Code of Conduct

Tidewater Ultimate is committed to creating a safe, fun atmosphere for ultimate players in the Tidewater region of Virginia. This Code of Conduct exists to help us uphold that commitment; by playing in a Tidewater Ultimate league or tournament, you agree to be bound by this code. Every player that registers to play for that season must agree to the code, as well as the media waiver.

Players will uphold the Spirit of the Game set forth by USAU, which is grounded in mutual respect, conflict resolution, and knowledge of the rules. Spirit of the Game violations may result in penalties listed further below.
https://usaultimate.org/spirit-of-the-game/

Violence, discrimination, and harassment of any type are not permitted. Fighting, including excessive shouting and cursing at another player, is also not permitted.

Players agree to follow the rules set out by the venues where they play and respect that property, as well as following the laws governing that area. This also means players will not steal from each other.

Players may not misrepresent themselves when registering for or participating in our events. In particular, the creation of fraudulent email addresses or other online accounts that pose as another player or as Tidewater Ultimate is strictly prohibited.

If any player feels unsafe or harmed by possible violations of these rules, we encourage you to contact the Code of Conduct Committee immediately.

If you have an issue with another player’s conduct and are not comfortable or are otherwise unable to address that with them, any violations may be reported to either league Captains or the Code of Conduct Committee for further action.

The Code of Conduct Committee serves to hear and respond to allegations of code violations. When necessary (e.g., conflict of interest), members will recuse themselves. Any investigation they undertake will be done as privately and speedily as possible. When necessary, suspensions and/or permanent bans from Tidewater Ultimate events may be issued. Any allegations will be addressed individually, factoring in the severity, repetitiveness, and impact of the actions. The Code of Conduct Committee will consist of the Board of Executives, Assistant Commissioner, and Commissioner(s).

The Code of Conduct is intended to be a set of guidelines rather than exact law, and the violations listed in this are not intended to be all inclusive.

Captains or any member of the committee may give the infractions for verbal warnings, and have the authority to suspend players for the remainder of any league game. Suspensions for the season shall be discussed with the applicable captains and the Committee.  The final decision will be made by the Code of Conduct Committee. In the event of a tie, the tie breaker will be the Commissioner or Assistant Commissioner. Suspensions for games and season may come from the player’s captain or the committee. Permanent bans will come from the commissioner(s).

Examples of violations, and punishments which may be assessed:

  • Cursing excessively - Start with verbal warning. Several verbal warnings (3) per game day would be allowed. Next would be being benched for that game. Then benched the rest of the game day.

  • Spirit of the Game/other miscellaneous violations -

    • The intent of these violations is to prevent repeated bad behavior across leagues. These would be intended for repeated behaviors of bad faith actions. Examples include berating a foul call, belittling someone’s point of view, mocking a player, etc. For these violations to be logged they should be reported to captains to both teams to allow the captains the chance to talk with the violator. The players involved would have the option to resolve it amongst themselves prior to being reported. The commissioner(s) reserves the right to assign violations if they witness activity.  

    • Punishments for repeated violations:

      • Any player with multiple violations will have their count reset to one at the end of a league season-if a player only has one violation at season's end it resets to zero. 

      • 1st infraction-verbal warning

      • 2nd infraction-sit out the next game

      • 3rd infraction-sit out the next week

      • 4th infraction-not asked to return for that league season.

  • Dangerous Play -

    • Any existing dangerous play counts reset down to one violation at the end of the league season-if a player only has one violation at season’s end it resets to zero.

    • Enforcement of Dangerous Play: There are several options:

      • If a dangerous play is called and upheld on the field, then it will be automatically logged as a dangerous play.

      • If it cannot be resolved, treat it as a contested foul, & send the disc back and let the captains discuss it post game in the captains' chat. If it is upheld, then the player will receive their penalty during the next week or game.

      • If captains see it during the games, they have the option of discussing it with that player’s captain and letting the captain talk to the player.  They may let the captain of that player's team notify the player.

      • If the person committing a dangerous play is a captain, any other player may bring it to the commissioner’s attention, and the commissioner will talk to the other captains.  If the play is deemed dangerous, the commissioner will notify the captain of his/her dangerous play.

      • The commissioner(s) will make note of the date the infraction(s) occurred.

    • Punishments for repeated violations:

      • At captains’ discretion, they may choose to enforce harsher punishments depending on the context.

      • 1st dangerous play-benched for the point, not allowed back on until they talk with their captains.

      • 2nd dangerous play-not allowed to play any more that game day.

      • 3rd dangerous play (or second time being ejected)-out of the league season.

  • Fighting - automatic suspension for the rest of the season. Multiple infractions in a 2 year span will result in a permanent ban. Instigator & reactor will not necessarily receive the same penalties. 

  • Discriminatory language - automatic suspension for the rest of game day and 1 week after. Multiple infractions in a 2 year span will result in a permanent ban.

  • Harassment of a player or spectator - automatic suspension for the rest of game day and 1 week after. Good spirited heckling does not equal harassment.

  • Sexual harassment of a player or spectator (inappropriate language/connotations/inappropriate touching) - up to the discretion of the commissioner, may result in a permanent ban. 

  • Sexual assault - permanent ban.

  • Fraudulent misrepresentation - permanent ban.

Permanently banned players may submit a petition after 1 year of the ban listing the reasons why the committee should overturn their ban. It may or may not overturn the ban. Season banned players are not allowed to submit these petitions.