, conferences, training sessions and workshops falling within the competence of certified public accountants and organized by LACPA and other public bodies, international or local institutions and concerned scientific associations, including lectures as well as education and training hours which module is approved by the Association Council. Should a member fail to undergo the mandatory professional training for two years (i.e. if the number of required training hours exceeds 80), he shall receive a letter warning him of the need to make up for the lost training hours, failing which, he shall be referred, in the following year, to the Disciplinary Board, in accordance with the provisions of article 43 of the Accountancy Profession Act.

A- Any natural person registered in the General Table but not practicing the profession in Lebanon, in accordance with Article 3 (clause 1) of the present rules of procedure. He is registered in the Association's non-practicing member table.

C- Vote in general assemblies including the Association Council's elections without being entitled to stand for the Council's elections, namely for the positions provided for in Article 40 of the Accountancy Profession Act.

D- Ask to be registered in the practicing member table when meeting the requirements, knowing that he is not to start practicing before receiving the Association Council's approval, an approval granted by virtue of a decision issued by the Council within the two months following the submission of the registration request, failing which, he shall be considered de facto as being registered in the practicing member table.

E- Benefit entirely from the social benefits stipulated by the rules of procedure. Those who, in their positions as non-practicing members, benefit from social allowances similar to those presented by the Association will only benefit from the latter by a positive difference, if any.

A- Voluntarily declare his loss of the “practicing” title not more than six months after that loss and in case he regains the “practicing” title. He must honestly declare his commitment in practicing this profession only and his abiding by all the clauses of Article 15 of Act No.94/364.

B- Abide by the Association Council’s laws, rules and decisions, especially those related to non-practicing members.

C- Not suggest in any way that he is a practicing certified public accountant and add the term "Non-Practicing" to his "Certified Public Accountant" title.

D- Pay 50% of the annual subscription fee paid by a practicing member; otherwise, he will be taken off the Table if he does not pay for two consecutive years.

E- Undergo professional training and follow up all technical developments relating to the profession as of the beginning of 2004, knowing that a minimum of 40 hours of training per year is mandatory for all members aged less than 65 years. Training hours include seminars, conferences, training sessions and workshops falling within the competence of certified public accountants and organized by LACPA and other public bodies, international or local institutions and concerned scientific associations, including lectures as well as education and training hours which module is approved by the Association Council. Should a member fail to undergo the mandatory professional training for two years (i.e. if the number of required training hours exceeds 80), he shall receive a letter warning him of the need to make up for the lost training hours, failing which, he shall be referred, in the following year, to the Disciplinary Board, in accordance with the provisions of article 43 of the Accountancy Profession Act.

Article 4: The membership application is to be submitted along with evidential documents according to the conditions stipulated in Article 8 of the Accountancy Profession Act for Lebanese, and according to Article 18 of the mentioned Act for non-Lebanese. The training period starts as of acceptance of the filed request, in accordance with the provisions of Article 9 of the Accountancy Profession Act.

Article 5: After the transitory period, the member sits for an exam approved by the exams committee and stipulated in Article 18 of the Accountancy Profession Act and confirmed by the Association Council. Those who hold accounting degrees from international institutes and associations specified by the mentioned Article will only sit for exams related to Lebanese laws as approved and confirmed by the Association Council.

Article 6: In compliance with the provisions of the previous Article, the trainee is subject to special provisions stipulated in the Accountancy Profession Act, especially in Articles 9, 10, 12 and 13. The training is organized in accordance with the rules stipulated in the following clauses:

Clause 1: The trainee may not use the title “certified public accountant” without adding “trainee” and he may not have his own office before ending his training period nor until he is registered in the General Table.

Clause 2: The trainee who, during his training period, switches to a CPA’s office other than the one he started in has to notify the Association Council and take its approval along with that of the new office. Should the said office refuse, the approval shall be deemed as granted de facto one month after the letter is provided to the Association.

Clause 3: During his training in auditing, the trainee must work on a full-time basis, i.e. for not less than seven hours a day. If he absents from work without an acceptable excuse, then the certified accountant whom he is working for must notify the Association Council during fifteen days at the risk of moral sanctions. In such a case, the President of the Association or his delegate sends a letter to the trainee asking for the reasons behind the absence. The trainee will be given a week to respond at the risk of informing the Association Council to take necessary measures if need be.

Clause 4: The trainee who has stopped working resumes his training in accordance with a decision by the Association Council and his remaining training period will be increased according to what the Council deems necessary pursuant to the provisions of the Accountancy Profession Act. The training period has to be a maximum of three years in a consecutive four-year period for holders of a university degree and a maximum of five years in a consecutive six-year period for holders of a “TS” degree and one single year of training in Lebanon will be required for holders of CPA degrees granted by the international associations and institutes specified in article 8 (clause 5) of the Accountancy Profession Act No. 94/364, who possess Practicing Licenses authorizing them to practice in these countries, on condition that the issue dates of the said licenses exceed two years.

Clause 5: The trainee has the right to sit six times for the exam in a period of nine years as of the beginning of the training period. The Association Council may prolong the period when necessary.

Clause 6: Upon completion of the training period, passing the exam and having his name registering in the General Table, the trainee is advised to address his colleagues as "Mr." or "colleague" or "Fellow CPA".

Article 7: The practicing certified public accountants registered in the Table may jointly found professional non-trading partnerships.

Article 8: The partnership contract must be put down in writing and signed up according to the stipulations of the general law. It must expressly include:

- The authorized signatory/signatories having the right to sign on the firm’s behalf in accordance with the provisions of the aforementioned contract.

Those who want to use the firm’s name in signing financial reports must register the firm not later than two months after its founding or any relevant amending, on condition that all partners be registered members in the practicing CPAs’ table and abide by all the rules governing the profession, stipulated in the Association’s Act No. 364/94 and the present rules of procedure at the mentioned risk stipulated in Article 34 of the said Act.

Article 9: The newly elected council body receives all documents, registers, archives and the financial report from the former council body. The provisions of Article 31 of the Accountancy Profession Act are applied on the first Association Council and those of Article 29 of the mentioned Act are applied on the succeeding Association Councils.

Article 10: The bodies of the Association consist of a General Assembly, an Association Council, a Disciplinary Board and Working Committees exercising the powers stipulated in the provisions of the Accountancy Profession Act.

The meetings of the general assembly comply with the special provisions stipulated in the Accountancy Profession Act, while participating and voting during its meetings comply with the following rules:

A- Only the members who have paid their subscription fees during the first three months of the fiscal year are allowed to participate in the general assembly and its meetings, unless the Association Council decides to prolong the due date of payment until three days before the convening of the general assembly.

B- In the general assembly meetings specified for voting, the Association Council sets a number of ballot boxes and forms a body made up of a president and two members, chosen by the general assembly from among non-candidates, at the Association President's instigation or that of his delegate, before the beginning of the voting process. This committee may, when necessary, add two non-candidate members to participate in the counting process. The votes are counted and the results are declared during the same meeting. He who gets the highest number of votes wins the elections. In case of a tie, the older person wins. In case of equal age, the candidate whose membership is the lengthiest wins.

Should voting papers include a greater number of names than required, only the first names up till the demanded number will be taken into consideration.

The results are written down in the minutes signed by the monitoring committee. The Association President (or his delegate) announces the names of the winners as written down in the minutes.

C- Subject to the provisions of Article 28 of the Accountancy Profession Act, the Association Council specifies the method of voting to be adopted in all general assembly meetings.

D- All the decisions of the general assembly are written down in a special register in the order of the issuing dates and are given serial numbers whereby each member may, with the President’s permission, look them up and get a certified copy for a fee set by the Association Council.

The Association Council complies with the provisions of Clause 2, Chapter Two of the Accounting Profession Act, while participating and voting during its meetings are governed by the following rules:

A- The Association Council convenes in a regular session every two weeks on the day and hour of its choice. The Council also convenes in an extraordinary session at the behest of the President or at the request of at least three Council members.

B- The President sets the agenda of the session and informs the members of its content at least three days prior to the meeting. Should the President fail to convene the Council, the three members will set the agenda of the session and inform the President and the rest of members of its content when due. Each Association Council member is authorized to request the addition of an item to the agenda at the beginning of the meeting on condition that the said request is approved by the majority of the members.

C- During the session held by the Association Council to elect the Council body, secret ballot voting is adopted, in accordance with Article 32 of the Accountancy Profession Act. In case of a tie, the older person wins. In case of equal age, the candidate whose membership is the lengthiest wins. During all other sessions, the voting shall take place by open ballot unless otherwise decided by the Council.

D- Each member of the Council is sworn to secrecy during the first session after his election.

E- The minutes of the sessions of the Association Council are written down in a special register and are read at the end of the session or during the next session for ratification. They are signed by both the President and the Secretary.

F- The title of "Honorary President" is granted to the previous Association Presidents elected by virtue of Act 94/364. They are invited, in that capacity, to attend the meetings of the Council in accordance with the notification rules and regulations provided for in Article 31 of the Accountancy Profession Act. They do not however have the right to vote. Without being sworn to secrecy repeatedly, each Honorary President shall refrain from disclosing the content of the deliberation or else he will be liable to the sanctions provided for in the Accountancy Profession Act.

Article 11: In addition to the provisions stipulated in the Accountancy Profession Act regarding the Association Council, the latter may also:

2- Elect a deputy secretary and a deputy treasurer to stand in for the secretary and the treasurer when absent. The Council may also delegate the responsibilities of either deputy to one of the members in case of their absence.

3- Look into the re-enrolment request submitted by a member who had been taken off the Table once only for non payment of the yearly subscription. The said member can submit the re-enrolment request only 12 months after the striking off decision is issued. He will only regain his membership after having settled the due subscription for the periods preceding and following his striking off from the register. As for the re-enrolment requests submitted by members who have been taken off the Table for more than once, they shall not be accepted.

4- Insure the practicing and non practicing members who settle their yearly subscriptions before the 31^st of March of each year. A life and accident insurance will be provided by virtue of a collective agreement concluded at the best conditions and renewed annually. Each CPA settling his yearly subscription before the above-mentioned due date, will have to specify the names of the indemnification beneficiaries, in which case, the Association will settle the amount of the insurance policy on their behalf, at a rate of 100% for practicing members and 50% for non practicing members. As for the members who pay their yearly subscriptions after the set due date, they shall have to settle their insurance policy premiums themselves.

5- One or more committees will be formed and will perform auditing tasks with all due autonomy and integrity. They will also implement the Peer Review Program and look thereby into the documents and files of the accountancy and auditing firms and offices, in accordance with the following mechanism:

a) The Scientific Research Committee prepares the standard auditing file in accordance with international auditing standards.

b) Afterwards, the firms and offices will be provided with specimens of the standard file and the Association will organize training sessions for all interested during the first half of 2004.

c) In collaboration with the Scientific Research Committee, the committee in charge of implementing the Peer Review Program will set the standard credentials that are required to obtain a review certificate.

d) The practicing firms and offices in Lebanon shall be subjected, on a voluntary basis, to the Peer Review Program as of the second half of 2005.

e) When failing to obtain the cognizance certificate after the first review, the firms and offices that have their programs and plans of action subjected to the review can fill in the gaps and adjust their status within one year, provided the deliberation documents approved by the committee as well as all discussions and results remain in the hands of the committee members and are never disclosed to any third party unless requested by the firm or office under review.

Article 12: The members of the Association Council must abide by the principle of professional confidentiality at the risk of disciplinary measures. Meetings are held and decisions are taken in the Association Council in accordance with the rules and regulations stipulated in the Accountancy Profession Act, namely Article 39 of the said Act.

Article 13: Article 40 of the Association Profession Act stipulates that “the President represents the Association before the judicial and administrative authorities, he heads the meetings of the Council, executes its decisions, signs the contracts and documents in implementation of the Council’s decisions as well as all official and administrative correspondences. He monitors the works of the various committees, sees to it that all General Assembly and Association Council decisions be implemented and signs the expenditures along with the Treasurer”.

- In addition to the mentioned stipulations, the President may also work on resolving conflicts that arise among certified public accountants or trainees and/or third parties on professional matters, at the request of all parties concerned. He shall seek to resolve those conflicts in person or through his delegate before having recourse to the judicial system.

- He convenes the Association Council, sets the agenda of the Council's meetings and informs the members of its content within the timeframe stipulated in the provisions of the Accountancy Profession Act and the Rules of Procedure.

Article 14: He replaces the President in all works and competences during his absence.

Article 15: Article 40 of the Accountancy Profession Act stipulates that “the secretary takes the minutes of the sessions, writes down the decisions of the general assembly, signs them with the President, organizes and files the records and documents of the Association and the members’ dossiers. He also notifies the parties concerned about the decisions of the Association Council and the general assemblies”.

Clause 1: Organizes and files the tables and the registers mentioned in Article 20 of the Accountancy Profession Act and the extra lists and registers mentioned in Articles 22 and 23 of the Rules of Procedure, in addition to the register of minutes of all the meetings and decisions of the general assembly, the Association Council and the disciplinary board.

Clause 2: Monitors the organization of a list for the file of every certified accountant and trainee, which includes all the relevant documents and transactions. The Secretary numbers and certifies all of the said files and records. Only members of the Association Council are allowed to look at the tables, records and documents whether principal or additional and into the Association’s entries and documents filed by and kept with the secretary, except upon a written consent by the President.

Clause 1: He is the trustee of the Association’s funds, collects its revenues and signs all expenditures with the President.

Clause 2: He collects the revenues in return for numbered receipts taken out of counterfoil books. The said counterfoils are kept in the Association headquarters under the supervision of the treasurer.

Clause 3: He deposits the Association’s money in one or more banks chosen by the Association Council.

Clause 4: He is responsible for a register certified by a notary public where he writes down the Syndicate’s earnings and payments.

Clause 5: He supervises the filing and keeping of all documents related to accounting entries in a special file and keeps all financial documents and records in the Association’s headquarters.

Clause 6: He writes and signs checks along with the President and pursues the Association’s accounts at the banks.

Clause 7: He signs with the President on the opening of a new account unless the Association Council assigns this task to another member.

Clause 8: He is responsible for any losses or gains in treasury assets and files a weekly report at the beginning of every month showing the financial status of the Association.

Clause 9: He follows up the preparation of the list of subscription collection drafted by the Association’s accountant.

Clause 10: He executes the decisions of the Association Council in financial matters related to the budget and accounting. He monitors the drawing up of the yearly budget while pointing out the variables and changes.

Clause 11: He looks into the financial matters in accordance with accounting records’ entries and documents. He may seek the assistance of the budget committee or any other committee if the need arises.

Article 17: Article 42 of the Accountancy Profession Act stipulates that: “the Association Council shall form, from among its members and those of the Association, permanent or provisional committees that conduct studies related to the tasks of the Association. The number of these committees, the number of their members, their formation methods and their respective tasks shall be defined in the Association’s Rules of Procedure”.

In accordance with the provisions of the above-mentioned article, the committees are formed as follows:

The working committees formed according to the present rules of procedure are eighteen specialized committees. The Association Council may form, from among its members and those of the Association, other permanent or temporary committees when the need arises, in accordance with Article 24 from the Accountancy Profession Act and with Article 18 of the rules of procedure. The secretary general coordinates the works of the different committees under the supervision and directions of the President and the Association Council. The latter may amend, annul or even reform the committees if they fail to meet their obligations.

Each of the following committees includes between eight and sixteen members appointed by a decision of the Association Council.

The committees are formed in accordance with a decision from the Association Council. They are reformed yearly and have to include a president and a rapporteur, at least, elected from among the members of the committees, on condition that these committees be specialized and the members competent to conduct the works or specified studies related to the Association’s tasks.

The committees’ decisions are consultative and not obligatory for the Association Council where it may approve or reject any recommendation referred to it according to what it deems is the Association’s best interest. Given the nature of the Committees' recommendations, discussions take place irrespective of the number of attending members. The President and any member of the Association Council may participate in the meeting of any committee without having the right to vote.

By virtue of Article 42 of the Accountancy Profession Act No. 94/364, the permanent committees are:

Joining the membership committee is restricted to the members of the Council. All membership applications are referred to the said committee, which verifies whether legal requirements are met. The committee is made up of five members delegated by the Association Council for that purpose. The presence of a minimum of three members is required for meetings to be held. The membership committee:

a) Making sure that all required documents proving that the candidate meets the legal conditions stipulated in Article 8 of the Accountancy Profession Act number 94/364 are met.

b) Noting down its remarks and recommendations on the submitted applications and referring them to the Association Council in a one-month deadline of the date of submission.

The Association Council decides on the trainee applications within a period not exceeding two months from the date of submission and the application is accepted de facto if it was not decided upon during the mentioned period. Should the application be rejected, the case shall be brought before the Civil Court of Appeal at Beirut in accordance with the rules stipulated in paragraph 3 of Article 9 of the Accounting Profession Act.

The training committee organizes scientific, deontological and application seminars where the trainees participate and sign a presence form at the beginning and end of the seminar. The seminars are announced in notices that are posted in the Association’s halls at its headquarters in Beirut and sent to the members.

The trainees are divided into three categories according to their training years in order to participate in the seminars.

The examination committee which was formed by virtue of Article 8 (Clause 4) of the Accountancy Profession Act No.94/364 performs the following tasks:

- Supervising the examinations set by the Association Council in coordination with the General Secretariat.

- Setting the examinations' questions and correcting them, in the three languages: Arabic, French and English, except for the subject entitled "Laws and Regulations", which will remain in Arabic according to the following curriculum:

Financial Accounting – Cost Accounting – Financial Institution Accounting – Management Accounting – Corporate Accounting.

Fiscal law – Social Security law – Commercial Code – Law of Obligations and Contracts – Cash and Credit Law – Anti money laundering Law - Lebanese Labor Law – The circulars and decisions of the Central Bank and the bank monitoring committee.

- Getting acquainted with all international accountancy, auditing and professional standards as well as all relevant regulations relating to the profession and submitting suggestions to the Association Council as to implementation means.

A- Conducting the scientific studies and research referred by the Association Council or deemed necessary, and that may for instance:

- Improve and develop the work of the experts to go hand in hand with the latest developments that the profession is witnessing along with its relevant financial and economic fields.

- Improve and promote the experts' performance as to the taxpayers' obligations.

B- Formulating correct accounting principles to be put at the disposal of the Association and all its members.

C- Coordinating with private institutions to unify the technical education curricula in order to improve the quality of the profession.

D- Founding an accounting and auditing higher studies institute that will give out a degree that is not inferior, level-wise, to that of CPA (Certified Public Accountant). The said degree may be called LCPA (Lebanese Certified Public Accountant).

E- Undertaking a study to develop and standardize the technical education curricula of institutes and universities in order to promote the profession and integrate higher studies programs.

- The newsletter or periodical magazine published by the Association, namely as to its layout system, topics and content, distribution system and providing scientific and professional research sources and studies to improve the members' competences and enrich the newsletter.

B- Proposing the Association’s information policy and cooperating with the Council for its execution.

C- Formulating an information program agreed upon by the Association Council and aiming at:

- Contacting institutions, unions, associations and private and public councils and keeping their full addresses.

- Preparing and presenting suggestions and information projects, following up their implementation once they are approved, for the service of the Association’s objectives and coverage of the activities of the Association and its Council.

- Gathering press excerpts that are of interest to the Association and its activities and that are related to accounting, financial and economic issues.

1-Drawing up a project aiming at implementing a code of professional conduct and preparing a study and suggestions on the following principles:

- Any characteristic or standard that would benefit the profession and improve its standard.

2- Looking into the referred complaints from the Association Council and using all accepted methods to investigate any professional dispute that may arise among members or between members and clients, before writing its report and presenting it to the Association Council to study it in turn and decide on it. The committee shall also collect enough evidence to prove the breach especially that of the Association’s Accountancy Profession Act, the present Rules of Procedure or the Association’s Code of Professional Conduct. The report of the committee shall include a detailed elaboration of the results it reached in addition to its recommendations.

1- Following up the Association’s tables with all of their amendments and submitting them to the Supreme Council within the fixed dates chosen by the Association Council according to its instructions.

2- Presenting the necessary suggestions to improve the means of dealing with the Supreme Council.

3- Studying the various means that would protect the rights of the practicing members, presenting them to the Association Council for approval and implementing them at the Supreme Council.

1- Giving an opinion as to the issues referred by the Association Council as well as the yearly budget and presenting suggestions aiming at improving and promoting the financial status of the Association.

2- Submitting suggestions on the means to improve and develop the Association's financial system.

3- Presenting suggestions as to the financial projects referred by the Association Council, namely fee and revenue collection and subscription fee setting.

1- Publishing the statistical samples that would benefit the Association and its periodical newsletter, for instance:

- Cooperation with the official statistical sources, ministries and private statistical institutions to publish them according to applicable rules and regulations.

2- Drawing up statistics, collecting information and conducting studies on the local and international situation of the profession and discussing them in order to benefit and to distribute them among the members.

3- Collecting the necessary statistics related to the Association and its members without any exception.

4- Collecting statistics on the publications related to the activities of the banking, financial and fiscal sectors as well as the corporate sector and presenting suggestions thereto.

1- Formulating a complete project for social grants that may benefit the Association members, and presenting it to the Association Council to take the necessary decisions.

2- Examining the social grant systems adopted in all syndicates, associations and other sectors to study them and benefit from them.

3- Following up the decisions of the Association Council related to the implementation and development of the Association’s social grant system.

4- Setting up social activities likely to strengthen cooperation among members and generate revenues that can be used for the provision of social benefits.

1- Presenting the adequate legal suggestions that protect the rights of the Association.

2- Providing the Association Council with all fiscal decrees, laws and other documents related to the profession.

3- Cooperating with the lawyers chosen by the Association Council to look into its decisions.

4- Studying the legal questions asked by the members, providing appropriate answers and presenting them to the Council.

- Listening to their opinions by meeting them if necessary, summarizing their points of view and presenting them to the Association Council.

- Presenting suggestions that include organizing the relationship between fellow members on one hand, and between the said members and their clients on the other hand.

2- Implementing the field survey system decided upon by the Association Council to inspect the offices of the certified public accountants and the trainees, in order to make sure they abide by the required membership conditions.

1- Formulating a project for overseas communication with Arab and international economic institutions that work in the same field and presenting the said project to the Association Council.

2- Following up the decisions of the Association Council on maintaining all means of communication with international references.

3- Collecting the necessary information on international activities, such as. seminars, relations and agreements related to the profession.

4- Seeking to forge relations with Arab and international references as well as professional associations in order to ensure good relationships and exchange experiences in all professional and technical fields.

The committee presents suggestions aiming at updating the Website to go along with the latest technical developments and encourage the members to meet the requirements so that they can benefit from it.

a) Organizing seminars and workshops on the topics deemed of interest to the members.

b) Promoting the professional capacities of members through the exchange of points of view, studies and expertise.

Article 18: A secretary general assists the Council in running the Association. He is appointed on a full-time basis in accordance with the Association’s administrative structure and has such powers as the Association Council may prescribe/“Article 26 of the Accountancy Profession Act”.

A- The secretary general heads and manages the administrative and technical body in the Association.

B- He implements the Council’s decisions and prepares the meetings of the general assembly under the supervision of the President, the Secretary and the Treasurer, each in his competence.

C- He conducts studies on the administrative hierarchy of the Association and implements them once approved by the Association.

D- He presents periodical reports to the Council on the works of the general secretariat.

E- He prepares, under the supervision of the treasurer, the yearly general budget and the report on the closing accounts to be approved by the Council.

F- He participates in the drawing up of the yearly budget to be approved by the Council and prepares the subscription and revenue-collection lists and tables, whether fees or mutual fund etc.

G- He notifies the President and the Secretary of any issue related to the objectives of the Association. He also studies the draft legislations referred to the Association, give an opinion on them and comments on the decisions and instructions of the public authorities before submitting them to the Council.

H- He presents to the Council suggestions on the financial, administrative and internal rules and regulations and any thing he deems necessary to reach the Association’s objectives and improve the administrative performance.

I- He performs all his tasks to preserve the profession’s interest in Lebanon and abroad.

J- He follows up the committees' recommendations and implements the decisions issued by the Council in this regard.

In accordance with Article 20 appended to Articles 18 and 61 of the Accountancy Profession Act, the Council of the Lebanese Association for Certified Public Accountants organizes:

A- A General Table with the names of all CPA members, Lebanese and non-Lebanese, practicing or non-practicing, listed in serial order. The General Table includes the date of registration of each member and mentions any changes related thereto.

B- A table with the names of practicing Certified Public Accountants, which includes the number and date of registration in the General Table and mentions any registration in another register or table.

C- A table with the names of non-practicing Certified Public Accountants, which includes the number and date of registration in the General Table and mentions any registration in another register or table.

D- A table with the names of all foreign accountants who have met all legal requirements.

E- A table with the names of the trainees. The said table mentions the name of the training office or CPA, the end-of-training date, and the General Table’s registration date of every trainee.

F- A special register for firms that practice the profession. The latter are listed in a serial order. The register also includes the names of the practicing Certified Public Accountants authorized to sign on behalf of the Lebanese firms. The registration is limited to professional civil firms encompassing practicing CPA only. By virtue of Article 20 of the Accountancy Profession Act, anyone can have a look at the aforementioned register at the Association's headquarters and can even obtain a certified copy of a firm's registration, for a fee set by the Association Council.

Article 21: The Association Council may organize and keep other extra tables or lists if deemed necessary for statistical or organizational reasons.

Article 22: In accordance with the present Rules of Procedure, the Association Council may also keep any extra register he deemed appropriate.

The general secretariat draws up the membership cards and registration certificates based on the tables and registers stipulated in the Accountancy Profession Act and the Rules of Procedure, in accordance with a design approved by the Council.

- A “CPA” membership card is given to CPA members. It includes the CPA’s number in the General Table as well as the type of table he is registered in and is signed by both the President and the Secretary.

- A “Trainee” membership card is granted to every trainee certified public accountant. It includes his number and his date of entry in the trainees’ register, and is signed by both the President and the Secretary.

- A special registration certificate is granted to non-trading companies practicing the profession and listed in a special register provided for in the Accountancy Profession Act and the Rules of Procedure. This registration certificate shows the number and date of entry of the company in the mentioned register and is signed by both the President and the Secretary.

- By virtue of a unanimous decision by the Association Council, an honorary registration certificate is given to any person who has stopped practicing the profession after having worked as a Certified Public Accountant for at least twenty years without coming in for criticism nor being liable to disciplinary sanctions. This card can also be granted to individuals with high social standing and international fame who are known for their integrity and morals if the Council sees a moral gain for the Association out of doing so.

- The registration certificate bears the number and date of issue and is signed by the President and the Secretary.

- In accordance with a decision by the Association Council, these certificates are given to Lebanese and non-Lebanese participants, when Arab and international conferences, seminars and sessions are held in Lebanon. The said certificates show the name of the participant as well as the place and date of the conference and are signed by both the President and the Secretary.

The membership fee for trainees is five times the minimum wage rate and is paid only once upon the acceptance of the membership application.

A-The yearly subscription for the practicing CPA members is two times the minimum wage rate and is paid during the first three months of the fiscal year.

B- The yearly subscription for the non-practicing CPA members is equal to the minimum wage rate and is paid during the first three months of the fiscal year.

C-The yearly subscription for the trainees listed in the training register is equal to the minimum wage rate.

Donations from international, official and local bodies are accepted after being approved by the Association Council.

The Association Council decides on the proceeds of these activities in light of the works of the Committees in charge of the Association’s newsletter, conferences and seminars.

In accordance with decisions taken by virtue of the present Rules of Procedure, the Association Council sets the various fees, among which, registration fees, examination fees, transfer fees (from one table to another), card and certificate fees and fees for looking into the members’ tables and registers etc.

The President and the Secretary sign jointly any expenditure “Last paragraph of Article 40 of the Accountancy Profession Act.”

Article 26: The rules and regulations stipulated in Articles 43 and 54 of the Accountancy Profession Act are applied.

Article 27: Before referring the offender to the disciplinary board he is subjected to an investigation by the President and a member of the Association Council. The investigators inform the offender of what he is accused of the documents in his file. They take down what he has to say, investigate with witnesses - who only take the oath when necessary - , and spare no effort to disclose the truth.

Upon completion of the investigation, an objective report, which does not include the investigators’ opinions, is submitted to the Association Council. The latter decides accordingly whether to refer the offender to the disciplinary board or not.

Article 28: The offender has to answer to what he is accused of and to the investigators’ questions in all honesty, except in cases where he is sworn to professional confidentiality, in accordance with the first paragraph of Article 14 of the Accountancy Profession Act.

Article 29: Striking the offender off the Association’s Table does stop or impede the proceedings and does not prevent the implementation of the ruling. Similarly, disciplinary proceedings do not prevent penal charges as is stipulated in Article 54 of the aforementioned Act.

Article 30: The disciplinary board may resort to all available methods of proof to form its convictions and may confer on the case, by starting with listening to the opinions of the youngest member and moving finally to the president.

1- The Certified Public Accountants, the companies practicing the profession and the trainees that are member of the Association are prohibited from creating or joining any other professional association or syndicate whatsoever, with the exception of scientific associations and syndicates that are not in contradiction with the works and objectives of the Association.

2- When a practicing CPA dies, his heirs can delegate the follow up of his work or the management of his office to one or more other practicing CPAs without any interference on their part. The appointed CPA will affix his own signature on the performed work and will be held responsible for it, in accordance with the terms agreed to by both parties, and after obtaining a prior written approval from the Association Council. The granted period of time will be three years at the most, and can be extended if one of the children of the deceased is resuming his/her higher studies in order to join the Association.

3- When one of the partners at an auditing and accountancy firm dies, the partner's heirs may request the firm's dissolution or ask for the implementation of the provisions of the previous clause which provides for the appointment of one or several practicing CPAs to replace the deceased, in accordance with an agreement entered into by the parties, and after having received the other partners' written approval as well as that of the Association Council.

Clause 1: Every practicing Certified Public Accountant may accept three trainees or a maximum of four, on condition that the Association Council approves it. It is up to the Council to judge the seriousness of the provided training on the one hand by the number and legal form of client companies and on the other hand by the CPA’s office capacity.

Clause 2: The Certified Public Accountant who takes in a trainee has to register him in the National Social Security Fund and to train him academically and behaviorally.

Clause3: The present Rules of Procedure can be amended at the Council’s instigation or at the request of one third of the members of the general assembly who have paid their subscriptions. The said amendment shall place in a general assembly convened especially for that purpose.

Clause 4: The present Rules of Procedure will become valid once approved by the Association Council and the General Assembly. They will be posted at the Association’s headquarters in Beirut and will come into force as of their publication.