Manitoba · Manitoba Association of Optometrists (MAO)

What happens during a Manitoba Association of Optometrists (MAO) investigation?

An MAO matter begins with the Complaints Committee’s preliminary investigation and, if the concern is serious, moves to a Discipline Committee hearing that is generally open to the public. The point most Manitoba optometrists should hold onto is the one at the end: unlike some Manitoba professions, The Optometry Act gives you a genuine right of appeal to the Court of King’s Bench.

The preliminary investigation

Every MAO matter starts the same way: a written complaint is forwarded to the Complaints Committee, to you for a response, and to the Registrar, and the Complaints Committee conducts a preliminary investigation. This stage decides whether the concern can be resolved short of a hearing or whether it needs to go to the Discipline Committee.

What the investigation examines maps onto the two grounds the Act is concerned with: professional misconduct and unskilled practice. A conduct concern (for example honesty, boundaries or consent) and a competence concern (for example the standard of examination or diagnosis) are assessed differently, and identifying which is in play helps you and your advisers respond to the right thing.

Your records and cooperation

The investigation will rely heavily on your clinical records, so provide what is asked for, on time and in full. Do not edit, back-date or reconstruct notes — their integrity will be scrutinised, and tampering converts a defensible clinical concern into an indefensible integrity one. If a record is thin or missing, say so plainly and explain why.

Cooperation is itself part of being a professional. Failing to engage, or engaging obstructively, removes any credit you would otherwise earn and can compound the original concern. The most persuasive position in an investigation is a practitioner who has engaged openly and can show a clear, contemporaneous record.

Interim suspension during the investigation

Where a complaint raises a question of serious risk to the public, the Complaints Committee may suspend your certificate of registration pending the outcome of its investigation and any discipline hearing. This is uncommon and reserved for the most serious matters, but it is a real possibility in cases involving patient safety or integrity.

If it happens, you are not without recourse: the Act allows a member to appeal the suspension to the Court of King’s Bench. Get representation immediately, because the suspension appeal is where your ability to keep practising while the matter is resolved is argued.

Referral to the Discipline Committee

If the Complaints Committee — or, on a complainant’s appeal, the Appeals Committee — refers the matter, a Discipline Committee is struck to hold a formal hearing. Serious matters constituting alleged professional misconduct or unskilled practice are the ones that reach this stage.

The Discipline Committee is a proper tribunal. For the purpose of a hearing, its members (and council) have the powers of a commissioner under Part V of The Manitoba Evidence Act, which means it can compel evidence. After the hearing it submits a written report of its findings, its recommendations and a transcript of the evidence to council. You are entitled to know the charge, to be represented, and to answer the evidence against you.

The hearing: generally public

A distinctive feature of the optometry process is that Discipline Committee hearings are generally open to the public, while the confidentiality of both the practitioner’s and the complainant’s identity must be respected. That openness raises the stakes and makes proper preparation and representation essential.

The Committee decides whether the allegation of professional misconduct or unskilled practice is made out. As with regulatory hearings generally, the case is determined on the balance of probabilities rather than the criminal standard, so the way your evidence and your account are presented carries real weight.

Findings, penalties and appeals

If the Discipline Committee finds an optometrist guilty of professional misconduct or unskilled practice, it may order a reprimand, suspension (with or without conditions), restrictions or conditions on practice, repayment of fees, revocation of registration, and/or fines and the costs of the hearing. The range runs from the corrective to the career-ending, which is why engagement and remediation from an early stage matter so much.

Crucially, an investigated optometrist may appeal a decision of the Discipline Committee to the Court of King’s Bench. This is a genuine statutory appeal — a meaningful difference from some other Manitoba regulators — but it is far better to get the hearing itself right than to rely on an appeal, so engage fully and be properly represented throughout.

This guide explains how the Manitoba Association of Optometrists regulates optometrists under The Optometry Act, and how the Opticians of Manitoba regulates opticians under The Opticians Act. It is provided for general information only, is not legal advice, and does not create a professional relationship. For advice on your own situation, contact your professional liability insurer and a regulatory lawyer before you respond. Last updated July 15, 2026.