Thank you for the question.
You're correct that the law societies generally do have the ability to take immediate action. I guess what I see as one of the distinctions between the law societies and ICCRC is that they are generally closer to the ground. Because they are provincially regulated, they seem to be able to keep a closer eye on the occupation ban than ICCRC is.
I've had very few instances in which I've actually made a complaint to ICCRC and spoken to their officers. I did have one instance when I was with Nova Scotia Immigration that was quite troubling. There was an issue. There was an ICCRC consultant who had an arrest warrant in Canada. There were a number of charges against the consultant, who was living outside Canada. My recollection is that the ICCRC investigator more or less said that the person was innocent until proven guilty. They could continue to advertise as ICCRC-licensed on their website and could continue to work until they came back to Canada to face these charges.
That was four or five years ago. I don't know how that ultimately was resolved, but generally, if you see a lawyer charged with any serious matter, particularly one warranting arrest, there is normally an immediate suspension and review. Then, they may be allowed to resume practice under conditions. I guess I'm not seeing the same news stories that you would be looking for about ICCRC taking serious action. I guess I see too much of what I would call substandard work out there in the community to have any degree of confidence in ICCRC effectively meeting its mandate.