Steve,
You are correct, it's a matter of effect. The effect of me turning in this appraiser is going to be that people get upset with me. The appraiser may be required to attend a few hours of education, but most likely will not change old habits which die hard.
BB,
I thought being from Texas you might understand the "good ol' boy" network. When I say that I might lose the clients' respect, it's like this: This is rural Appalachia, everyone knows everyone and everything about everybody else's business. The client is not an inanimate object. The client is a bank operated by individuals who know this appraiser, go to church with him, whose kids play little league with his grandkids, etc. If I turn him in, I will be seen as the guy who caused the trouble, who either forced him to go to class, cost him a fine, or at worst, put him out of business.
I am debating whether or not it is worth losing the clients' respect to stand for a debatable principal. A solid principal, I would die for. A debatable one, I wont risk my business over. Did I mention that this is my largest client, contributing about 30% of the business income? This client never questions my value, even when it's short. They don't even test my ethics by calling and saying "can you stretch the value a bit?" Would you be willing to risk losing a client like that over this issue?
