I. Preamble to the National Council on Family Relations Code of Ethics 

The National Council on Family Relations (NCFR) is a professional membership association for Family Scientists, and for other family scholars, professionals, and students from diverse disciplines, who work in areas such as research, teaching, program development, counseling, policy, human services, and more to understand, strengthen, and advocate for families through interdisciplinary research, theory, and practice.  

NCFR members execute their work according to this NCFR Code of Ethics as a guide for professional conduct and decision-making. Section I outlines the Ethical Principles for NCFR Members, which are designed to be aspirational in nature. These Ethical Principles are not intended to be used as tools for behavioral enforcement or sanctioning, although they may be considered when interpreting the Ethical Standards of the organization. Section II contains the Ethical Standards for NCFR Members, which set forth enforceable rules for the conduct of NCFR members in diverse professional settings. The NCFR Code of Ethics should be consulted by NCFR members when faced with ethical questions or concerns. 

II. The National Council on Family Relations Ethical Principles for NCFR Members 

The five Ethical Principles in this document are aspirational, embodying the values and ideals of NCFR members who interact professionally and work with individuals and families with diverse identities from diverse social and geographical locations. These Ethical Principles are not intended to be used as tools for behavioral enforcement or sanctioning, although they may be considered when interpreting the Ethical Standards of the organization. Instead, the Ethical Principles serve as inspiration for NCFR members to work toward their highest ideals of excellence and integrity in their professional practice. They should be considered by NCFR members when faced with ethical dilemmas.  

Membership in the National Council on Family Relations implies adoption of these Ethical Principles. When first becoming a member and thereafter when membership is renewed, NCFR members pledge to embrace these principles as guides for their professional practice. 

Note: In this document, professional practice includes a range of applied work of NCFR members including but not limited to work in private therapy practice, organizations such as foundations, policy think-tanks, government or non-profit agencies, and religious institutions. 

A. Integrity and Trust
NCFR members honor the trust placed upon them as a result of their professional knowledge. Trust serves as a cornerstone in professional relationships with colleagues and students, as well as with the individuals, families, and communities they serve. Likewise, NCFR members embody integrity in their work by meeting high disciplinary standards for research, teaching, and professional practice and behaving ethically in all professional interactions. 

NCFR members hold themselves accountable to clearly and accurately conduct, disseminate, and cite research and uphold rigorous standards of scholarship, teaching, and professional practice.  

NCFR members do not behave in ways that could harm others, the profession, or themselves. Wherever possible, NCFR members are transparent about the beliefs, biases, and motives that undergird their work.  

NCFR members honor the expectation of privacy and confidentiality through the roles in which they function, recognizing the importance of balancing the need for transparency and privacy, but always acting with integrity as representatives of the profession. 

B. Respect and Responsibility 
NCFR members recognize and respect a wide range of scholarly paradigms, epistemologies, values, beliefs, theories, methodologies, and practices; they respect community-based knowledge and expertise.  

NCFR members behave respectfully toward colleagues, students, community partners, and clients and agree to engage in respectful and responsible dialogue and critique, even when they are not in agreement. This is the essence of collegiality.  

NCFR members are responsible to uphold the public trust by engaging in ethical behavior individually as scientist/practitioners, and collectively as members of their professions. The desire to be collegial must not outweigh their shared responsibility for ethical behavior; when appropriate, NCFR members pursue appropriate channels to evaluate, prevent, stop, and/or report unethical conduct.  

C. Professional Competence 
NCFR members uphold high professional and scientific standards of competence; they are aware of the boundaries and limitations of their skills and expertise.  

NCFR members teach, conduct research, and provide services with populations and in areas that are within their boundaries of competence based on their education, training, and professional experience.  

When new and unfamiliar opportunities arise, NCFR members prepare themselves with relevant education and training; they do not represent themselves as experts in areas in which they do not hold expertise or have sufficient knowledge to meet standards of excellence.  

NCFR members seek on-going educational and professional development opportunities in order to maintain high levels of knowledge and skill.  

D. Equity, Inclusion, and Respect for People’s Diversity, Rights, and Dignity 
NCFR members declare the dignity, worth, and rights of all people. They respect diversity and do not tolerate any forms of discrimination based on age, race, socioeconomic status and socioeconomic origins, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, health conditions, political affiliation, language, marital/partner status, domestic status, parental status, partner status, family responsibilities and choices, or any applicable basis protected by law.  

NCFR members acknowledge the existence of systemic racism, bias, and discrimination in the U.S. and globally, and locally in NCFR, in other professional organizations to which they belong, and in their work environments. They actively strive to protect all individuals’ rights, eliminate systemic racism, and promote individual and family equity, inclusion, and diversity in their research, teaching, and professional practice. 

E. Social Responsibility and Justice  
NCFR members recognize their social responsibility to utilize and apply their knowledge and expertise to support and contribute to the well-being of all individuals and families, particularly those who are marginalized in society.  

NCFR members continually educate themselves and use reflexivity in scholarship and practice to become aware of personal biases.  

NCFR members actively combat the forces of racism, white supremacy, sexism, heteronormativity, anti-LGBTQ+ bias, ableism, cultural and religious intolerance, and other systems of oppression and discrimination they encounter in their work.  

NCFR members do not engage in unjust research, teaching, or professional practices that are likely to harm others. NCFR members try to anticipate and take responsibility for the impact of their work on others; they make research and scholarship accessible to those who are impacted by it and, when possible, to the greater public, in order to contribute to a more just society for all families.  

III. The National Council on Family Relations Ethical Standards for NCFR Members 

The Ethical Standards in this document are crafted to guide the conduct of NCFR members in their array of professional roles including research, professional practice, and teaching. While broadly written and not exhaustive, the Ethical Standards apply to all NCFR members across diverse professional settings.  

NCFR members consult with others when faced with ethical questions and commit to ongoing personal and professional development to build and support a foundation of ethical practice. This is part of one’s responsibility as an NCFR member. 

Membership in the National Council on Family Relations implies adoption and adherence to these Ethical Standards. When first becoming a member and thereafter when membership is renewed, NCFR members pledge to abide by these standards. 

Note: In this document, professional practice includes a range of applied work of NCFR members including but not limited to work in private therapy practice, organizations such as foundations, policy think-tanks, government or non-profit agencies, and religious institutions. 

A. Professional Competence 

1. Competencies: NCFR members keep current on knowledge and skills in their respective areas of research, education and professional practice.  
   NCFR members who develop new areas of research, teaching, and professional practice take time to acquire the requisite competencies needed to complete the work with professional integrity. 

2. Representation and Misuse of Expertise: NCFR members present their expertise in research, teaching, and/or professional practice accurately and fairly in accordance with their professional training, credentials, and experience. They do not knowingly share/publish false, deceptive, or misleading information based on their own or others’ research findings or professional practice.  

B. Relationships 
Within NCFR, we stand for relationships that are:

1. Respectful of Diversity Among Peers: NCFR members engage in respectful dialogue with their peers who may hold a range of opinions and beliefs about issues related to families. Discussion, disagreement, and debate are welcomed and encouraged; personal attacks on and denigration of individuals who hold views different from one’s own will not be tolerated. 

2. Fair and nondiscriminatory: NCFR members treat all groups and persons fairly, without prejudice. 

3. Non-Harassing: NCFR members do not engage in harassment of colleagues, students, supervisees, staff, research participants, and individuals they serve. Harassment includes a single act or multiple persistent acts/behaviors that are demeaning, abusive, offensive, or create a hostile professional, workplace, or organizational environment. 
   Harassment may include unnecessary, exaggerated or unwarranted scrutiny or attack, verbal or non-verbal. Sexual harassment may include unwanted sexual solicitation, physical advance, or verbal or non-verbal conduct that is sexual in nature. Acts of micro aggressions that continue after the person is told that their words and/or actions were experienced as such are included in NCFRs definition of harassment. 

4. Non-Exploitative: NCFR members do not abuse their power and privilege in the hierarchy by exploiting the labor, intellectual property and/or experiences of colleagues, students, supervisees, staff, research participants, and individuals they serve.  NCFR members do not take advantage of the trust and dependency of colleagues, students, supervisees, staff, research participants, and individuals they serve for their own career or personal advancement. (See ***Authorship under the Research and Publication section of this Code of Ethics for specific information about exploitation related to student contributions to scholarly publications.)  

5. Non-Abusive: NCFR members do not engage in physical, sexual, verbal/emotional, financial/economic, mental/psychological, cultural, identity, and/or intellectual abuse.

   When NCFR members become aware of concerns related to abuse, they comply with applicable laws and regulations according to their employer and/or jurisdiction. 

C.  Research and Publication 

1. Research Participants: NCFR members uphold the standards of research ethics dictated by their academic institution, funder, community-based organization, or professional organizations for research endeavors, including engaging in research practices that (a) protect vulnerable populations, (b) do not exploit research participants, (c) respect participants’ dignity, and (d) protect the welfare of research participants.

2. Informed Consent: NCFR members use understandable language to obtain and document appropriate informed consent to research procedures prior to beginning data collection. They provide documents in the language of their participants when possible or use interpreters to collaborate in the consent process. Additionally, they obtain written informed consent from participants before audio/video recording or capturing images. When participants are unable to consent due to age or mental status, or are legally incapable of consenting, researchers obtain informed consent from a person legally authorized to act on behalf of the participant. 

3. Plagiarism: NCFR members do not present others’ work as their own, whether it is published, unpublished, or electronically available. In written publications or in presentations, they must explicitly identify, credit, and reference the author(s) when they use any data or verbatim material from their own or others’ written work (published, unpublished, or electronically available). 

4. Authorship: NCFR members take responsibility and authorship credit only for work they have actually performed or to which they have made a substantial contribution. They adhere to the respective journal’s guidelines for authorship determination. Research teams, including faculty, students, collaborators, and community partners, where applicable, should be actively involved in the decision-making process about authorship.
    
   ****Also see Exploitation under the Relationships section of this Code of Ethics. Faculty advisers should discuss publication credit and authorship with students as early as feasible and throughout the research and publication process as appropriate. They allow students to have an active voice in the decision-making process about appropriate authorship of publications.

   Faculty do not exploit student labor to further their own career advancement. They recognize the power imbalance in student-faculty relationships, and honor students’ intellectual property and their contributions to research (paid or unpaid) and mentoring relationships.  

5. Conflict of Interest: NCFR members avoid situations that may involve conflicts of interest personally, socially, organizationally, politically, or financially, which would prevent them from performing their work in an unbiased and disinterested manner.
   When seeking a leadership position in NCFR, NCFR members will disclose relevant personal or professional relationships that may appear to be in conflict or have the potential for a conflict of interest in their relationship with the NCFR organization.  

6. Reviewers’ Responsibilities: NCFR members do not use information or material gained in a confidential review of unpublished manuscripts for journals, other publications, or proposals. They respect the strict proprietary rights of the author(s) and uphold the confidentiality agreement with the journal or organization. They disclose conflicts of interest to the journal editor or organizational leadership, and they decline any requests to review when conflicts are involved.  

D.  Education, Teaching, Training, and Mentoring  
Note: Education takes place in a variety of learning environments including classrooms, virtual environments, and community settings. 

1. Diversity and Inclusion: NCFR members are respectful and inclusive of diverse family systems and experiences. 

2. Learning Environment: NCFR members maintain open and respectful learning environments that encourage honest interaction and dialogue. 
   NCFR members exercise thoughtful pedagogy in learning environments to enhance learners’ growth and development. 

3. Evaluation/Assessment: NCFR members articulate clear learning objectives and explicitly communicate performance standards and criteria by which students and supervisees will be evaluated and/or assessed at the beginning of the course or supervisory relationship. 
   NCFR members provide thoughtful, specific, and timely evaluation and/or assessment feedback to students and supervisees for the purpose of continued growth and development. 

4. Relationships: NCFR members are mindful of and do not exploit hierarchical and power-laden relationships between instructor and student.
   NCFR members do not engage in sexual relationships with students or supervisees in their programs or agencies. 

5. Research Participation: NCFR members do not coerce individuals to participate as subjects in research. If students enrolled in courses do not wish to participate in or assist with research projects, they should be offered alternative assignments of equal value and be assured that their decision not to participate will in no way affect their grade. Participants in community-based programs should be informed that if they decide not to participate in the research, it will not affect their ability to continue participating in the program or services provided. 

6. Confidentiality: NCFR members honor and uphold the confidentiality of individuals’ disclosures through assignments, discussions, and other interactions, except where disclosure is required by law.
   Faculty adhere to their academic institution's Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) policy. They also follow their institution’s guidelines for disclosure of sexual harassment or abuse in class discussions or writing; where applicable, they disclose their mandatory reporting requirement to students on course syllabi.
   When NCFR members request (or require) individuals to provide potentially sensitive and painful information about or from family members (e.g., in a genogram assignment) or others, individuals are carefully instructed and cautioned about potential harm and are allowed to use their own discretion about what information to share. 

IV.    NCFR Board Ethics Committee Policies and Procedures  

This Policies and Procedures section of the Code of Ethics describes the responsibilities and operating rules of the NCFR Board Ethics Committee, as well as the policies and procedures related to the submission and resolution of complaints of violations of the NCFR Code of Ethics.

A. Responsibilities of the Ethics Committee  
The Board Ethics Committee has been established by the NCFR Board of Directors to consider allegations of violations of the NCFR Code of Ethics by members of NCFR and, where appropriate, to determine sanctions. As such, the Board of Directors has authorized the Board Ethics Committee to:

1. Publicize the Code of Ethics to the members of NCFR and other interested persons.

2. Provide advice to members of NCFR on an informal and confidential basis regarding their ethical obligations under the Code of Ethics. 

3. Investigate allegations of violations of the Ethical Standards, determine if violations of the Ethical Standards have occurred and, where appropriate, impose sanctions. 

4. Make recommendations to the Board of Directors regarding any suggested changes to the policies and procedures.

B. Operating Rules of the Board Ethics Committee

1. Membership: The Board Ethics Committee shall consist of five members, appointed by the NCFR President in consultation with the Board of Directors. At least two of the five members must be Certified Family Life Educators and two must have academic appointments with tenure. Each member shall serve a three-year term. The NCFR President shall appoint the committee chair from among the members who are in the 3rd year of their term. Terms shall be staggered*. After the end of their term of office, a member may continue to participate in the investigation and determination of a matter to which he or she was previously assigned. Members of the Ethics Committee may not serve concurrently on the NCFR Board of Directors and the Ethics Committee.
   *For the initial appointments when the committee is first established, two members shall be appointed for three-year terms, two members shall be appointed for two-year terms, and one member shall be appointed for a one-year term.  All subsequent appointments shall be for three years.

2. Meetings: The Ethics Committee will meet as needed to consider any allegations of an ethical violation brought against an NCFR member. Additionally, the Ethics Committee will meet at least one time each year to review the Code and present any recommended changes, modifications, or deletions to the full Board of Directors of NCFR at its next regularly scheduled meeting following the Ethics Committee’s review. Meetings will be called by the chair and can be in person at the NCFR annual meeting or otherwise or virtual (using NCFR resources only). Some or all of the members of the Board Ethics Committee may take part in, and be present at, any meeting of the Board Ethics Committee by means of remote communication, meaning communication via electronic communication, conference telephone, video conference, the internet, or such other means by which persons not physically present in the same location may communicate with each other on a substantially simultaneous basis.

3. Quorum and Voting: All committee members must be present for the transaction of business. Subject to the provisions of the next paragraph, all decisions shall be by majority vote of the five members.

4. Conflict of Interest: No member of the Board Ethics Committee shall participate in the deliberations or decision of any matter with respect to which the member has a conflict of interest as described in the Code of Ethics. In the event of such a conflict, the member should inform the chair and recuse themselves from any deliberation or decision on the matter. In such a case, the remaining four members will carry out the deliberations and must be in agreement for a decision to be reached. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Code of Ethics, the NCFR Board of Directors may, at any time and from time to time, without any further action of the Ethics Committee, exercise the powers and duties of the Ethics Committee under this Code of Ethics.

5. Removal: Each member is expected to fulfill responsibilities as assigned, participate in conference calls, and attend agreed-upon meeting(s). If a member determines they are unable or unwilling to complete the term of office, then they may resign from the committee. A committee member or officer may be removed prior to the end of their term for failure to meet these responsibilities. Removal requires an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the other members of the Ethics Committee.

C. Enforcement of the Code of Ethics 

1. Jurisdiction 
   a. The Board Ethics Committee shall have jurisdiction to receive and determine the resolution of any complaint of a violation of the Ethical Standards in the NCFR Code of Ethics by a member of NCFR. All members of NCFR are subject to the Code of Ethics. In situations where the alleged violation of the Ethical Standards occurred when the subject of the complaint was not a member of NCFR, the Ethics Committee shall have jurisdiction if the subject of the complaint is currently a member. In situations where the alleged violation of the Ethical Standards occurred when the subject of the complaint was a member, but is currently no longer a member of NCFR, the Ethics Committee shall have discretion to resolve the complaint as if the subject of the complaint were still a member. 

   b. If a complaint alleges conduct which is, or may be, the subject of other legal or institutional proceedings, the Ethics Committee may defer further proceedings with respect to the complaint until the conclusion of the other legal or institutional proceedings. Examples of entities with jurisdiction which may supersede NCFR would be state or federal courts, academic institutions, or the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).  

2. Filing a Complaint
   a. Any person who has a good faith reason to believe that a current NCFR member or other person subject to the Code of Ethics has violated the Ethical Standards in the Code of Ethics may file a written complaint with the Ethics Committee.

   b. Potential complainants are encouraged to make an initial contact with the NCFR Executive Director or their designee to clarify whether concerns about a possible ethical violation are covered by the Ethical Standards. If it appears that a situation may be covered by the Ethical Standards, a copy of the Code of Ethics, including these Policies and Procedures, shall be sent to the potential complainant. 

   c. A complaint may not be accepted or initiated if it is received more than 18 months after the alleged conduct either occurred or was discovered, except as set forth below. A complaint received after the 18-month time limit set forth in this paragraph may only be accepted if the chair of the Ethics Committee determines that there is good cause for the complaint not to have been filed within the 18-month time limit. No complaint will be considered if it is received more than five years after the alleged conduct occurred or was discovered. The five-year time limit may be waived for complaints of harassment.

   d. A complaint shall be in writing; sent by U.S. mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested; addressed to the Chair of the Ethics Committee, c/o National Council on Family Relations, at the address of its headquarters set forth on the NCFR website; and include all of the following: 1) the name and address of the complainant; 2) the name and mailing address of the subject of the complaint; 3) the specific Ethical Standard(s) alleged to have been violated; 4) a statement that other legal or institutional proceedings involving the alleged conduct have not been initiated or, if initiated, the status of such proceedings (if known); 5) a full description of the conduct alleged to have violated the Ethical Standards in the Code of Ethics, including the sources of all information on which the allegations are based; 6) copies of any documents supporting the allegations; and 7) if necessary, a request that the 18-month time limit be waived. Anonymous  complaints shall not be accepted. 

   e. Complaints under the NCFR Conference Code of Conduct will need to meet the same filing guidelines as all other complaints and will be handled using these procedures with the following exception. If the complaint involves harassing or bullying behavior toward a conference attendee or attendees, the Executive Director shall follow the procedures set out in the Conference Code of Conduct and shall have the power to make an immediate decision for removal of the perpetrator from the conference. The complaint will then be referred to the NCFR Ethics Committee to follow these procedures and determine if additional sanctions are warranted. Any complaint under the Conference Code of Conduct filed after the conclusion of the conference shall be referred to the NCFR Ethics Committee to follow these procedures.

3. Preliminary Screening of a Complaint
   a. The Executive Director or their designee will review each complaint to determine if the complaint includes all information required in Section IV. C. 2(d). If the complaint does not include all the required information, the Executive Director or their designee shall so inform the complainant, who will be given the opportunity to provide additional information. If no response is received from the complainant within 30 days after they are informed that additional information is needed, or such longer period as the Executive Director determines is appropriate for good cause shown, the matter will be closed, and the complainant so notified. 

   b. If the complaint is complete as set forth in Section IV. C. 2(d), the Executive Director or their designee shall notify the chair of the Ethics Committee and provide relevant materials regarding the complaint. The chair and the Executive Director or their designee shall evaluate whether there is cause for action by the full Ethics Committee. Cause for action shall exist when the subject of the complaint’s alleged actions and/or omissions, if proved, would, in the judgment of the chair and the Executive Director or their designee, constitute a breach of the Ethical Standards in the Code of Ethics. For purposes of determining whether cause for action exists, incredible, speculative, and/or internally inconsistent allegations may be disregarded. If cause for action is determined to exist, a formal case will be initiated, as set forth in Section IV. C. 4(a). If cause for action is determined not to exist, the complaint will be dismissed at this stage and the complainant so notified. 

4. Notice of a Complaint and Offer of Mediation
   a If cause for action is found, the Executive Director or their designee shall provide a copy of the complaint and all supporting materials, a copy of the Code of Ethics, including these Policies and Procedures, to the subject of the complaint via U.S. mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested, and mailed to the latest address in NCFR’s records for the subject of the complaint or such other address as the subject of the complaint shall inform NCFR.

   b. Where appropriate, in the opinion of the Executive Director or their designee and the Ethics Committee chair, a settlement through mediation shall be offered to the subject of the complaint and the complainant. A mediator who is an NCFR member and not a current member of the Ethics Committee will be recommended by the Executive Director or their designee. Such mediation services will in most cases be by written correspondence or teleconference. If informal means of dispute resolution are declined by either party, the members of the Ethics Committee shall not be informed which party declined.

   c. Any person appointed to serve as a mediator shall agree to maintain the confidentiality of the proceedings as set forth in the Code of Ethics and these Policies and Procedures. The mediator shall report to the Executive Director or their designee whether a resolution has been agreed upon by the parties involved. If a resolution has been reached, the mediator shall provide a summary of the resolution to the Executive Director or their designee.

5. Response to a Complaint
   If either or both the complainant and the subject of the complaint declines mediation, or if mediation fails to resolve the complaint, or if mediation is not deemed appropriate in the discretion of the Executive Director or their designee, the subject of the complaint shall be notified in writing that the case will go forward in accordance with these Policies and Procedures. The subject of the complaint shall have 30 days after receipt of this notice to respond in writing to the complaint and provide any supporting material. An extension may be granted by the Executive Director if good cause is shown, but the extension shall not exceed 90 days beyond the expiration of the initial 30-day period.

6. Investigation and Determination of a Violation
   The complaint, the response, and all supporting material will be forwarded to the full Ethics Committee. The Ethics Committee shall begin deliberations within 30 days of receiving all material concerning a complaint. During the investigation, the Ethics Committee may communicate with the complainant, the subject of the complaint, witnesses, or other sources of information as necessary to carry out its investigation. Complainants and subjects of complaints have the right to consult or retain legal counsel at their own expense. Upon completion of its investigation, the Ethics Committee shall issue a determination of whether one or more violations of the Ethical Standards in the Code of Ethics have occurred, including a summary of the factual basis for this determination and, if deemed necessary, the appropriate sanction.

7.  Sanctions
   In any case in which it has been determined that a violation of the Ethical Standards in the Code of Ethics has occurred, the Ethics Committee may impose no sanction, or it may impose one or more of the following set forth below, as the committee decides is appropriate. The guiding principle of the NCFR Ethics Committee in deciding sanctions shall be restoration and education. In other words, where possible, sanctions should aim to help the subject of the complaint fully understand the violation, encourage ethical behavior, and, where appropriate, redress the violation. The most severe sanctions will be reserved for the most egregious ethical violations.  The range of possible sanctions include:

   a. Private Reprimand: In cases where there has been an ethics violation, but the violation did not cause serious personal and/or professional harm, an educative letter concerning the violation, including any stipulated conditions of redress or additional training, may be sent to the subject of the complaint. The subject of the complaint must provide evidence of conditions being met as stipulated in the letter. Failure to comply with stipulated conditions in a reprimand within the designated time period may result in the imposition of a more severe sanction. 

   b. Denial of Privileges: The Ethics Committee may determine that a subject of a complaint shall be denied one or more of the privileges of NCFR membership and/or the opportunity to participate in NCFR-sponsored activities including, but not limited to, appointment to editorship or the editorial board of any NCFR journal, election or appointment to any NCFR office and committee, receipt of any NCFR award, publishing in an NCFR journal, presenting a paper, or otherwise participating at meetings sponsored by NCFR. The time period for denial of privileges may be temporary or permanent. Temporary denial of privileges may occur in conjunction with stipulations of redress or additional training. For temporary denial of privileges, the eligibility to reinstate privileges at the expiration of the determined time period may be automatic or may be conditioned on a future determination by the Ethics Committee that eligibility is appropriate.

   c. Termination of Membership: In cases where there has been an ethics violation and the violation caused serious personal and/or professional harm, the NCFR membership of the subject of the complaint may be terminated. The termination of membership may be temporary or permanent. Temporary termination of membership may occur in conjunction with stipulations of redress or additional training. The eligibility to reinstate membership at the expiration of the determined time may be automatic or may be conditioned on a future determination by the Ethics Committee that eligibility is appropriate.

        i.    If termination of membership is permanent and the subject of the complaint is an NCFR Fellow, Fellow status will be revoked.
       ii.    If termination of membership is permanent, the Ethics Committee may make the sanction and the violated ethical standard public in an appropriate manner.

   8. Notice of Determination
   The chair of the Ethics Committee shall notify the complainant and the subject of the complaint of the determination by the Ethics Committee (the “Notice of Determination”). If a sanction is imposed, the Ethics Committee shall instruct the Executive Director to take the appropriate actions called for under the Notice of Determination, except that such instruction shall be postponed if an appeal is filed as set forth in Section IV. C. 9.

   9. Appeal of Determination
   A subject of a complaint who is determined by the Ethics Committee to have violated the Ethical Standards in the Code of Ethics and who receives a sanction under Section IV. C. 7(a) through 7(c) may appeal this determination by filing a Notice of Appeal, including a statement of reason for the appeal, with the Executive Director of NCFR, no later than 30 days after receipt of the Notice of Determination. The Executive Director will forward the appeal to the NCFR Board President. An extension may be granted by the President if good cause is shown, but the extension may not exceed 90 days beyond the expiration of the initial 30-day period. If an appeal is filed, the President shall convene the Board of Directors to serve as an appeal panel (the “Appeal Panel”) to review all information considered by the Ethics Committee and, within 90 days of the meeting at which the information was reviewed, make a decision to uphold or reverse the determination. The Appeal Panel may affirm the Ethics Committee’s decision, set aside the Ethics Committee’s determination that a violation has occurred, or determine that the sanction imposed by the Ethics Committee is not appropriate and impose a different sanction. The decision of the Appeal Panel shall constitute the final decision of NCFR with respect to all matters subject to this complaint.

   10. Confidentiality
   a. The filing of a complaint against a current or former NCFR member, the identities of the complainant and the subject of the complaint, and all proceedings held under this Part IV shall be kept confidential to the extent possible by the Ethics Committee and the Executive Director or their designee, consistent with the need to conduct an adequate investigation, except that information regarding the complaint may be shared with any staff designated by the Executive Director to assist the Ethics Committee, NCFR legal counsel, the complainant, the subject of the complaint, and third party sources of information. Determinations of violations of the Ethical Standards in the Code of Ethics by the Ethics Committee or by an Appeal Panel shall be kept confidential, except in the case of Section IV. C. 7(c)  or as otherwise required under any applicable legal requirement. 

   b. The name of each individual whose membership is terminated and a brief statement of the reason for termination shall be reported annually to the NCFR Board of Directors. Such information may otherwise be disclosed only when compelled by an applicable legal requirement with the exception described in Section IV. C. 7(c).

   c. Initiation of legal action against NCFR or its officers or employees shall constitute a waiver of confidentiality by the person initiating such action.

   d. Records relating to the investigation of complaints of violations of the Ethical Standards in the Code of Ethics, whether or not the Ethics Committee determined that a violation occurred, shall be maintained in a secure place. These records should always remain confidential, unless otherwise provided for in this Part IV. Permission to use these materials for research and educational purposes may be granted by the Executive Director within the first 50 years of the closing of the complaint, as long as the materials do not identify the individuals involved. After 50 years, these materials are available for research or educational purposes without special approval as long as the commitment to confidentiality is honored and the materials do not identify the individuals involved.

V.    Additional Provisions  

A. No Retaliation
No complainant who in good faith submits a complaint under Section IV of this Code of Ethics or who participates in a review or investigation of a complaint shall be subject to harassment or retaliation because of such report or participation. This protection extends to complainants who report in good faith, even if the allegations are, after an investigation, not substantiated. Any NCFR member who retaliates against someone who in good faith has reported or participated in a review or investigation of a complaint under this Code of Ethics will be subject to discipline, up to and including termination of membership status in NCFR. Anyone who believes that a complainant has been subject to harassment, retaliation, or adverse consequences as a result of making a good faith report or participating in a review or investigation of a complaint under this Code of Ethics should contact the Executive Director or their designee.

B. Administration; Interpretation
Subject to the provisions of this Code of Ethics, the Ethics Committee shall have sole authority to do everything necessary or appropriate to administer the Code of Ethics, including interpreting the Code of Ethics and making all other determinations necessary or advisable for the administration of this Code of Ethics. All decisions, determinations and interpretations of the Ethics Committee regarding this Code of Ethics shall be final and binding on all persons subject to this Code of Ethics.

C. Periodic Review
To assure, among other things, that NCFR operates in a manner consistent with charitable purposes and does not engage in activities that could jeopardize its reputation or tax-exempt status, the Ethics Committee shall conduct periodic reviews of this Code of Ethics [no less often than annually]. The Ethics Committee shall present any recommended changes, modifications, or deletions of the provisions of this Code of Ethics to the full Board of Directors of NCFR at its next regularly scheduled meeting following the Ethics Committee’s review.