Ppe Syllabus 1 - Professional Responsibilities, Liabilities, And Ethics

Front 1

List 10 professional services by an RLA (5 marks)

Back 1

1. Policy advice

2. Tree survey

3. Planting plan

4. Concept design

5. Site layout / LMP

6. Detail design

7. Planting design

8. Contract management

9. Compliance checking

10. Tendering

11. Planning application (lease conditions)

Front 2

"Other" services an RLA may provide (3 marks)

Back 2

1. Prelimary services i) site selection ii) feasibility study iii) development

2. Site surveying

Front 3

Pros and cons of client employing a consultant directly. (8 marks)

Back 3

Advantages:

1. Scope of works is more focused on landscape design.

2. Save time for management and administering the sub consultant.

3. Less liability and risks as sub consultant are responsible independently.

4. Not responsible for payments to the sub consultant.

Disadvantages:

1. Not entitled to overheads on sub consultant, less income.

2. No contract between the consultants, may be difficult to coordinate with other consultant.

3. Liability could be confusing if the responsibilities between consultants are unclear.

4. RLA will have no say in the selection of the sub consultant (poor industry record)

Front 4

Pros and cons for RLA directly appointing the sub consultants (8 marks)

Back 4

Advantages:

1. More income due to extra admin fees and overheads.

2. Easier to manage as sub consultant is directly responsible to RLA.

3. Well coordinated in terms of project planning and communication.

4. Has higher flexibility in selecting the sub consultant. (Working relationship)

Disadvantages:

5. RLA will bear all vicarious liability to client for negligence of sub consultants

6. Responsible for payment to sub consultants

7. Burden in time and resources as main consultants, need to complete project if sub consultant fails.

8. Carries risk of having no/inadequate insurance (Professional Indemnity Insurance)

Front 5

Factors to consider for a freelance job (6 marks)

Back 5

1. Scope of work

2. Capacity of practice (resources)

3. Scale and complexity of programme

4. Risk and liability (services involved)

5. Terms and condition (agreement)

6. Insurance (pii)

Front 6

Factors to consider if client changes the project nature (4 marks)

Back 6

1. Scope/nature of works is majorly changed, a new contract may be necessary.

2. Receive payment for works completed.

3. If maintained, additional fee to be agreed.

4. Revise the program for works.

5. Revise consultancy agreement with sub consultants (payment intervals, meetings and scope)

Front 7

Types of private firms (5 marks)

Back 7

1. Sole practitioner

2. Partnership

3. Limited company (owners responsible for debts to extent of capitol)

4. Group practice (individual firms grouped for mutual benefits)

5. Consortium/consortia (association of firms with different professional skills)

Front 8

Pros and cons of a sole practitioner firm (4+2 marks)

Back 8

Advantages:

1. simple business, individual work.

2. Can work at home, reduces overheads.

3. No audit is required.

4. Profits are own, not shared

Disadvantages:

1. Unlimited liability

2. Fluctuations in workloads

Front 9

Pros and cons of a partnership firm (5+3 marks)

Back 9

Advantages:

1. No public reports

2. Shared workload/capitol

3. No audit is required.

4. Share accommodation, equipment, support, technical data, costs, skills

5. Low tax rate.

6. Easy to set up/ property of the partners

Disadvantages:

1. Unlimited liability (can request the liable partner to repay domestically)

2. Limited to 20 partners max.

3. Dissolved on the death/leaving of a partner

Front 10

Pros and cons of a limited company (5+4 marks)

Back 10

Advantages:

1. Greater working/initial capital

2. Limited liability

3. Generates a steady financial input.

4. Legal entity

5. Separate ownership/management (ie. Share holders / directors)

6. Up to 50 shareholders?

Disadvantages:

7. Higher tax rate.

8. Requires registration

9. Annual audit required

10. Annual return report is public

Front 11

Types of insurance (6 marks)

Back 11

1. Professional Indemnity

2. Employees Compensation

3. Third Party

4. Medical

5. Mandatory Provident Fund

6. Directors/officers Liability

Front 12

Required insurances for all firms (2 marks)

Back 12

Employee Compensation Ordinance (Cap 282)

1. Medical insurance is compulsory for all firms to cover all injuries

2. Mandatory Provident Fund

Front 13

Considerations to (not) take Professional Indemnity Insurance (5 marks)

Back 13

Pros for PII:

1. Covers against losses suffered in litigation

Against:

2. High premium

3. fear of creating claim conscious society

4. Risk can be avoided by good office management

5. not enough understanding

Front 14

Types of Professional Indemnity Insurance (2 marks)

Back 14

1. Claims made policy - covers claims made during the life of the policy (insurance expires)

2. Losses occurring policy - covers the consequences of events which occur during the period of insurance

Front 15

Pros and cons for client and consultant of Percentage Fees (8 marks)

Back 15

Client (pros):

1. Cost of repetitive work reduced.

2. Co-efficient (norm) to calculate the fees.

_. Less competitive for cost benefits.

Client (cons):

3. Open ended fee commitment.

4. Subject to inflation.

_. Lack of incentive for economic design.

Consultant (pros):

5. Achieve a high fee if project budget (tender figure) is high.

6. Design is not limited by a budget.

Consultant (cons):

7. Vulnerable to market forces.

8. Lose out if the tender figure is low.

_. Arguments over the extent of scope.

Front 16

Pros and cons for client and consultant for Time Basis Fee (8 marks)

Back 16

Client (pros):

1. Only pays for the work completed.

2. Good for works where scope is unclear at time of bidding.

Client (cons):

3. Every hour worked is profitable.

4. Can not cover any additional work.

Consultant (pros):

5. No further incentive for additional work.

6. Fee committed is uncertain.

_. Lacks amount of personal information required?

Consultant (cons):

7. Keeping client informed on working hours.

8. Inspection record/ supporting information.

Front 17

Pros and cons for client and consultant for Lump Sum Charge (8 marks)

Back 17

Client (pros):

1. Sum is defined at the outset.

2. Consultant has incentive.

_. Payments are predictable.

_. Simple paperwork.

Client (cons):

3. Impossible to agree if scope/timetable is unclear.

4. Additional work is a separate fee.

_. Argue over interim payments/ scope of work.

Consultant (pros):

5. Limit of spending is known.

6. Fee is not subject to final sum.

_. Once agreed, there is little to argue over.

Consultant (cons):

7. Risk if RLA underestimated/misjudged cost of work.

8. Cost control.

Front 18

Normal stages of Percentage Basis Fees (4 marks)

Back 18

1. Schematic (25%) - upto inception, client briefing, site analysis, sketch design and order of cost ...

2. Design (35%) - upto final design drawings, specifications and programme of work ...

3. Tender (65%) - upto detail design, planting details, working drawings, specifications, schedules sufficient to prepare tender documents ...

4. Completion (100%) - upto obtain tender, supervise site work, final accounts ..

Front 19

Coefficients for Percentage Fees. (4 marks)

Back 19

1. 50% hard, 50% soft - 1.0

2. More hard, less soft - 1.1

3. Less hard, more soft - 1.4

4. Private gardens - 1.2

Front 20

Percentage Norm for contracts. (6 marks)

Back 20

Cost of works, Fee, Percentage:

1. upto 1M, $50K + 7% on $500K, 10.05%

2. upto 2M, $50K + 6.8% on $1M, 8.60%

3. upto 5M, $50K + 6.8% on $2M, 7.65%

4. upto 10M, $50K + 6.8% on $5M, 7.08%

5.over 10M, $50K + 6.9% on $10M, 6.90%

Does not apply to contracts under $500K

Front 21

Methods of charging remuneration (4 marks)

Back 21

1. Time charge - hourly charge rate on teh basis of total cost of staff.

2. Lump sum - fixed amount of money for a fixed package, paid in stages.

3. Percentage fee - calculated as a percentage on the capital cost of works.

4. Term commission - retain services on an "as needed" basis

Front 22

Claims for negligence (4 marks)

Back 22

1. Defendant owed him a duty of care.

2. Defendant breached a duty.

3. Suffered an actual loss.

4. Defendant has no defense.

Front 23

Objectives of HKILA code - The code of professional conduct (10 marks)

Back 23

1. Advance and promote standard of Professional Services.

2. Inform client of code and charges.

3. Ensure business and employers act in accordance.

4. Act impartially between client and contractor

5. Inform extent of interests

6. Agree services at outset

7. Advertise factual and relevant info only

8. No association with expelled or suspended RLA.

9. Inform the employed RLA.

10. Code amended by a majority vote.

Front 24

Benefits of hiring RLA (3 marks)

Back 24

1. Client knows standard to be provided

2. Regulated by the constitution of institute

3. LARO (cap 516) requires; i) passed examination, ii) 1 year professional experience

iii) HK resident with no disciplinary order.

Front 25

Essentials of a negligence claim (3 marks)

Back 25

1. Duty of person

2. Assessment of damages (how breached)

3. Consideration, if any items were "unforeseeable". Defendant is not liable for any damages a "reasonable person" would not have foreseen.

Front 26

Items in a Fee Proposal (9 marks)

Back 26

1. Introduction

2. Response to brief

3. Approach to cost effectiveness

4. Methodology

5. Experience

6. Team structure

7. Fee/stages

8. Declaration of interest

9. Appendix (staff CV and related experience)

Front 27

Professional services a client may require (7 marks)

Back 27

1. Architect - GBP to BD / Architectural

2. Structural Eng - Retain wall / foundation

3. Geo-technical Eng - Slope info

4. Electrical & Mechanical Eng (E&M) - Infrastructure

5. Quantity Surveyor - Cost estimate / payments

6. Civil Eng - Large scale systems (ie. roads/sewage)

7. Arborist - Assist in tree survey / Tree reports

OR - Traffic, environmental, town planner, land surveyor