The FCA is the highest designation that the Institute confers. Held once every three years, the objective of the Institute's Fellowship elections is to honour members who have given outstanding service to the profession or brought distinction to it.

Any Member May Nominate

While only members of Council vote in the actual election, every Ontario Chartered Accountant is eligible to nominate candidates. Nominations must be seconded by a Council member, an FCA or a District Association president. The names of nominators and seconders are not made known to the FCA Review Committee or the Council.

FCA Review Committee

An FCA Review Committee, chaired by the immediate past-chair and comprised of five former Council members appointed by the Council, makes a recommendation to the Council on each nominee. Members of Council may discuss the Review Committee's recommendation on any particular nomination with its chair. They are not bound to follow the Committee's recommendations in balloting.

Election

A two-thirds majority vote of the Council is required to elect a nominee. There are no overall, geographical or employment sector limits on the numbers to be elected.

Must be Known as a CA

To be recognized as having brought distinction to the profession, it is very important, broadly speaking, that the member was clearly identified as being a Chartered Accountant in making the achievements cited.

Nomination Form of Critical Importance

The information in the nomination form is critical to the election of a candidate, and nominations must be well documented if they are to result in a nominee’s election. Nominators are permitted to discuss a nomination with their nominee, to help ensure that all pertinent nomination information and documentation is obtained and included, but nominations must otherwise be kept confidential. Testimonial letters are not accepted – to maintain the focus on the nominee’s accomplishments, absent the prestige of nominators and others, and to limit public knowledge about unsuccessful nominations.

Nominators should provide full details of the nature and quality of the nominee's activities, giving emphasis to those they consider the most important. Evidence of the nominee's being known as a Chartered Accountant would include the use of the designation or the initials “CA” in publications involving the nominee, including newspapers, other print media, and the Internet. Board of directors’ listings in annual reports, calendars and event programs of university, hospital, chamber of commerce and other similar publications, are additional examples. Nominators are encouraged to provide copies of such documentation.

To assist nominators in organizing their material, a nomination form has been developed to list a nominee's accomplishments in the following areas of service or achievement:

•           Career achievements;

•           Participation in career-related professional bodies and business development-related organizations and career-related communications;

•           Volunteer leadership contributions to community service and personal interest organizations; and

•           CA profession service and contributions to the work of the Ontario Institute, CICA, other provincial institutes or related bodies.

There are no age restrictions for nominees.