CHAPTER 20:38:20

 20:38:20:01.  Professional conduct. To establish and maintain a high standard of integrity, skill, and practice in the professions and to safeguard the life, health, safety, welfare, and property of the public, the following rules of professional conduct are binding upon each person holding a license and on all business entities authorized to offer or perform professional services under this article. Noncompliance with any of the professional rules of conduct is considered unprofessional conduct and can result in disciplinary actions. Licensees shall comply with the following rules of professional conduct:

(1)  Licensees shall maintain interest in the public welfare and be ready to apply their special knowledge, skill, and training for the use and benefit of the public;

(2)  Licensees shall be cognizant that their first and foremost responsibility is to the public welfare in the performance of services to clients and employers;

(3)  Licensees may not associate with or allow the use of their name in connection with any enterprise, person, or firm of questionable character such as engaging in fraudulent or dishonest business or professional practices;

(4)  Licensees shall carry on professional work in a spirit of fairness to all concerned, fidelity to clients and employers, and loyalty to country and shall be devoted to high ideals of courtesy and personal honor;

(5)  Licensees shall act with reasonable care and competence and shall apply the technical knowledge and skill which are ordinarily applied by other professionals of good standing who are practicing in this state;

(6)  Licensees shall regard as confidential any information obtained about the business affairs and technical methods or processes of a client or employer;

(7)  Professionals shall accurately represent to a prospective or existing client or employer their qualifications and the scope of their responsibility in connection with work for which they are claiming credit;

(8)  Licensees shall inform a client or employer of any business connections, interests, or affiliations that might influence their judgment or impair the disinterested quality of their services. If the client or employer objects to such an association or financial interest, the licensee shall either terminate the association or interest or offer to give up the employment;

(9)  Licensees shall accept financial or other compensation for a particular service from one source only unless there is full disclosure and the consent of all interested parties;

(10)  Licensees shall comply with the licensure laws and rules governing their professional practice in any United States jurisdiction;

(11)  Licensees shall approve and seal only those documents and submissions that conform to accepted architectural, engineering, landscape architectural, land surveying, or petroleum release standards and safeguard the life, health, property, and welfare of the public;

(12)  Licensees shall confine professional services to the profession and technical field in which they are licensed and competently qualified;

(13)  Licensees shall undertake to perform professional services only when they, together with those whom they may engage as consultants, are qualified by education, training, and experience in the specific technical areas involved. If a question arises about the competence of a licensee to perform an assignment in a specific technical field which cannot be otherwise resolved to the board's satisfaction, the board may require the licensee to submit to an examination in the technical field as specified by the board;

(14)  Licensees may not lend their name or seal for the approval of plans or other documents for the preparation of which they were not directly in responsible charge or dealing with subject matter in which they lack competence;

(15)  Licensees may not directly or indirectly use or make use of for their own benefit any property, facility, or services of their client or employer unless prior authority is obtained;

(16)  Licensees shall cooperate with architectural, engineering, landscape architecture, land surveying, and petroleum release agencies in advancing those professions;

(17)  Licensees may not engage in any discriminatory practices prohibited by law in the employment of personnel and in the conduct of business;

(18)  Licensees may not solicit or accept compensation from material or equipment suppliers for specifying their products;

(19)  Licensees may not solicit or accept compensation, directly or indirectly, from contractors, their agents, or other parties not under contract in connection with work for clients or employers for which they are responsible;

(20)  Licensees may not offer to pay, directly or indirectly, a commission, political contribution, gift, or other compensation in order to secure work, exclusive of payment made to an employment agency for its services;

(21)  Licensees shall take into account all applicable state and municipal laws, ordinances, and regulations and may not knowingly execute a project in violation of them;

(22)  In the course of work on a project, if a licensee becomes aware of a decision taken by the client or employer against the licensee's advice, which violates applicable state or municipal laws and regulations and which will, in the licensee's judgment, adversely affect the public life, health, or safety, the licensee shall take the following actions:

(a)  Advise the client or employer in writing of the licensee's refusal to consent to the decision and give reasons for that refusal;

(b)  If the licensee's advice is ignored despite the objection, terminate the licensee's services to the project; and

(c)  Provide a copy of the licensee's objection and reasoning to the public official charged with the enforcement of the applicable state or municipal laws and regulations;

(23)  Licensees shall indicate any reservation on a reference for an applicant if they have reason to believe the applicant is unqualified by education, training, or experience to become licensed. The licensee's opinion shall be based on the qualifications a reasonable and prudent professional would require an applicant to possess;

(24)  Licensees may accept an assignment for coordination of an entire project if each design segment is signed and sealed by the licensee responsible for preparation of that design segment;

(25)  Licensees shall be completely objective and truthful in all professional reports, statements, or testimony and shall include all relevant and pertinent information in those reports, statements, or testimony;

(26)  Licensees may express a professional opinion publicly only if it is founded upon adequate knowledge of the facts at issue, upon background of technical competence in the subject matter, and upon honest conviction of the accuracy and propriety of the licensee's testimony if serving as an expert or technical witness;

(27)  Licensees making public statements on professional questions shall disclose if the licensee is being compensated for making such statements;

(28)  Licensees shall make decisions impartially when acting as an interpreter of construction contract documents and a judge of contract performance, favoring neither party to the contract;

(29)  Licensees who are aware of the violation of any of the rules of professional conduct by another licensee shall report the violation to the board for investigation;

(30)  Licensees maintaining an office in South Dakota shall have a licensee regularly employed and scheduled in that office who is in direct responsible charge of the professional work;

(31)  Licensees may not engage in conduct involving fraud or disregard of the rights of others;

(32)  Licensees are bound by and shall comply with all provisions relating to their profession and technical field contained in SDCL chapter 36-18A and this article;

(33) Licensees must notify the board within 30 days if another state has disciplined them with a reprimand, censure, suspension, temporary suspension, probation, revocation, or refusal to renew a license.