If you are a certified public accountant in California and have recently become the target of a statement or complaint of issues, it would be in your best interests to take action right away and retain the services of a seasoned professional license defense lawyer. The California Board of Accountancy under the Department of Consumer Affairs takes complaints from customers and information about criminal accusations or convictions involving its license holders very seriously. They can take disciplinary measures such as suspending or revoking a professional license.
We at Monterey License Attorney have extensive experience dealing with the California Board of Accountancy. We have helped Certified Public Accountants protect their professions and licenses in the past, and we are available to help you do the same. Contact our professional license defense attorneys in Monterey, CA, for more information or to schedule a free consultation.
The Important Roles California Certified Public Accountants Play
Most California companies know they would be wise to hire an accounting professional to take care of their taxes, budget, and records, among other financial information to keep their "financial status" in order.
Certified public accountants (CPAs) are indispensable to enterprises of every kind and size, as they ensure their constant compliance with the relevant laws and regulations, financial transparency, and the ability to make strategic business decisions that boost profits and expand customer bases.
Even though you went through several years of training and education as well as a time-consuming, expensive licensing procedure to get to where you're at today, the sad truth is that losing your Certified Public Accountant license is easier than acquiring one.
A lot of accountants are charged with a wide range of financial offenses, including money laundering, fraud, and embezzlement. Many people are quick to jump to the conclusion that the company's accountant is responsible because the nature of their job requires them to have constant contact with the financial operations.
Sometimes, a CPA's professional license can be put in jeopardy because of an innocent mistake that was committed without any malice whatsoever. Another scenario, for instance, happens when an unhappy business owner blames their CPA for their problems by claiming that the accountant was careless or incompetent.
At Monterey License Attorney, we recognize and value the functions that Certified Public Accountants in our state play. We are also aware that the very structure of their job puts both their professional license as well as their career in jeopardy regularly.
A defense attorney is not here to pass judgment on your past actions, since we are well aware that a lot of allegations made against certified public accountants are either false or wildly exaggerated. It doesn't matter what kind of complaint has been filed against you or what kind of disciplinary actions have been threatened; we're here to fight for you and your professional license and get you the most favorable result.
The California Board of Accountancy's Mission
There are four different licenses issued by the California Board of Accountancy; certified public accountant, accounting partnership, accounting corporation, and accounting firm. The first one is awarded to individuals, while the other three are awarded to businesses.
The board's goals revolve around ensuring the safety of the general public. They are not put in place for the benefit of accountants and accounting firms; rather, they exist to safeguard the public from financial losses and to maintain the highest levels of competence in the field.
To achieve this objective, the Board of Accountancy limits the issuance of professional accounting licenses to individuals that they consider to be capable and who are most likely to act in the interest of the general public.
Additionally, they keep a close eye on the sector to make sure that all firms and accounting professionals abide by the Business and Professions Code, the state's Accountancy Act, the Board of Accountancy's rules, and other relevant statutes and regulations.
The board also receives written grievances, and they are constantly on the lookout for licensed accountants who are being investigated for a crime or who have a history of crimes that have not been disclosed to them.
The Board can utilize any of the following disciplinary measures to ensure compliance with its standards:
- Refusing to issue a new accounting license.
- Send out a citation with an administrative fine attached.
- Send out a public reprimand letter.
- Let the license revocation and license-probation stays stand.
- Revoke or suspend a license.
- Bring criminal or civil charges along with the board discipline.
The following are some examples of actions that may result in disciplinary measures from the board:
- Practicing accountancy without a valid license or beyond one's license scope.
- A lack of professionalism when practicing.
- Accounting errors, whether they be the result of incompetence, ordinary negligence, or gross negligence on the part of the accountant.
- Fiduciary duty violation.
- Going against the practices of accounting that are generally accepted in the industry.
- Forgery, fraud, embezzlement, fund misappropriation, and other comparable "white collar" offenses.
- Facing discipline by a licensing board from another state or another state agency.
- Helping to commit tax evasion.
- Possessing a conviction for a crime on your file that is "significantly associated with" your responsibilities as a certified public accountant or your qualifications.
Do not underestimate the seriousness of a complaint that has been lodged against you. Although a lot of complaints are swiftly discounted as "unsubstantiated," you can never be sure of the board's ultimate decision. If the board decides to officially charge you of wrongdoing, that information will be made available to anyone who searches for it online, including future employers and clients.
It is in your best interest to take prompt action after you have been served with an Investigation notice or even if you have an overwhelming belief that another individual is bringing an allegation against you. The likelihood of getting a favorable result is increased with the faster you act.
How Being Charged With a Crime Might Have an Impact on Your Accountancy License
It is not uncommon for California Certified Public Accountants and other professionals in the accounting field to face criminal charges at a certain point in their careers. It is not unheard of for law enforcement agencies, when working with the Board and Office of the Attorney General, to carry out an undercover "sting" operation to gather evidence.
In addition to the possibility of being sentenced in a criminal court, CPAs who are facing criminal allegations could be subject to further disciplinary actions taken by the accountancy board.
The Board of Accountancy takes a wide viewpoint on what constitutes "significantly related," but its rule is that any felony or misdemeanor has to be significantly associated with your accountancy profession to be considered "significantly related." Crimes that might or would be deemed to be significantly related include:
- DUID or DUI.
- Possession of a drug with the purpose of selling.
- Simple drug possession.
- Tax evasion.
- All fraud offenses.
- Sexual assault or domestic violence.
- Failure to disclose important information.
There are even more examples, this list is not exhaustive. Even though there could be no way to keep your license when you are faced with allegations of this nature, the reality is that quite a lot of people are still able to maintain their privileges regardless of the accusations made against them. We at Monterey License Attorney, are prepared to respond and safeguard your license if you are the target of a criminal investigation.
What Happens Between a Formal Complaint and a Final Ruling
As was mentioned previously, complaints are lodged for many different reasons and can originate from any number of different sources. Numerous allegations are likely to be dismissed early due to a lack of supporting evidence. Investigations into others will last for months.
It takes about 5 months, on average, from the time a complaint is lodged against a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) until the decision is made regarding that person's case after the complaint has been resolved. However, on occasion, it might take a lot more time.
If you've been given a temporary suspension as a result, your attorney should make it their top priority to immediately work toward having that overruled to ensure you can keep up your practice while the investigation is being conducted.
Your attorney has a good chance of getting the complaint dropped if they challenge it head-on and do so at an early stage. This will allow them to prevent any unfavorable publicity regarding your practice. Alternatively, your attorney can negotiate a favorable agreed-upon settlement for you, which would allow you to keep your license.
If the board believes that there is sufficient evidence to support an accusation, they'll submit a formal complaint that will be accessible to customers on the board's public website. At this point, your legal counsel will be granted the opportunity and the right to respond. Again, a lot of these cases result in a case dismissal or a favorable outcome.
However, some cases continue to the formal administrative proceedings. In this case, your defense attorney will work diligently to advocate for you throughout the hearing. They will be given the chance to contest the prosecution's evidence and also present a defense and mitigating evidence
An administrative law judge who will preside over the proceedings will listen to evidence of aggravating factors presented by the prosecution as well as evidence of mitigating factors presented by your attorney. Some instances of aggravating elements that could make professional discipline more severe include:
- That there was a deliberate intent to break the law.
- That a customer or a client suffered monetary loss as a result of the violation.
- The license holder has previously been subject to professional discipline, particularly if it was for a similar offense.
- That license holder was aware that someone else could have been seriously harmed as a consequence of their actions, particularly when the other individual belonged to a "highly vulnerable" class.
- The monetary loss was high.
- That the license holder reaped some sort of financial benefit from the violation.
- The license holder had violated their "fiduciary duties" by either misappropriating funds or otherwise acting irresponsibly with the funds that they were entrusted with.
- This individual has breached the terms of their license probation due to a previous offense.
- The accountant who is the subject of the investigation failed to work cooperatively with the investigators or board appointed to look into the matter.
The following are a couple of mitigating circumstances that could result in a reduced sentence if a case dismissal can't be obtained:
- No consumer, client, or member of the public suffered harm.
- The offenses were either unintentional or executed under high pressure.
- The potential for harm, while present, was not particularly severe.
- The license holder either did not profit financially from this violation, only slightly profited, or had no intention of doing so.
- There were no major fiduciary responsibilities violations.
- Proof of rehabilitation.
- During the entirety of the investigation, the licensee worked cooperatively with the investigators and board.
- The licensee had already voluntarily made the necessary reparations.
- Remorse from the license holder.
- After a considerable time has elapsed since the offense occurred, there has not been another instance of that violation or one that is substantially similar to it.
- The licensee had a lesser percentage of responsibility in comparison to the other people who participated in that incident or scheme.
We are familiar with the strategies necessary to refute allegations in their entirety whenever this is feasible, as well as the tactics necessary for negotiating for the Board's Disciplinary Guidelines' minimum punishments.
And lastly, we can help you petition for the reinstatement of the professional license, even if it is currently revoked, as well as help you in obtaining a previously denied application for a license finally approved.
Find a Monterey Professional License Defense Attorney
At Monterey License Attorney, we are always just a phone call away, ready to provide you with the most effective professional license defense services. Our team of skilled CPA license defense attorneys in Monterey, CA, has a proven track record of obtaining the best result in all types of professional license defense situations and we are prepared to defend you too. Call us today at 831-296-1191.
