When you hold a landscape architect license in California, it indicates you possess the skills and knowledge to beautify outdoor spaces in residential areas, commercial areas, and public parks. The industry has high safety standards, exposing you to claims and lawsuits from your clients or users of these outdoor spaces you have designed. 

Your livelihood depends on your license. Therefore, any criminal accusation of misconduct that threatens your services must be taken seriously. You need an attorney to defend the permit. Unfortunately, many license attorneys have never heard of the landscape architect license profession, making it difficult to protect your license diligently. At San Luis Obispo License Attorney, we differ from others because we understand the landscape architect's career. We have successfully defended many licensees in administrative proceedings and helped with license reinstatement.

Overview of PC 23

California Landscape Architect Technical Committee (LATC) is the agency established by the Landscape Architects Practice Act to issue licenses and regulate landscapers. According to Penal Code 23, when you are charged with a crime that substantially relates to your landscape license, the LATC, which is the state agency that issued you with the license, must show up in court to submit crucial information, make recommendations on probationary terms, or furnish the court with any relevant details for justice’s interest, to safeguard the public, or as part of following the court’s directives.

The standard charges that substantially relate to your profession are:

  • Driving while drunk or drugged
  • Controlled substances possession
  • Professional misconduct

If these violations hamper your capacity to deliver landscape architectural services, they will adversely impact your professional license.

Because PEN 23 requires your licensing agency to show up in court, do not make the mistake of showing up without an experienced license attorney in your corner. Despite the board's recommendations, the attorney will ensure you secure a favorable outcome.

Landscape Architecture Overview

California statutes governing landscape architects require that any person practicing or offering landscape architect services possess a valid LATC license. Obtaining the permit is tedious and overwhelming because you must pay an application fee and sit for a national exam and CSE. Besides the exams, you should demonstrate to the licensing agency that you have accumulated 72 months of tuition and training in landscape architecture.

The national exam you will take will test you in the following fields:

  • Practicality studies
  • Research, land, and water resource distribution for appropriate use and assortment
  • Crafting general site plans, grading, drainage plans, and watering techniques
  • Preparation and evaluation of land use and building master plans
  • The coinage of visual and written protocols to guide land construction project designs

Landscape Architect Roles 

 

The main duties of landscape architects are to beautify outdoor spaces. Many people overlook the roles of landscapers and tend to appreciate engineers and civil architects more because of the attractive structures you see in San Luis Obispo. They forget that all the well-lined tree avenues, aesthetically appealing gardens, public parks, and beautiful outdoor spaces in commercial and residential buildings are due to the efforts of landscape architects.

Another challenge people have is confusing landscape architects with landscape designers. A landscape designer focuses on the blueprint and the planning part, while you, the landscape architect, focus on ensuring the project meets the municipal code’s safety protocol compliance. Also, as a landscaper, your role is to perform soil analysis and grading and ensure landscapes have the intended aesthetic appeal. Generally, you act as the project manager to satisfy the client’s expectations about the details of the landscape and start and completion dates.

Similarly, you should prepare budgets for the work and obtain all the permits necessary to commence it. You should also prepare the project contract and the tendering process.

You work hard to reach your level through six years of intensive training and education. Even after completing your studies, you do not start practicing right away. You must go through the license application process and pass the relevant tests to acquire a license. The licensing process will also hurt your pockets as it is expensive. Unfortunately, all these years of hard work can go down the drain because of a simple mistake or error.

At San Luis Obispo License Attorney, we recognize your critical roles in society and the efforts and resources it has taken to reach this stage. Also, we realize how quickly the board can revoke or withdraw your license in an attempt to protect the public. Therefore, our profound attorneys are willing to aggressively defend you against the accusations or complaints to save your profession and source of income.

LATC Mission

The board is a purview of the state Architects Board with the primary goal of safeguarding the public and maintaining quality standards in the landscape architecture field. The agency also establishes and reinforces rules and regulations its licensees must adhere to. Violations that attract disciplinary action from the board are:

  • Misrepresentation
  • Fraudulently acquiring a license
  • Impersonating a company or taking someone’s name
  • Controlled substances or alcohol abuse on duty
  • Deliberate professional misconduct at work
  • Gross negligence or incompetence
  • Signing or stamping as your own a project that you did not develop or oversee
  • Being licensed by another professional board or a member of an out-of-state professional board
  • A guilty verdict for a breach substantially linked to your job
  • Hiring unlicensed assistants
  • Participating in fraudulent activities

When LATC receives any of these complaints against you, they will likely take disciplinary measures after investigations. These measures include license revocation, civil injunction, citation, or withdrawal. An accusation should always be backed up by evidence demonstrating the alleged violation. If the allegation is in letter form, the complainant must describe in detail the weight of the complaint in relation to your duties. If the board feels the case has some weight to warrant action, they will send you an investigation notice.

Nonetheless, many complaints do not carry the weight of formally accusing a landscape architect of professional misconduct. The board drops all uncorroborated accusations as they lack sufficient evidence, and taking them to an administrative proceeding would be a waste of time and resources.

If you receive an investigation notice from LATC, you have a case to answer, and the agency’s investigators are gathering evidence against you. The appropriate action to take in these circumstances is to speak to an attorney because you risk withdrawal or revocation. An attorney will ensure you take the necessary actions to save the permit.

LATC Investigations

When the board feels you have a case to answer, they begin investigations, which can last for months and, in exceptional cases, years. After the inquiry, the board can issue you a citation, reprimand letter, or impose hefty fines. Alternatively, they can choose to lodge formal accusations against you. Any decisions made after investigations will be posted on the LATC website for public access. Your clients in San Luis Obispo will view the agency’s decision, significantly hurting your reputation and capacity to attract new customers.

In the investigation period, LACT can place your permit on a temporary suspension to prevent you from offering services until a decision is made on your accusations. With an investigation going on for years, you will experience financial difficulties if your license is temporarily suspended for this long. Therefore, if you do not want to wait months without offering your services, talk to an attorney to convince the board to overturn the interim suspension and allow you to earn a living while being investigated.

Additionally, an attorney will come in handy by offering advice on your approach to the case. Your legal representative can recommend settling the case before the administrative hearing based on the circumstances. The attorney will also help close the case early by crafting solid defense strategies for a fair outcome if the board pursues formal accusations.

In the hearing, the LATC’s investigator will present the facts against you and any aggravating circumstances. Your attorney will also be accorded an equal opportunity to present their evidence and mitigating factors to counter the licensing agency’s assertions.

The punishment the ALJ recommends to the board depends on the aggravating and mitigating circumstances. So, your attorney should investigate the circumstances surrounding your case to find mitigating circumstances that will compel the ALJ to impose a lenient disciplinary action. Factors the ALJ takes into account to determine your sentence are:

  • Whether the victim of your professional misconduct or error suffered financial or bodily harm
  • The gravity of the damage stemming from your violation
  • The time that has elapsed from your last breach
  • The number of accusations against you
  • The rehabilitative measures taken to fix the issues leading to the breach of LATC’s regulations.

The ALJ’s decision is not final; the board must review it and adopt or reject it. If they accept the decision, it becomes final. However, if they disagree, they will issue their decision and disregard the judge’s recommendations even if they were in your favor.

Contesting Formal Accusations

If LATC prefers formal allegations against you, your license is threatened. The wisest move under the circumstances is to contact an experienced license lawyer like the San Luis Obispo License Attorney. Our attorneys will review the allegations and file a defense notice right away. A late response to the claims could be declined, denying you the right to contest the accusation.

As a landscaper, you should know that some breaches of the law will lead to criminal charges on top of the administrative hearing. After the board receives your answer, their investigators will share the proof they have to support the accusation. When your attorney accesses the evidence, they will analyze it and find weaknesses or inconsistencies that will help them develop solid defenses to fight the accusation and save your license.

The defenses devised will come in handy in the preceding presided over by the ALJ. Your attorney will use them to convince the judge to dismiss the case or reduce the penalties when disciplinary action is imminent.

Once the ALJ hears all the involved parties, they will write their recommendations based on the facts presented. The recommendations are then sent to LATC for approval.

If the court approves a decision to suspend or withdraw your license, you can stay the decision and have the board impose license probation. The benefit of probation over a cancellation or withdrawal is that you can continue practicing, although under strict probationary conditions. The right attorney will further negotiate for more lenient terms and a short probationary period to lower the chances of violating the conditions, which could result in an actual license withdrawal or cancellation.

The role of your license attorney does not end when LATC revokes your license. The attorney will help you file a request to the board to reinstate the permit after suspension or cancellation after the lapse of the prescribed duration.

Another role of an attorney in your case is to help you after the board has rejected your license application. Most license applications fail because applicants do not meet the prescribed requirements. An attorney will help you satisfy these requirements and file the forms to secure approval.

Do not let the prolonged investigations by LATC make you lose hope and fail to fight for your license. An investigation does not automatically lead to formal allegations, a formal allegation to an administrative proceeding, or a hearing for a license suspension. Also, even if the board takes disciplinary measures, it does not always mean losing your permit. Even if the license is revoked, you can still have it reinstated. An experienced attorney can permanently terminate the process at any stage, and if you lose the permit through a suspension or cancellation, you can always appeal the decision.

Challenging Citations

A citation or fine seems more favorable than a suspension or revocation. However, you should know that it will remain in your record, and when you face a subsequent allegation, it will be used as an aggravating factor, leading to harsher consequences.

Thankfully, an experienced defense attorney can help deter or clear the citation from your criminal history.

Find a Competent Landscape Architect Defense Attorney Near Me

When looking for someone to defend your landscape architect license, you need an attorney who understands the details of your career, license approval process, license defense in the administrative hearing, and reinstatement after cancellation. At San Luis Obispo License Attorney, we have experience handling cases involving landscape architect permits. Call us at 805-465-2766 to start the process of defending your profession and income.