1. CODE OF ETHICS AS BETWEEN AGENTS AND CLIENTS

a) Members of the Association must act in the best interests of their client at all 
     times. Those interests must be considered paramount.

b) Members shall strictly observe all statutory obligations imposed on them.

c) Members shall carefully consider whether any potential conflict of interest may 
    exist in any relationship or transaction, and must advise their client accordingly.

    Examples of such a conflict could include but would not be restricted to:-
    (i)  any relevant financial retainer with a third party;
    (ii)  any previous purchase of or involvement with a horse.

d) Members shall not undertake to provide professional services where they have a 
    present or contemplated interest unless such interest is specifically disclosed to all 
    parties to the transaction. Members shall not acquire an interest in or buy for 
    themselves, any member of their immediate family, their firm or any member 
    thereof, or any entity in which they have an ownership interest (other than a 
    public company), bloodstock listed with them, without making the true position 
    known to their clients.
 

e) When acting as agents, members shall not accept any commission, rebate, or 
     profit on expenditure made for their client, unless such fact shall be first made 
     known to the client.

f) Members must be diligent at all times and shall avoid misrepresentation or the 
    concealment of pertinent facts. Members have an obligation to discover adverse 
    factors that a reasonably competent and diligent investigation would disclose.

g) Information arising from and relating to an agent/client relationship shall always 
    be confidential.

h) Except where the law or custom of the county concerned otherwise requires, 
    any oral or written communication between bloodstock agents shall in principle 
    be accorded a confidential character unless certain promises or 
    acknowledgments are made therein on behalf of a client.

i) In accepting employment as an agent, the member pledges himself/herself to 
   protect and promote the interests of the client. This obligation of absolute fidelity 
   to the clients’ interest is primary. It does not relieve the member of the obligation 
   to treat all parties to the transaction fairly.

j) It is improper for a bloodstock agent to accept a commission or agency unless it 
   can be handled promptly and with due competence and without undue 
   interference by the pressure of other work.

k) Clients of Association members shall have the right to make representations to 
    the Association if they consider that a member agent has acted unethically in 
    his/her professional conduct. The Association is empowered to suspend or 
    terminate the membership of any member (see Rule 15 and Rule 17 - listed 
    below).

2. CODE OF ETHICS AS BETWEEN AGENTS

a) Members shall not act in any way liable to bring the Association into disrepute.

b) A member must not attempt to supplant or compete with another member by 
    any unfair or improper means.

c) It shall be considered improper for bloodstock agents to communicate about 
    a particular sale or commission directly with any person whom they know to be 
    represented in that sale or commission by another bloodstock agent, without the 
    latter’s consent.

d) A member shall at all times be responsible for the actions of his/her employees 
    and anyone acting on his/her behalf in their business relations with fellow 
    members, clients and the public in accordance with this code of ethics.

e) A member must at all times abide by the standard of ethics and professional 
    practice established by the Association and shall observe the highest principles of 
    professional integrity and business practice. A member shall display, if 
   appropriate, the logo of the Association to indicate affiliation and observance of 
    the Associations Code of Ethics.

f) A member, in the best interests of the public, the Association, its members and 
    his/her own business, should always be loyal to the Association and be active in 
    its work. He/she must do everything in his/her power to increase public 
    confidence in the profession, to promote goodwill and friendly business relations 
    amongst members, advance the interests of the profession and maintain its 
    integrity and status.

g) Bloodstock agents shall preserve independence in the discharge of their 
    professional duty.

h) Bloodstock agents shall treat their professional colleagues with the utmost 
    courtesy and fairness. When undertaking to render assistance to a foreign 
    colleague they shall always keep in mind that the foreign colleague has to depend 
    on them to a much larger extent than in the case of another bloodstock agent in 
    the same county. Therefore the responsibility is much greater, both when giving 
    advice and when handling a case.

i)  In all matters bloodstock agents shall be punctual and diligent and they should 
    never mingle funds of other with their own and they should at all times be in a 
    position to refund money that they hold for others. They shall not retain money 
    they receive for their clients for longer than is absolutely necessary.
 

3 OBJECTS OF THE ASSOCIATION

1    To establish and maintain a high level of conduct and trading practice amongst 
      Association members so that clients who wish to use a member of the
      Association can do so with confidence.

2    To provide support for those members trading as Bloodstock Agents and to 
      advance the status of the Federation of Bloodstock Agents within the 
      Bloodstock industry

3    To promote and to publicise the members of the Association and their specialist 
      knowledge

4    To represent the membership on industry bodies and to give the benefit of 
      members experience to the bloodstock industry as a whole.
 

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Rules of Bloodstock Agents Federation (N.Z.) Incorporated directly associated with the Code of Ethics.

15. The Committee may suspend or expel any member proved to their satisfaction 
      to have been guilty of improper or dishonourable conduct, or of conduct 
      prejudicial to the interests of the Federation or in breach of any regulation or 
      bylaws of the Federation. There shall be a right of appeal against expulsion or 
      suspension to a Special General Meeting called for the purpose. The requisition 
      for such a meeting may be made solely by the appellant. The Committee may 
      be heard along with the appellant at such a meeting but neither the Committee 
      members nor the appellant shall have a vote on a motion to uphold o dismiss 
      the appeal.

17. In addition to the powers vested in the Committee by Rule 15 the Committee 
      shall have power to inflict a fine of an amount not exceeding $5,000 upon any 
      member of the Federation found by the Committee to be guilty of any breach of 
      the Rules, Regulations or Bylaws of the Federation or abuse of the privileges 
      thereby bestowed.
 
 

Further Note:

It is important to note that all agents are bound by New Zealand's Fair Trading Laws, etc. 
 
 

Disclaimer:
Please note this copy of the New Zealand Bloodstock Agents Federations 
"Code of Ethics" is supplied independently by Bruce Perry Bloodstock Limited. Bruce Perry Bloodstock Limited takes no responsibility as to its accuracy 
and advises you to contact the Associations Secretary/Treasurer Mrs. Dawn Charters (E-mail: dawnc@xnet.co.nz or Tel: 07 5433827 - Fax: 07 5433827) for complete details.