If you're here, it's because you're looking for answers, so let's not beat around the bush. Someone has made a complaint against you, and at this point, that complaint may already have reached the Indiana Attorney General's office. Now, you need to know exactly what to expect from the investigative and adjudicative processes. We'll get to all of that.
You're probably also looking for help, though. You've been at this long enough to know just how complex Indiana's Professional Licensing Agency (PLA) procedures can be. You know better than to try to take the system on all on your own, and you're looking for someone with a background in professional licensing law, familiarity with the Indiana licensing system, and experience representing professionals. You've come to the right place.
The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team was established to help professionals get the fair treatment they deserve. We've helped hundreds of professionals, including CPAs, defend their rights and their reputations. We know the law and how to use it to protect your license. We also know Indiana and how the PLA operates. And we're available to help clients from across the state, from Gary to Evansville, Indianapolis to South Bend.
All you need to do is call 888-535-3686. Or, if you prefer, use our online questionnaire to tell us a little about your case.
Just What Can Put Your CPA License at Risk?
In Indiana, CPAs are governed by the Accountancy Board, which is part of the larger Professional Licensing Agency. In fact, the Accountancy Board itself offers very little guidance for CPAs other than rules and procedures for obtaining and renewing a license. Instead, it is the PLA itself that creates the rules by which CPAs—and all other professionals in the state of Indiana—must abide.
There are basically ten prohibitions under state law. Violating any one of them can result in disciplinary action.
- Fraud and deception
- Conviction for a crime relating to the practice of accountancy or for a crime that does harm to the public
- Violating the law as it relates to accountancy
- Continuing to practice when you know you are unfit to do so
- Lewd or immoral conduct relating to the delivery of services to the public
- Allowing your name to be used by someone unqualified to practice accounting
- Disciplinary action taken against you in another state or jurisdiction
- Assisting someone else to violate these disciplinary prohibitions
- Allowing another person to use your license
- Failure to comply with a sanction issued for another disciplinary violation
The attorneys at the Lento Law Firm are equipped to handle any accusation you may be facing. We're familiar both with Indiana law and the Indiana licensing system, and we have experience defending clients from all types of charges relating to professional misconduct. Don't make the mistake of believing a charge may be minor or the sanction for it light. Any disciplinary action taken against you can have long-lasting consequences, and you cannot afford to try and handle the situation yourself. The law gives you the right to an attorney. Make the best possible use of it by hiring someone from the Lento Law Firm to represent you.
The Disciplinary Process for CPAs in Indiana
No matter what the specific complaint, the disciplinary process in Indiana is roughly the same in all cases.
- The process typically begins when someone lodges a complaint against you.
- The Indiana Attorney General's office conducts an investigation into the complaint.
- If the Attorney General's office decides the complaint has merit, it refers the case back to the Accountancy Board for a hearing.
- You have an opportunity to defend yourself before the Accountancy Board.
- The Board then renders a decision in the case and assigns a sanction as necessary.
Below, you'll find detailed information about each one of these steps.
Complaints
The first thing you should know is that misconduct complaints can come from almost anywhere. Most commonly, they're made by:
- Consumers
- Colleagues
- Supervisors
- Employees
- Professional Societies
- Law Enforcement Agencies
- Other Government Agencies
In addition, the PLA and the Accountancy Board have the power to accuse you of wrongdoing. Indiana has an active peer review process for CPAs, and many complaints arise from failed reviews.
A complaint is simply that, however: a complaint. You should take all complaints seriously, but often, there is an opportunity for your Lento Law Firm attorney to intervene in a case before it moves to the investigative phase. Many disputes can be resolved equitably through mediation and negotiation.
Investigations
Wherever the complaint originates, it is ultimately forwarded to the Indiana Attorney General's office. The Attorney General's office then conducts an investigation.
- Its first job is to determine whether or not a complaint is actionable and credible. The attorney general will not move forward on a complaint unless they have clear jurisdiction under the law.
- The attorney general then issues a Notice of the Charges. This Notice should provide you with details relating to the allegation and a list of your due process rights.
- You are then offered an opportunity to submit a statement of your position in the case.
- Next, investigators interview anyone connected to the case and collect any relevant physical evidence.
- Finally, the attorney general makes a decision as to whether there are sufficient grounds to refer the matter back to the Board of Accountancy for a hearing. If not, it closes the case.
You have a number of due process rights designed to protect you and to ensure that justice is done. For example, you are entitled to a presumption of innocence, to review all evidence in the case, and to be apprised of all meetings and proceedings.
Perhaps the most important of your rights is the right to legal representation. From the moment someone files a complaint, a Lento Law Firm attorney can begin protecting your rights. During the investigative phase of the case, for example, they
- Work with you to develop a defense strategy
- Help you draft your response to the charges
- Help you formulate answers to investigative questions
- Accompany you to any depositions or other investigative meetings
- Gather and submit evidence in support of your case
- Monitor the progress of the investigation
- Conduct negotiations with all parties on your behalf
Many missteps happen during the investigative phase of a case. Having a Lento Law Firm attorney at your side will help ensure that you don't do or say anything that could wind up harming your defense later.
Hearing
If the attorney general does not dismiss the case, they'll refer it back to the Accountancy Board for a full hearing. The Board itself can preside over this hearing, or it can appoint an administrative judge to do so. The attorney general prosecutes the case on behalf of the state.
Licensing hearings work much like trials you may have seen on television.
- You have the opportunity to review the state's evidence against you and prepare your defense.
- Your attorney may file motions relating to how the hearing will be conducted.
- Your attorney makes an opening statement, framing your defense.
- You have the opportunity to submit evidence and to call witnesses to testify.
- The prosecution makes its case as well, using evidence and witness testimony. Your attorney will cross-examine the state's witnesses and work to refute the state's evidence.
- Your attorney presents a final closing argument, driving home your central evidence.
- The administrative judge or the Board itself deliberates and renders a decision as to your guilt or innocence and determines sanctions as necessary.
Indiana state law makes no mention of an appeals process in PLA cases. However, at a minimum, you have the right to contest the outcome of the hearing through the Indiana court system.
Sanctions
Should the Board find you guilty, it has the power to assign sanctions. By state law, those sanctions can include
- License revocation
- License suspension
- Probation
- Censure
- Reprimand
- Fines up to $1,000 per offense
Obviously, if your license is revoked, it means the end of your career. Even a license suspension can put your practice in jeopardy since it means a disruption in your work and inconvenience to your clients. Keep in mind, though, that any sanction—even a reprimand—can have serious and long-term consequences. A public reprimand or a private reprimand that somehow becomes public sows doubt in the public's mind as to just how trustworthy you truly are. In simple terms, you absolutely must take every accusation against you and every proposed sanction seriously. Part of taking these things seriously is hiring the Lento Law Firm to manage your defense.
Why You Need Someone from the Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team
It's probably abundantly clear at this point why you need someone from the Lento Law Firm on your side if you're facing a license defense.
- Your career is at stake. You need your license to practice as a CPA. You need your reputation to find work and generate business. Every complaint is a threat, and you must take it seriously.
- A license defense can be enormously complex. The rules you're expected to follow as a CPA are a matter of law, and so are the processes of investigating and adjudicating misconduct cases. Defending yourself, then, requires an ability to interpret the law, to make fine distinctions about exactly what it does and doesn't say, and to apply interpretations of the law to specific circumstances. It requires a clear understanding of the judicial process and how to use it to your best advantage. You can't hope to handle all of this on your own. You need help from a professional. You need someone from the Lento Law Firm.
- The Indiana PLA and the Accountancy Board are not on your side. Ordinarily, you can count on the Accountancy Board to have your best interests at heart. The Board and, more generally, the PLA advocate on your behalf to the Indiana state legislature. They operate the licensing system and administer the state's CPA licensing exam. They also offer information and educational material for anyone looking to improve their business. If you've been accused of misconduct, though, it's the Board's job to investigate you and to hold you accountable for any mistakes you may have made. In the face of a situation like that, you need someone in your corner, someone fighting for your interests.
You need legal representation any time your professional credentials are in question. Be careful about choosing that representation, though. You don't want just any attorney. A local or family attorney, for example, won't have the knowledge, background, and experience to handle a professional license defense. They haven't devoted the time to studying the legal issues involved in license defenses, and they aren't familiar with the Indiana licensing system.
We have, and we are. The Lento Law Firm was built to handle professional license defenses. We've represented hundreds of clients and helped them respond to every conceivable type of complaint. There is simply no one better qualified to take your case than the attorneys at the Lento Law Firm.
What Can the Lento Law Firm Do for You?
The Lento Law Firm's Professional License Defense Team can help you defend yourself from any charges that might threaten your CPA license. Because we understand the Indiana state licensing system, we can help with other licensing as well.
- If you need help navigating the licensing system, we can walk you through the entire process.
- If you've been denied a license for any reason, we can work with you to challenge the Accountancy Board.
- If you've already been through a misconduct hearing and been issued a sanction, we can help you appeal that sanction.
- If you're moving from another state, we can guide you through the process of obtaining your Indiana license.
And we work with CPAs across the state, including in
- Indianapolis
- South Bend
- Bloomington
- Fort Wayne
- Evansville
- Terre Haute
- Lafayette
- Valparaiso
- Hammond
- Goshen
- Jasper
- Shelbyville
- Wabash
- Hobart
- East Chicago
To find out more about exactly what the Lento Law Firm can do for you, contact the Lento Law Firm today at 888-535-3686 or use our online form.
