Members Code of Ethics

Whereas, we the members of the Sri Lanka gem, and jewellery association, being of the conviction that the gem and jewellery industry, should in our interest, both as gem dealers & jewellers and other members of this association, be instilled with and reflect the highest standards of ethics, fair business practices and professionalism;

Hereby signify our commitment to these standards by the adoption of this code of ethics as a code governing our conduct.

1. These rules as may be added to, changed, and/or amended in any manner whatsoever and/or rescinded from time to time, shall be known as the Code of Ethics for the Sri Lanka Gem Jewellery Association of Sri Lanka (the Association).
2. Every Member shall be obliged to abide by the letter and spirit of the Rules of the Code of Ethics for the Sri Lanka Gem Jewellery Association (The Rules) and to ensure to the fullest extent possible, the abidance thereof by the other Members of the Association.
3. Members undertake responsibility for compliance with these Rules by any company, firm or business owned by a Member, or any company, firm or business in which such Member has a vested interest.
4. Where the circumstances in a given situation reasonably suggests non-compliance by a Member(s) with letter or spirit of these Rules, Members having notice thereof, whether directly or indirectly, shall be bound to bring such circumstances to the notice of the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee shall maintain confidentiality as to the Identity of the informer and shall disclose the Identity only where principles of justice and fairness makes such disclosure absolutely necessary.
5. It shall be a fundamental duty and obligation of every member to protect the reputation and credibility of the Gem and Jewellery Industry and of the Association.
6. A Member may not in any way, whether directly or indirectly, defame, criticize, undermine, another person’s or firm’s reputation or merchandise in order to promote or sell his merchandise or in any manner whatsoever, to benefit and/or gain an advantage.
7. A Member may not in any way, whether directly or indirectly, take unfair advantage of another person’s or firm’s reputation or merchandise in order to promote or sell his merchandise or to gain benefit and/or advantage.
8. Members of the Association shall comply with the law of the land both in their professional and personal capacity.
9. Members of the Association shall at all times, protect the welfare of their clients, and develop and abide by honest practice in carrying out their business.
10. A member shall always ensure full and fair disclosure of all material facts in carrying out its business.
11. 1. A member may not directly or indirectly carry out, participate in or be associated in any way with deceptive acts or practices in carrying out its business.
    2. A deceptive act or practice shall Include: (I) any oral, written, visual, descriptive or other representation, including a failure to disclose a material fact; and/or (ii) any conduct. having the capability, tendency or effect of deceiving or misleading a person materially.
12. Members shall honour requirements made by clients/customers for confidentiality.
13. Members shall take custody of gems and/or jewellery only upon the issue of a signed receipt which, contains a description thereof with such accuracy and detail so as to enable it a basis of identification.
14. Members shall execute the orders of customers/clients with as much care and precision as possible in the circumstances.
15. Members shall refrain from acting in circumstances, which give rise to conflicts of interest in the course of their business, except with complete and effectual written disclosure to all parties concerned. Copies of documentation relating to such written disclosure and documentation which evidences proof of notice to all affected parties, whether by way of written acceptance thereof or otherwise shall be maintained by Members and shall be submitted to the executive Committee upon such Member being called upon to do so.
16. Members shall not use appraisers to place value on stones in which appraiser the supplier has a vested interest in or where such usage could give rise to a conflict of interest situation.
17. Members shall between themselves and customers ensure that the obligations and undertaking involved in any business transaction is set out correctly with precision in writing and that copies of such written documents certified to be ‘True Copies’ by such Member are furnished to each party Involved in the transaction.
18. Members shall fulfil all financial obligations, conditions of guarantees and service policies given by them to their customers and clients.
19. Members shall not deliver to any person, jewellery or gem stones whether affixed to any material or otherwise except with an accurate and complete written description of such gem and/or jewellery.
20. 1. Members shall ensure that title to gems and/or jewellery do not pass except upon a sales invoice or document equivalent thereto, which contains a complete and accurate disclosure and description of the both the gems and jewellery being sold, and the accurate value for which such sale is being made.
    2. Gems should be described with reference to: whether it has been enhanced, bleached, coated, dyed, filled/infilled, stabilized, whether it has been subject to gamma or electron irradiation, heated, been subject to laser or chemical treatment, whether it has been subject to the introduction of oil, irradiation, diffusion, or to any other process or treatment; colour, clarity; and carat weight.
21. Merchandise sold by Members shall reasonably represent the market value of such merchandise. The term ‘market value’ shall be understood to make reference to the particular market (i.e. wholesale, retailer etc) in which the sale is made.
22. Where a person whether as a customer or otherwise fails and/or neglects to fulfil any business obligation to a Member, such Member shall inform the Executive Committee in writing the complete details of such failure/neglect and of the circumstances in which it occurred. The Executive Committee, on receiving such written information, shall be entitled to reasonably take suitable action with a view to determining the nature of the default and to protect its Membership from the occurrence of similar defaults. Members shall abide by any decision taken by the Executive Committee provided such decision is ratified by a two thirds majority at a meeting of the Members.
23. Members may advertise the fact of their membership with the Association but shall refrain from advertising, the fact of Committee or Board membership and shall not advertise in a manner that implies endorsement of either an organization or firm, of its prices or that the Association will act as a reference for the said organization or firm.
24. Members shall riot engage in the practice of using their own certificates and/or appraisals for the purpose of promoting sales of their own merchandise or the merchandise of a business related firm.
25. Laboratory and appraiser Members are required to give opinions with a degree of accuracy consistent with generally accepted gemmological and appraisal methodology standards and to state on reports the name and address of their registered or principal place of business and the name and qualifications of the person(s) making the evaluation. Members issuing gemstone laboratory reports shall have the name of the preparer clearly printed or typed immediately adjacent to his/her signature.
26. Laboratory or Appraiser Members may not falsely claim gemmological or appraisal credentials or fabricate non-existent titles.
27. Fees for gemmological and/or appraisal services shall be based on a per - carat per-piece or per - hour basis. Contingent fees, split fees, kickbacks or percentage-of-value fees are prohibited.
28. Members offering appraisal services with the intention of making an offer to buy the jewellery or gemstones they appraise must state in their advertisement that they are offering 'Appraisals to Buy".
29. Persons advertising appraisal services must perform complete written appraisals.
30. Members shall be accountable to the Executive Committee for the due compliance of these Rules and shall be obliged to respond to the Committee on any matter and in such terms upon the direction of the Committee.
31. Members shall co-operate to the fullest extent and extend all support to the Committee where the Committee is conducting any inquiry or investigation for purposes of the enforcement of these Rules.
32. 1. Where any Member has in the opinion of the Executive Committee acted in violation of these Rules, such Member may be issued with a warning or be suspended from Membership for such period as may be determined by the Committee. The Committee may only recommend the expulsion of a Member. The power of expulsion shall however be vested solely in the Association and not in the Committee.
    2. No action may be taken by the Committee in terms of these Rules against any Member without providing such Member with notice of the Rule(s) which is alleged to be violated and the bases for such allegation and without providing such Member with an adequate opportunity to Show cause as to why disciplinary action should not be taken against such Member in the circumstances.
33. The Committee may take cognizance of previous action taken against a particular Member for purposes of determining the nature and extent of subsequent disciplinary action to be taken against the same Member.