Allegations of professional misconduct or a conviction that significantly affect your ability to practice can threaten the dedication, years of study, resources, and hard work you have committed to building your career as a general contractor or contractor. A complaint can lead to disciplinary proceedings and adverse disciplinary action, including revocation, suspension, citation, and probation.
Riverside License Attorney understands the gravity of the allegations and disciplinary proceedings and can aggressively fight for your career, reputation, and livelihood. We can also thoroughly review your case facts to develop the most effective defense strategy designed to obtain the best case outcome.
What Do a Contractor and a General Contractor Do
As a general contractor, you act as the project hub for a construction project. Whether building a commercial building or a residential home, the construction project involves a network of professionals, including material suppliers, engineers, architects, and plumbers. The general contractor is the center of this, serving as the point of accountability and contact for the property owner.
Although the specific everyday tasks vary with the project phase and type, your responsibilities might fall into the following categories:
- You are the primary point of contact with the property owner. It makes you different from a subcontractor. A subcontractor has a contract with you to perform a particular task, whereas you have a contract with the property owner to complete the whole project.
- You help the property owner manage contracts, disputes, and schedules with various parties. You also translate the architect’s and owner’s vision into instructions for subcontractors and communicate the project’s challenges and progress to the property owner.
- When you sign a contract with the property owner, you assume the operations and financial risks of the project.
In California, there are three categories of contractor licenses, including the following:
- General engineering contractors (Class A)— The contractors handle paving, irrigation, grading, and excavation work.
- General building contractors (Class B)—It is the license held by individuals who remodel or build residential or commercial properties.
- Specialty contractors (Class C)—As the name suggests, they handle specific tasks, including electrical work, fencing, roofing, welding, plumbing, masonry, drywall installation, and HVAC work.
The Role of the Contractor State License Board (CSLB)
The California Legislature established the Contractor License Bureau, now known as the Board, in 1929. Currently, the board is under the Department of Consumer Affairs.
The mandate of the licensing board is to protect consumers by regulating the construction industry through policies that promote the public’s safety, general welfare, and health.
The board achieves this by doing the following:
- Ensuring the construction is conducted in a safe, professional, and competent way
- Issuing licenses to qualified individuals
- Enforcing the regulations, standards, and laws governing construction
- Offering resolutions to disputes arising from construction activities
- Educating consumers so they can make wise decisions
Interim Suspension Order
An interim suspension order is an emergency order that an ALJ can issue to suspend a professional license immediately. The ALJ can grant a license suspension order before an administrative hearing if allowing you to continue practicing without restrictions would lead to harm or injuries to the general public. The Attorney General should prove by a preponderance of the evidence that your continued licensure would endanger the public welfare, safety, or health.
The ALJ’s issuance of the ISO can be a two-step or a one-step process.
The two-step process is available only if the board proves there is a threat of severe injury to the general public. The ALJ can issue the ISO in a short duration without a hearing or notice or with short notice and an administrative hearing. The other phase of the two-step process is an administrative hearing on the ISO, which must be scheduled after giving 15 days’ notice and a chance to respond.
On the other hand, in the one-step process, only a notice of an administrative hearing is scheduled.
Please note that ISO hearings are rare. The board will only initiate it if it believes there is a pending risk of harm or injury to the general public from you.
Once the board grants the ISO, the board schedules a hearing to pursue professional discipline, often to revoke the professional license. This can lead to your business closure, loss of your practice privileges, and damage to your professional reputation. That is why you should act proactively, gather the relevant resources, and hire an experienced license defense attorney.
Navigating the Professional Disciplinary Process
Contractors and general contractors hold positions of trust; your clients depend on you for competent and ethical services. Consequently, the board takes every allegation of misconduct seriously.
The professional disciplinary process starts when the agency receives a complaint from anyone, including a homeowner, competitor, insurance provider, material supplier, subcontractor, or another government agency. Common complaints that the board receives are as follows:
- Contractual disputes, breach of contract
- Illegally taking deposits
- Not meeting the trade standards of your work
- Employing uncertified employees
- Alcohol or drug abuse, especially while working
- Engaging in fraud, including insurance fraud or estate fraud
- Having a criminal record that significantly impacts your qualifications or duties as a certified general contractor or contractor
- Being under investigation by another state or licensing board
If this complaint is within the board’s jurisdiction, the agency will open investigations. If the violation is minor, the agency will handle the case informally, including issuing citations and fines, issuing warning letters, or requiring education conferences. However, if the allegations are severe, the board will refer the matter to the seasoned investigators.
The CSLB will notify you of its investigation, which could be via a letter from your licensing agency requesting your response or a subpoena of your records. Even when you think the complaint against you is unjustified, you should consult an experienced and aggressive license defense legal counsel and allow them to handle every communication with the board. The licensing board could use your statement against you.
The Investigation Phase
After the board opens the investigation, the investigators will collect evidence against you. The investigations can include analyzing clients’ documentation and records, examining your billing practices, and interviewing witnesses and the complainant.
The investigators may want to know what happened and close your case, or appear friendly. However, you should remember that their outcome will influence whether your licensing agency will take disciplinary measures against you. That is why your lawyer should handle your communications with the investigators.
Not all complaints result in the board imposing disciplinary action. Nonetheless, if the CSLB believes there exists adequate proof of professional misconduct, it will send you an accusation.
An Accusation
The accusation highlights the alleged professional misconduct and the statute you have violated.
After receiving the accusation, you are entitled to request an administrative hearing and respond to the accusation. You should file the notice of defense within fifteen days of receiving the accusation. Your license defense lawyer should advise you of the available options after carefully reading the accusation and understanding the allegations against you. They can also ensure you file the response on time and offer case-specific responses that raise objections and defenses that you might overlook if self-representing.
If you fail to file your notice of defense, the board will assume you have waived your right to the administrative hearing and take disciplinary action based on your allegation.
Stipulated Settlement
After reaching a stipulated settlement, you will accept the allegation(s) and that the professional disciplinary action is warranted. Typically, it results in less severe penalties than might otherwise be imposed by an ALJ in an administrative hearing. The conditions of the settlement include a requirement to complete continuing education, meet probation terms, or practice while under supervision.
Although the stipulated settlement can lower the legal costs and uncertainty, you should agree after your lawyer has carefully reviewed it. Accepting unfavorable conditions can have life-altering consequences on your license and livelihood. Your attorney can negotiate conditions that safeguard your professional license by proving your rehabilitation and using mitigating evidence.
Administrative Hearings
If the matter proceeds to an administrative hearing, the Office of Administrative Hearings will handle the case. While your hearing is identical to a criminal case trial, it is less formal.
During the hearing, the ALJ will listen to both sides present evidence and arguments. A lawyer from the Attorney General’s office will represent the board. You can cross-examine witnesses.
After the administrative hearing, the ALJ will issue their decision. The CLSB can then modify, reject, or adopt the recommendation. Common disciplinary actions your board imposes include revocation, suspension, probation, and reprimand.
Appealing Your Disciplinary Action
If you are dissatisfied with the board’s decision, you can appeal its decision by filing a writ of mandate. There is a stringent deadline for bringing your appeal, so you should understand the timeframes after the board issues its decision.
Appeals require cautious legal analysis and can be complicated. Your lawyer can assist you in understanding your legal options for appealing the disciplinary measure or pursuing reinstatement after an adequate period has elapsed.
The Superior Court will analyze the board’s decision to determine whether it followed the law and the appropriate procedures in making it. The Superior Court will not substitute its judgment for the licensing board. Instead, it will review whether:
- The licensing agency acted within its lawful authority
- You received a fair hearing
- The board adhered to the appropriate procedures
- There is evidence supporting the board’s decision
- The imposed disciplinary action did not constitute abuse of discretion or was not excessive
Professional License Application Denial
If the board denies you a professional license application, it will notify you by mail. The denial is known as a statement of issues and outlines the rationale for the application denial, a statement to the respondent, and a notice of defense.
Reasons why the board may deny you a professional license include the following:
- Failing to disclose your criminal charges, a criminal conviction, or any disciplinary action against you by another state or federal government.
- A misdemeanor conviction that substantially affects your licensure by the licensing board or the federal government.
- A felony conviction that is substantially related to your qualifications, responsibilities, or functions
- Your case facts, including the severity of the alleged offense or the existence of aggravating factors.
- Lying on the licensure application
If the board does not grant your professional license application, you can appeal the denial to a formal administrative hearing per Section 485(b) of the California Business and Professions Code. However, you should present your appeal in writing to the licensing board within sixty (60) days from when you received your notice of denial.
Once 60 days elapse without submitting a written appeal, your legal right to a hearing is waived, and the application denial remains. If you decide not to appeal the denial of licensure, you may be allowed to reapply one year from when you were informed of the denial.
To fight the licensure denial, you require a competent defense attorney, and here is why:
- The attorney will review the statement of issues to identify the root cause of the license denial and the appropriate steps to rectify this.
- It is possible to reach an agreement with the licensing agency by cooperating with the Attorney General’s office. Your lawyer can aggressively advocate for you and counter the board’s perception. They will also collect and organize evidence on rehabilitation and mitigation so they can negotiate with the board.
- Your attorney can help you pursue postconviction relief in criminal court to clean up your criminal record.
Find a Competent Legal Guidance Near Me
When your professional license as a general contractor or contractor is on the line, so is your career and livelihood. An allegation of professional misconduct can trigger an investigation and disciplinary proceedings.
At Riverside License Attorney, we believe that you did not spend years and money in training only to lose your license over an allegation. We can act promptly and offer aggressive and strategic defense tailored to protect your career, credentials, and professional reputation.
We can offer you discreet representation throughout the case, represent you before the board, and manage the investigation strategy and board communication. Please call us at 951-410-8612 to schedule your free case review and to discuss the available options.
