All individuals holding professional licenses issued by the state must follow certain laws and rules. Licensed professionals must answer to the state agencies that license and regulate their professions. These state agencies receive complaints from various individuals concerning any allegations that licensed professionals have violated the rules that govern them.
Disciplinary complaints may lead to sanctions that adversely affect your career. In severe cases, you could even face a license suspension or revocation, which affects your ability to keep your job and support yourself. A Texas professional license defense lawyer can represent your interests before your licensing board and put you in the best position to handle the disciplinary proceedings against you.
Filing Disciplinary Complaints
Generally, anyone can file a disciplinary complaint against a professional licensed in Texas. As a result, complainants may include current and former patients, clients, or customers of the licensee, current or former employees, or members of the public. Current and former colleagues, coworkers, and employers may file complaints against licensees. Licensing board staff also may file complaints as they arise through investigations, referrals, or other sources.
Anonymous Complaints
Many licensing boards and agencies do not permit anonymous complaints. Therefore, if you wish to file a complaint, you must be willing to identify yourself, and the likelihood is that the professional against whom you are filing the complaint will learn your identity at some point during the process. For instance, the Texas Medical Board requires that you identify yourself and give contact information when you file a complaint against a licensee. Likewise, the Texas Real Estate Commission will not accept anonymous complaints, as per Tex. Occ. Code §1101.204(f).
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Some licensing boards do make exceptions for anonymous complaints. For instance, the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC) may, but is not obligated to, investigate a complaint that “lacks sufficient information to identify the source or name of the person who filed the complaint.” BHEC licenses and regulates social workers, professional counselors, marriage and family therapists, and psychologists.
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Furthermore, the Texas Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors accepts anonymous complaints but notes that since the investigator is unable to contact the source of the anonymous complaint for clarification or further information, an anonymous complainant must provide as much information as possible. Additionally, the Board will be unable to notify an anonymous complainant of the results of the investigation of the complaint.
Likewise, the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy will take an anonymous complaint but often cannot successfully pursue a complaint if the complainant remains anonymous. For instance, if the complaint stems from a CPA’s failure to file the complainant’s income tax return, the Board must know the complainant’s name to investigate whether the CPA filed the tax return or not. The CPA is also entitled to know the circumstances surrounding the complaint, so keeping the complainant anonymous is impossible in this situation.
Specific Persons Who May File Complaints
Some professions place specific limitations on persons who may file disciplinary complaints against licensees. For example, Texas Rule of Disciplinary Procedure 1.06(G)(2) states that only the following may submit complaints or “Grievances” against attorneys to the Office of the Chief Disciplinary Counsel for the State Bar of Texas:
- A family member of a ward in a guardianship proceeding that is the subject of the Grievance;
- A family member of a decedent in a probate matter that is the subject of the Grievance;
- A trustee of a trust or an executor of an estate if the matter that is the subject of the Grievance relates to the trust or estate;
- The judge, prosecuting attorney, defense attorney, court staff member, or juror in the legal matter that is the subject of the Grievance;
- A trustee in a bankruptcy that is the subject of the Grievance; or
- Any other person with a cognizable individual interest in or connection to the legal matter or facts alleged in the Grievance.
The Texas Education Agency (TEA) also identifies persons who may file complaints against educators. 19 Tex. Admin. Code §249.14(d) states that TEA staff may obtain information about and investigate alleged improper conduct based on reports from “a person who serves as the superintendent of a school district of district of innovation, the director of a charter school, regional education service center, or shared services arrangement, or the chief administrative offer of a private school.” Since these individuals are mandatory reporters, a school district board of trustees or the governing body of a private primary or secondary school must report the failure of any such person to make a mandatory report to the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC). However, TEA staff may also obtain and act based on information from other sources to bring disciplinary action against educators.
Bertolino, LLP: Ready to Defend Your Interests Before Your Licensing Board
Retaining an experienced professional license defense attorney to represent you before your licensing board is in your best interest. We are here to protect our interests throughout every stage of your disciplinary proceedings. Contact the lawyers of Bertolino, LLP today by calling (512) 515-9518 or visiting us online.
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