Article 55

Disciplinary Jurisdiction

All dentists registered in the OMD shall be under the exclusive disciplinary jurisdiction of the ethics and professional conduct committee, in compliance with these statutes and other applicable regulations.

Article 56

Disciplinary Offences

1 - It shall be considered a disciplinary offence any action or omission which infringe, with intent and premeditation, upon the duties contained in these statutes, the internal regulations, the code of ethics or any other applicable regulations.

2 - Any person or organization may inform the OMD about any fact susceptible of being considered a disciplinary offence, committed by registered dentists.

3 - Disciplinary responsibility shall be independent from civil or criminal responsibility, although a disciplinary action may be pending until a court verdict is pronounced.

Article 57

Disciplinary Competence

1 - The ethics and professional conduct committee has competence over all dentists registered in the OMD.

2 - Should a disciplinary action be brought against one of the members of this committee, the other members shall appoint a substitute, whose mandate shall be limited to this process, among eligible dentists who do not hold any other position in the OMD¿s ruling bodies.

Article 58

Filing a Disciplinary Action

1 - Any duly identified person or organization, aware of any fact liable to be a disciplinary offence may file a complaint before the OMD¿s ruling bodies.

2 - The person or persons mentioned in the previous number include the members of the OMD's ruling bodies.

3 - The OMD's ruling bodies may bring disciplinary action against any offender, regardless of the existence of a written complaint.

4 - The decision to bring disciplinary action against an offender shall be made by the president of the ethics and professional conduct committee or by two of its members, without the possibility of appeal.

Article 59

Legitimacy

1 - For the sake of legitimacy of the disciplinary action, the concerned party, or plaintiff, shall be the person who filed the complaint in accordance with the previous Article, or the OMD's ruling body who raised the action in compliance with no. 3 of the above-mentioned Article.

2 - Regardless of that which was established in the previous paragraph, any person or persons directly concerned with the facts in question may take part by requesting or declaring whatever might be considered relevant to the case.

Article 60

Principle of Self-defense

No defendant shall be found guilty before he or she has had the opportunity, in the course of the action, to make a statement about the facts of which he or she is accused.

Article 61

Confidential Nature of the Process

1 - All the proceedings shall be confidential until a formal accusation is brought against the defendant.

2 - Both the plaintiff and the defendant, however, shall have access to the transcripts of the case when no risk to the development of the case is involved.

3 - The arbitrator may also provide the plaintiff and the defendant with copies of some of the transcripts, in order that they should prepare their allegations.

4 - The defendant and the plaintiff, if a dentist registered in the OMD, as well as the members of the OMD's ruling bodies, who violate the confidentiality of the process will be liable to disciplinary sanctions.

Article 62

Period of Limitation

1 - Disciplinary actions shall have a period of limitation of three years.

2 - Disciplinary offences also tried in court shall have the same period of limitation as the civil legal action, when longer than three years.

3 - After the period of limitation is due, the defendant may request the proceedings to be resumed.

Article 63

Effects of the Suspension of Removal from the Register

1 - The suspension or the removal from the register shall not revoke the disciplinary responsibility regarding offences prior to the date of suspension or removal.

2 - During the period of suspension from the register, the dentist shall continue to be under the OMD's disciplinary jurisdiction, though not so after definitive removal.

Article 64

Nonsuit

Should the plaintiff drop the complaint, the disciplinary action shall be terminated, except when the accusation affects the reputation of the OMD, the professional class or the dignity of the defendant, who may choose to continue the procedure.

Article 65

Appeal of the Decisions Made by the Members of the Ethics and Professional Conduct Committee

1 - The decisions made by the members of the ethics and professional conduct committee in a disciplinary action may be appealed to the committee itself, except when the possibility of appeal has been expressly ruled out.

2 - In the case of an appeal as defined in the previous paragraph, the members involved shall not be entitled to vote.

Article 66

The Legal Assessor

For the performance of his or her duties during a disciplinary action, the arbitrator may be assisted by the legal assessor of the ethics and professional conduct committee, as appointed in compliance with these statutes.