Case library / Convictions, and the duty to report one
Two DUIs, five years of probation: the most common case in California
In short
Revocation stayed. Five years of probation
$2,201Sixty-two of 103 decisions cite §4982(a). This is what the typical one looks like.
This is the modal California MFT discipline case, and almost nobody expects it.
What happened
Two convictions for driving under the influence. The offenses were in August 2022 and May 2023; the convictions came in February and April 2024.
There was no client complaint, no clinical allegation, and nothing connected to the practice. The Board learned of both through the Department of Justice conviction notification feed.
Each conviction was charged as a separate cause for discipline.
What it was charged as
Conviction of a substantially related crime — one cause per conviction.
Use of alcohol in a manner dangerous to self, others or the public.
The outcome
Revocation stayed. Five years of probation.
OAH No. 2025010078
$2,201ordered in cost recovery under B&P §125.3What the rule actually says
This is the modal California MFT discipline case and almost nobody expects it. It arrives from the Department of Justice, not from a client. The disciplinary guidelines set the floor for a substantially related conviction at stayed revocation, 60 days of suspension and five years of probation, and the standard probation conditions include telling your clients and your employer that you are on probation.
Discussion
Analysis, not part of the decision
Sixty-two of the 103 decisions read for this library cite §4982(a), a substantially related conviction. Most of those are a DUI. If you want to know what discipline in California usually looks like, it looks like this: two convictions, no client complaint, no clinical allegation, nothing connected to the practice at all.
The route in is the part worth knowing. The Board learned of both convictions through the Department of Justice conviction notification feed under Penal Code §11105.2, which reports automatically. There is no discretion about whether the Board finds out and no complaint anyone could have withdrawn. Each conviction was charged as a separate cause.
The guidelines set the floor for a substantially related conviction at stayed revocation, 60 days of suspension and five years of probation — and the standard probation conditions include notifying your clients and your employer that you are on probation. For a solo practitioner, that condition is frequently the most consequential part of the entire order.
Where insurance reaches, and where it does not
Nothing. There is no claim, no claimant and no professional service involved, so the malpractice limit is irrelevant. Some programs will fund counsel for the administrative proceeding out of the board-defense sublimit; the $2,201 in cost recovery, the probation monitoring fees of roughly $1,200 a year, and five years of ordered treatment and reporting are all out of pocket.
What would have changed it
- Report the conviction to the Board within 30 days yourself. The reporting failure is a separate cause and it is the difference between two counts and three.
- Understand what probation actually involves before you decide whether to fight: quarterly reports, notification to clients, notification to employers, and coursework that cannot be counted toward your continuing education.
Questions
For a law and ethics seminar, or for yourself
- Trace the path from a Saturday-night arrest to an accusation. Who tells whom, and when is the licensee first obliged to act?
- The probation conditions require telling clients. What are the clinical implications of that disclosure, and how would you handle it?
- Why does the Board treat a DUI as substantially related to the practice of therapy? Construct the strongest argument on each side.
Source. This write-up is drawn from the signed public decision in the case number above. Names, cities and employers have been removed — why. To pull the original, open the Board's quarterly newsletter archive, find the issue covering May 15, 2025, and match the case number in the Formal Disciplinary Actions section. Not legal advice.
