A license suspension is a severe sanction that impacts your ability to practice in your field, earn a living, and further your career. Fortunately, you can challenge a license suspension and defend yourself against the allegations you are facing. You should immediately contact an experienced professional license defense lawyer to contest the proposed license suspension properly. We can assist you if you face disciplinary proceedings before your professional licensing board or agency.
While all licensing boards handle disciplinary complaints somewhat differently, the disciplinary complaint proceedings tend to follow similar procedures. You generally can contest a license suspension at each stage of the proceedings. Typically, you have a better chance of avoiding a license suspension earlier than later in the proceedings, so getting legal assistance from the outset of your case is wise.
What is a Professional License Suspension?
A professional license suspension is a sanction that may occur when a licensing board or agency takes disciplinary action against a licensee for violating a rule or law relating to their profession. During a suspension, the licensee typically cannot practice in their field. However, in many cases, the board will probate the suspension, which allows the licensee to continue practicing with some limitations and/or conditions.
What is a Probated Professional License Suspension?
When a licensing board probates a suspension, it allows the licensee to continue practicing in their field if they comply with certain terms and conditions outlined in an agreement or order. These conditions vary widely but depend on the nature of the violation that led to the disciplinary action and its severity. Some examples of conditions that a board may place on a licensee on probation include the following:
- Regularly appearing and reporting to the board;
- Completing additional continuing education courses;
- Engaging in mental health counseling or treatment;
- Receiving substance abuse treatment;
- Undergoing periodic drug testing;
- Restricting their practice to certain areas or activities; and
- Being supervised by another professional in the field.
Can I Contest a Potential License Suspension During an Investigation of the Disciplinary Complaint?
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If your licensing board has jurisdiction over the complaint, it will open an investigation involving notifying the licensed professional of the complaint and gathering evidence concerning the allegations. The board also gives the licensed professional an opportunity to respond to the complaint within a certain timeframe. Your response is the first opportunity to contest the disciplinary complaint that could lead to a license suspension. If you provide evidence in your response that shows you did not violate the rule or law as alleged in the complaint, the board could dismiss the complaint with no disciplinary action taken against you.
Can I Contest a Potential License Suspension During an Informal Conference?
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Many licensing boards begin the disciplinary process with a voluntary informal conference, which typically involves the licensee and staff members and/or a committee of the board. The content and procedures during these conferences vary, but they allow the parties to attempt to resolve the disciplinary complaint informally.
In many cases, the licensing board will present an agreed order, which is an offer of settlement that contains an admission of one or more violations and accompanying sanctions. Depending on the severity of your violation, the agreed order may include a license suspension, which may or may not be probated.
If you disagree with the agreed order that the board has presented, you can present arguments and evidence during some informal conferences to negotiate the terms of an agreed order. With the help of an experienced professional license defense attorney, you may be able to settle upon an agreed order that does not involve a license suspense.
Some professions have laws or rules requiring a license suspension for serious violations. In those situations, the only option for avoiding a license suspension is to proceed to a hearing to argue that you did not violate the law or rule.
Can I Contest a Potential License Suspension During a Contested Administrative Hearing?
Although most cases are resolved by agreement, your disciplinary case can proceed to a contested administrative hearing under some circumstances. For instance, if you cannot negotiate an agreed order with your licensing board that does not include a license suspension, you may opt for a contested hearing to argue for a lesser sanction. You also may choose a contested hearing if you are facing allegations of a violation that will require you to serve a mandatory license suspension. In that case, you will use the contested hearing to argue that you did not commit the violation as alleged or that you committed a lesser violation to avoid the mandatory license suspension.
What Can I Do if the Licensing Board Issues a Final Order Suspending My License?
In most cases, the administrative law judge (ALJ) issues a proposal for decision (PFD) following your hearing to the licensing board. The ultimate decisions about whether you violated a law or rule governing your profession and, if so, what your sanction should be is generally up to the licensing board.
If the licensing board issues a final order suspending your professional license, you can appeal that decision in Texas district court.
Contact Bertolino LLP Today for Legal Assistance
Do not hesitate to get legal assistance if facing potential disciplinary action against your professional license. Retaining the services of legal counsel from the beginning of any disciplinary proceedings before your licensing board can be crucial to a more positive resolution of your case. Contact a Texas professional license defense attorney immediately for help with your disciplinary proceedings today.
Call or text (512) 476-5757 or complete a Case Evaluation form
