Stephen John Costley | CPA Australia

Member’s name: Stephen John Costley
Date of Hearing: 21 March 2023
Division: Victoria
Tribunal: Disciplinary Tribunal

On 21 March 2023, the Disciplinary Tribunal found Mr Stephen John Costley breached the CPA Australia 11 May 2022 Constitution:

Article 39(a)(ii)(A), in that he had “breached this Constitution (or the constitution of the Company in force immediately before the Amending Date), By-Laws, Code of Professional Conduct or the Applicable Regulations”, in that he breached By-Law 5.2(a)(ii) of the 6 December 2021 By-Laws that provides “(a) As soon as reasonably expedient after the allocation of a Complaint to him or her, the PCO must: …(ii) require the Member to provide a satisfactory explanation with respect to the matters referred to in the Complaint. If a Member fails to provide a satisfactory explanation in writing with respect to the matters referred to in the Complaint within 10 Business Days (or such further period as agreed with the PCO) of receipt of a request by the PCO, the GMPC may proceed to make an assessment under By-Law 5.3 on the material before him or her without further communication with the Member and the Member will be in breach of By-Law 5.2(a), which breach must be dealt with concurrently with the complaint.”
Article 39(a)(ii)(C), in that he “failed to observe a proper standard of professional care, skill, or competence”, by failing to document and communicate to the Client the Terms of Engagement, as required by section 3.1 of APES 305.

Mr Costley attended the Disciplinary Tribunal and admitted Compliant 1 and denied Complaint 2.

Penalty and Costs:

The Disciplinary Tribunal found the Complaints sustained and imposed the following penalties:

Complaint 1:

admonishment
a Fine of $1,000.

Complaint 2:

Successful completion of a CPA Australia Best Practice Program Assessment, or its equivalent, within 12 months or such time as allowed by the General Manager Professional Conduct. Failure to do so to result in immediate forfeiture of membership.

The Member was ordered to pay a contribution to CPA Australia’s costs of $2,564.00.

In accordance with the Disciplinary Tribunal's decision, Mr Costley's Membership has been forfeited due to his not completing the CPA Australia Best Practice Program Assessment as required.