Podiatrist Board Defense

Being served with an Accusation by the BPM can result in the revocation of your license if not aggressively and competently defended. The BPM typically has a short period of time, usually only 15 days from the date that the Accusation was served to file a Notice of Defense. If the BPM fails to file such a responsive document within the prescribed time frame, it is possible that the Board will seek a Default against the Podiatrist, which is obviously devastating. This may result in the Revocation of a podiatrist’s license occurring without the practitioner’s ability to defend against it, which is unthinkable, but is a situation which has arisen in the past.  Our attorneys can assist you if you have missed the 15-day window in which to file your Notice of Defense, with a goal of allowing you to do so, even if you have missed the initial window.  This is a very delicate and tricky situation to navigate, and it is essential to have counsel retained if you find yourself in this unfortunate position.

These cases are not “do-it-yourself” cases, as the Board and its attorneys (the Attorney General) may tell you. They require extensive experience to have a favorable outcome. By trying to handle an Accusation yourself you may end up forfeiting important legal rights just by not knowing how to approach the situation or even by a simple mistake. The disciplinary process is a time consuming, complex, and procedural process. It is not to be taken lightly. Our firm is focused almost entirely on administrative law as it relates to the healthcare professions and podiatrist board defense. We have helped literally thousands of healthcare professionals in our history and we are certain we can help you too.

An Accusation by the BPM is a serious matter which can result in the suspension or revocation of a podiatrist’s license in California. Often times, our attorneys are successful in negotiating what is known as a “Stipulated Settlement” which is a formal agreement between the podiatrist, also known as the “Respondent” and the Board.  In many cases our attorneys have been successful in negotiating favorable terms of settlement for our clients which allow them to continue to practice podiatry under the best possible terms and conditions which can be negotiated.  It is precisely due to our vast experience that our attorneys know what is and is not an optimal settlement in each client’s optimal case.  If a settlement is not obtainable, then the parties must proceed to a formal hearing before the Office of Administrative Hearings, also known as “OAH.”

The Hearing will take place before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) who will hear the evidence and witnesses and then issue a proposed decision approximately 30 days after the hearing, although this time frame is not always adhered to.  The Board will then, incredibly, the ALJ’s proposed decision is merely that—a proposed decision, which is not binding upon the Board to accept.  In fact, the Board may then review the proposed decision and may then adopt it in its entirety, modify part of it or reject the decision entirely and require the parties to submit additional briefing on issues which may have arisen or to again proceed to an administrative hearing.  Once the Board takes its final action in any of these scenarios, it issues its “Decision and Order”.  This Decision can be appealed, but you must act within specific time frames in order to appeal it.  The first step in appealing the Boards final Decision and Order is to consider whether a Petition for Reconsideration should be filed, or whether a doctor should proceed to the Superior Court and file a Writ of Mandamus seeking to have the Decision of the Board overturned upon order of the Superior Court.  This is a very time and labor-intensive undertaking but is one which is available to a doctor who feels that the Decision reached by the Board was erroneous for a variety of reasons.