Practical Observations About The Burden And Standard Of Proof ' Post Kuzmin

Published date17 May 2021
Subject MatterFood, Drugs, Healthcare, Life Sciences
Law FirmRadcliffesLeBrasseur
AuthorMr Stewart Duffy

The regulator always bears the burden of proving allegations of misconduct or deficient professional performance. In conviction cases the certificate of conviction is usually deemed conclusive proof of the conviction.

It is now well settled that the standard of proof which applies in fitness to practise cases is not the criminal standard of proof - beyond reasonable doubt - but the lower civil standard of proof. The Panel will find an allegation proved if, having considered all of the evidence, they are of the opinion that the alleged facts are more likely to be true than not true. Thus, if the Panel receive credible evidence that event X occurred, and receive no evidence to support a contrary position, they will be entitled to find the allegation proved. As the allegations are formulated after the regulator has gathered their evidence, the expectation is that the regulator has already determined that it is in a position to adduce sufficient evidence to prove all of the allegations, assuming the Panel accept the correctness of the regulator's evidence.

Many of the most serious allegations which are dealt with at fitness to practise panels require determination of the Registrant's state of mind at the relevant time. This includes allegations of dishonesty and...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT