1. (a) If the Board's staff determines that a respondent who is a Registrant or Applicant appears to have acted in a manner that was reckless, grossly incompetent, or dishonest, the matter may not be presented to the Board or referred to the State Office of Administrative Hearings for a formal hearing unless the evidence and information gathered during the investigation have been reviewed by a member of the Board or the Board's staff or a consultant who is registered as an Architect.
2. (b) The purpose of the review described in subsection (a) of this section shall be to confirm, prior to the commencement of formal disciplinary proceedings, that the respondent's conduct did not satisfy the requisite standard of care which should be applied by a reasonably prudent Architect under similar circumstances.

3. (c) In order to act as a consultant for the purposes of subsection (a) of this section, a person must:

   1. (1) have been actively registered as an Architect for at least five (5) years;
   2. (2) have significant experience in the area(s) relevant to the issue(s) to be considered by the consultant; and
   3. (3) not have been the subject of disciplinary action by the Board at any time.

Source Note:The provisions of this §1.175 adopted to be effective July 5, 2004, 29 TexReg 6277.