RFU PRACTICE NOTE 3/06
Reference: RFU Disciplinary Regulations 2006/07 1.2.5
1. This Practice Note is issued under the authority of the Reference and the changes to the Regulations have been authorised by the RFU Management Board under delegated authority from the RFU Council
2. Following the meeting of their General Council in November 2006, the IRB has directed that the current sanctioning regime contained in IRB Regulation 17 should be amended. Those changes are now to be reflected in the RFU Disciplinary Regulations and become effective on 1 January 2007. This Practice Note promulgates these changes which are contained in the enclosure. There are a number of important points relating to these changes:
a. Transition Arrangements: any case started before 31 December 2006 must be heard using the Regulations applicable before that date, including any appeals. Any case starting after 1 January 2007 (including in relation to offences which occurred before that date) must use the new Regulations.
b. Top End entry point. The new Appendix of recommended sanctions replaces fixed entry points with flexible entry points for the Top End. If a Disciplinary panel decides that the offending is at the Top End of the scale of seriousness, it must then make a further assessment of an appropriate entry point between the length of suspension specified in the Appendix and the maximum suspension for the appropriate offence and then undertake the normal exercise of increasing or decreasing from that point. In written judgments disciplinary panels should always specify what period they considered to be the starting point.
c. Under the current Regulations the entry point is assessed in relation to on-field matters and the aggravating features and mitigating factors relate to off-field matters. That still exists under the new Regulations except where Disciplinary Panels consider the case is exceptional in accordance with Regulation 8.2.8. In those circumstances then both on-field and off-field mitigating features may be applied.
d. In regard to the application of a 50% discount of an uneven entry point, Disciplinary Panels should apply the rounded up figure. These are confirmed
as:
Entry Point Suspension period
· 3 weeks - 2 weeks
· 5 weeks - 3 weeks
· 7 weeks - 4 weeks
HHJ Jeff Blackett
RFU Disciplinary Officer 20 December 2006
CHANGES TO RFU DISCIPLINARY REGULATIONS 2006/07 EFFECTIVE FROM 1 JANUARY 2007
The RFU Disciplinary Regulations 2006/07 are to be amended as follows:
Paragraph 8.2.5
After 8.2.5(i) insert:
“8.2.5 (cont) For offences categorised as the top end of the scale of seriousness of offending, the Disciplinary Panel is entitled to identify an entry point between the period shown as the top end in Appendix 2 and the maximum sanction.”
Paragraph 8.2.8
Delete in its entirety and insert new paragraphs:
“8.2.8 In cases involving offending that has been classified as lower end offending, where there are compelling on-field and/or off-field mitigating features and a complete absence of on-field and/or off-field aggravating features, Disciplinary Panels may apply sanctions less than the lower end entry sanctions specified in Appendix 2 and in this respect only, the lower end sanctions set out in Appendix 2 are not minimum sanctions. Further guidance in this respect is provided by Practice Note 2/06 as amended at Appendix 9.
“8.2.8 (a) In cases of multiple offending, Disciplinary Panels may impose sanctions to run either on a concurrent or a consecutive basis provided that the total sanction is in all the circumstances proportionate to the level of the overall offending”
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