Initial Publication Date: October 20, 2020

Ethics Complaint Procedures

Approved by NAGT's Executive Committee on 20 October 2020

Formal allegations regarding ethical misconduct by NAGT members, staff, elected and appointed officers, volunteers, contractors, exhibitors, and sponsors must be submitted in writing either directly to the NAGT Executive Director or to ethics@nagt.org. Formally submitted allegations will receive an initial review by an NAGT staff member who will assess the scope of the allegation, confirm that evidence has been presented, and determine the next steps.

The formal allegation must contain the following information:

  1. The name and affiliation of the person(s) submitting the allegation and the name and
    identifying information of the person(s) alleged to have committed the misconduct.
  2. A description of the allegation that includes the date and circumstances of the alleged misconduct.
  3. Any documents or other relevant items (such as emails, photos, data, memos, diaries, etc.) with annotation showing specifically how the item relates to the allegation.
  4. An explanation of how the allegation relates to misconduct as defined in NAGT policies.
  5. A statement explaining any conflict(s) of interest or biases the person making the allegation has with the subject(s), entity(ies), or situation(s) named in the allegation. A conflict of interest or bias does not preclude the filing of an allegation.

Formal Complete allegations will be heard, either as an in-person meeting or a virtual meeting, by a panel of NAGT's Past President, current President, and the Executive Director. If any of these three individuals are involved in the allegation or otherwise have a conflict of interest, the NAGT Executive Committee will appoint a replacement(s) from the Executive Committee membership. If there is a change in panel membership, the Executive Committee may approve the continuation of the previous committee members for any ongoing proceedings. The person(s) submitting the allegation and the person(s) alleged to have committed the misconduct shallwill be given at least 15 days written notice of the hearing and the reasons for it. Each party will be entitled to be heard, orally or in writing, at the hearing.

If the panel finds that misconduct has occurred, they will decide the action to be taken. Appropriate actions may include (as listed below), correction of the publication record, and/or recommendations for education or training. Where appropriate, the duration that actions will be in effect will be noted. Actions may include but are not limited to the following:

  1. Written reprimand or warning
  2. Removal from NAGT volunteer position
  3. Removal from NAGT leadership position
  4. Publication of "errata" notices
  5. Withdrawal/retraction of presentations, publication, or posters
  6. Notification to non-NAGT journals
  7. Suspension from publishing in or reviewing for NAGT publications or online forums for a specific period, including permanently
  8. Suspension from making presentations at NAGT sponsored meeting(s) for a specific period, including permanently
  9. Suspension of membership
  10. Permanent expulsion from NAGT
  11. Denial or revocation of honors and awards

 

The panel may request that the Executive Committee approve the actions. As per NAGT bylaws, any suspension of NAGT membership or permanent expulsion from NAGT must be approved by the Executive Committee. Following the finding, the panel will notify each party in writing. Each party will be allowed 15 days to appeal the finding, in writing, to the NAGT Executive Committee, who will consider the appeal at their next virtual or in-person meeting. The NAGT President will notify each party in writing of the decision for the appeal.

When an NAGT member is sanctioned by another organization for misconduct or convicted of criminal activity, the panel may review and consider its own actions related to membership, attendance at NAGT programs, and publishing with NAGT.

Note: these policies for awards and honors are based on AGU's Scientific Integrity and Professional Ethics.  Language from this document is used with permission from the AGU Vice President for Ethics, Diversity, and Inclusion.