THE KMSPL CODE OF CONDUCT

well as to all individuals engaged in activities by the KMSPL, including, but not

limited to, athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers, directors, officers, team managers, team

captains and administrators.

PREAMBLE

1. KMSPL is committed to the development of slow pitch softball and the establishment of a friendly and

mutually rewarding relationship among the members of the Association to better facilitate

competition.

2. Membership in KMSPL brings with it many benefits and privileges. At the same time, members are

expected to fulfill certain responsibilities and obligations, including but not limited to, complying with

the Code of Conduct, Constitution, By-Laws, policies, rules and regulations of KMSPL.

3. The KMSPL Code of Conduct identifies the standard of behaviour which is expected of members of

KMSPL. Members who fail to meet this standard will be subject to the disciplinary sanctions identified

within this policy.

4. KMSPL adheres to the principles and ethical standards outlined in the Quebec Charter of Human

Rights.

APPLICATION

5. This Code of Conduct applies to all categories of members in KMSPL.

6. These parties have a duty to encourage and maintain the highest standards of courtesy, fairness, and

mutual respect in the execution of their duties. It must be recognized that the executive, coaches and

volunteers play a critical role in the personal and athletic development of the competitors and

athletes. The executive, coaches and other volunteers must both understand and respect the inherent

power imbalance that may exist in these relationships and they must be careful not to abuse it.

7. The executive, coaches and volunteers must also recognize that they are important conduits through

which the values and goals of KMSPL are expressed and communicated. How a competitor or athlete

regards himself and their position within the KMSPL is often dependent upon the behaviour of the

executive, coach, or volunteer.

8. This Code of Conduct has been developed to govern the behaviour of the executives, coaches, players,

and volunteers.

LEAGUE OFFICIALS, COACHES, AND FELLOW MEMBERS HAVE ARESPONSIBILITY TO:

9. Treat everyone fairly and with respect within the context of their activity, regardless of gender, place

of origin, colour, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, political belief, economic status or

disability;

10. Direct constructive comments or criticism at the performance rather than the individual;

11. Consistently display standards and project a favourable image of KMSPL and shall:

a) Refrain from harassment of any kind upon any individual, as defined by the KMSPL

Harassment Policies (POINTS 23 AND 24), including any unnecessary public criticism of other

members, or individuals;

b) Abstain from excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages when participating or attending a

KMSPL game or event.

c) Refrain from the use of profanity, insulting, harassing or otherwise offensive language;

d) At no time verbally or physically abuse an official, coach, contestant, spectator or other

person while at any softball event;

e) Wear the appropriate dress for the activity attended;

f) Respect the property of the association at all time and make every attempt to prevent

damage of said property;

g) Report the theft or attempted theft of any of the possessions of the association and refrain

from any unauthorized use or taking of said property; and

h) Respect the Constitution, By-Laws, Rules and Regulations of KMSPL and the standards and

ethics of the KMSPL

12. Treat all other members with due respect and encourage competitors and athletes to act

accordingly, and actively encourage them to uphold the principles, ethics and rules of the KMSPL.

13. Must adhere to the league’s zero tolerance directives as outlined on the KMSPL web site and rule

book.

14. Ensure the safety of competitors and athletes;

15. Respect the individual dignity of competitors and athletes; verbal or physical behaviour which

constitutes harassment or abuse of any kind being unacceptable;

16. Never advocate or condone the use of drugs or any other banned performance enhancing substance

ATHLETES MUST ADHERE TO:

17. Integrity - The athlete must act with integrity in performing all duties owed to the sport and the

general public;

18. Competence - The athlete must strive to be well prepared and current in order that all duties in the

respective discipline are fulfilled with competence;

19. Athletes Interest - The athlete must act in the best interest of the sport’s development and as a

whole person;

20. Respect For The Rules - The athlete must accept both the letter and the spirit of the rules that

define and govern sport;

21. Respect For Officials - The athlete must accept the role of officials in providing judgment to

ensure that competitions are conducted fairly and according to the established rules, and at no

time verbally or physically abuse an official, and

22. Responsibility To Other Athletes - The athlete’s conduct toward other athletes must be characterized

by courtesy, good faith, and respect.

HARASSMENT POLICY

23. KMSPL is committed to providing a sport and work environment in which all individuals are treated

with respect and dignity. Each individual has the right to participate and work in an environment which

promotes equal opportunities and prohibits discriminatory practices.

24. Harassment can take many forms but is generally defined as inappropriate behavior including

comments and/or conduct which is insulting, intimidating, humiliating, hurtful, malicious, degrading or

otherwise offensive to an individual, or group of individuals, or which creates an uncomfortable

environment. All individuals participating in events sanctioned by KMSPL must adhere to the principles

set forth in the KMSPL Harassment Policy.

Disciplinary Guidelines

These are the formal guidelines on how incident reports filed against a team or player shall be

investigated and dealt with.

A Note on Confidentiality

The names of those involved in, or witness to an incident will not be released to the public. Some information

regarding incidents may be released, and names may be given to League Officials and Captains if required by

the Disciplinary Guidelines detailed below. However, no information will be released that would enable the

general public to resolve the individuals involved to a specific incident. It must be noted that any and all

information regarding a specific incident will be made available to appropriate authorities where the KMSPL is

required by law to provide it.

Incident Investigation Process

The following shall be the process for investigating and ruling on incidents reported by KMSPL members:

1. Incident reports filed through the Incident Reporting System (On-Line report) shall be forwarded to

the Umpire-In-Chief and then all incidents must be sent to the Disciplinary Committee.

2. The Disciplinary Committee will solicit reports from the parties directly involved with the incident, the

captains of the teams involved with the incident, and any relevant witnesses to the incident. The

identities of all of these individuals must be made available to the Disciplinary Committee upon

request. Failure to do so may result in further disciplinary action.

3. Upon reviewing the reports, the Disciplinary Committee shall make a ruling according to the

Disciplinary Guidelines defined below. The original incident report and the Disciplinary Committee's

ruling shall be filed with the Umpire-In-Chief.

4. Should the Disciplinary Committee be unable to make a ruling on the matter, either due to the

restrictions of the Disciplinary Guidelines or for any other reason, or should the parties involved not be

satisfied with the Disciplinary Committee's ruling, the matter may be escalated to the Executive for

further review or appeal. 

5. If there is an appeal, the KMSPL Executive will review all reports forwarded by the Umpire-In-Chief

and the Disciplinary Committee and/or will solicit reports from the parties directly involved with the

incident, the captains of the teams involved with the incident, and any relevant witnesses to the

incident. The identities of all of these individuals must be made available to the Executive upon

request. Failure to do so may result in further disciplinary action.

6. Upon reviewing the reports, the Board of Directors shall make a ruling according to the Disciplinary

Guidelines defined below. This ruling shall be final. The original incident report, the original

Disciplinary Committee's ruling (if any), the UIC’s ruling and the Board of Director's final ruling shall

be filed with the Executive Officer.

Disciplinary Guidelines

The following are the guidelines for disciplinary rulings stemming from the Incident Investigation Process

outlined above:

Conflict of Interest

Should there be a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest, for anyone charged with

investigating and ruling on an incident, that individual must excuse themselves and the remaining members

shall make a ruling.

Possible Disciplinary Actions

The KMSPL is not a legal body. It is not in a position to detail all manner of potential incidents and assign

corresponding disciplinary actions. It is felt that the judgment of those investigating and ruling on a given

incident, and the appeal process provided, will prevent disciplinary actions that are out of proportion to an

incident. However, it should be noted that the disciplinary actions taken against an individual or team by the

KMSPL may include, but are not limited to:

Any of these actions may be taken based on the severity of a single incident or documented history of

incidents.

Disciplinary Authority

As per the Incident Investigation Process outlined above, various individuals or groups within the KMSPL are

empowered to impose disciplinary actions. The following outlines the actions each of these individuals or

groups are authorized to impose upon an individual or team.

Disciplinary Committee

The Disciplinary Committee is authorized to impose sanctions up to and including the suspension of an

individual for as many as five games and/or 1 strike. If they deem that an incident merits a greater penalty than they are

authorized to impose. They are entrusted with not ruling and passing the disciplinary process over to the next level.  

Executive Committee

The Executive Committee is authorized to impose sanctions up to and including the permanent expulsion of

any individual. However, any ruling involving permanent expulsion would require an automatic hearing in front

of a committee made up of 6 coaches and Disciplinary Committee members and would require the approval

from the majority of members of the said committee. This includes any player having received a third strike

which in effect is the equivalent of a permanent expulsion.

Enforcement

The sport of Softball is based on the premise of Spirit of the Game. It is implicit that no player shall

intentionally break the rules for gain. As such, players and their captains are entrusted to adhere to the

rulings imposed by the KMSPL. However, in the event of a suspension, additional measures must be taken to

ensure compliance with the ruling. If an individual is suspended for any number of games, the captains of

their scheduled opponents for the duration of the suspension will be notified.

If a player is found to be playing in defiance of a suspension, additional and more serious disciplinary actions

will be taken against the player. Also, actions may be taken against the team captain as an individual, or the

team as a whole.