Simas & Associates, Ltd. founder and owner, Steven L. Simas will be speaking at the Criminal Defense Section of the San Luis Obispo County Bar Association on June 12, 2013. The topic of his presentation will be “The Intersection of Criminal and Administrative Law.” The speaking event is the Monthly Read more…
The California Department of Real Estate (“DRE”) is in the process of adopting proposed regulations Section 2907.1, 2907.2, 2907.3, and 2907.4 within Chapter 6, Title 10 of the California Code of Regulations. The proposed sections relate to the issuance of citations and the associated fines to real estate licensees in Read more…
Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution, in which disputes are submitted to a neutral arbitrator(s) based on prior agreement between the parties, rather than resolved through litigation. The point and goal of arbitration is to secure an efficient, less formal and less costly method for resolving disputes (compared Read more…
Labor law enforcement under the first two years of Governor Jerry Brown’s term has netted an unprecedented and staggering level of damages, penalties, and fines in the State of California. According to the key findings of the report, “State of the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement”: Minimum wage – over $3 million unpaid Read more…
Section 14 of the Industrial Welfare Commission Wage Order 7-2001 for the mercantile industry states that “[a]ll working employees shall be provided with suitable seats when the nature of the work reasonably permits the use of seats.” Although this wage order has rarely been used, as of late there has Read more…
Many clients and potential clients of the law firm inquire about the impact expunging a criminal conviction will have on potential license discipline. The answer is that the expungement, while not a cure-all, is an excellent piece of evidence of rehabilitation that must be considered by the administrative law judge Read more…
Steven L. Simas, owner and founder of Simas & Associates, Ltd., is yet again hosting another Health Care workshop in Sacramento, California. The topic is the always important “Medical Records as a Defense to Your License to Practice”. The workshop will examine the California Medical Board’s standards for recordkeeping and Read more…
The Administrative Procedure Act (APA), which governs license discipline for almost all California licensing agencies, requires that the Licensee-Respondent file a Notice of Defense, which is equivalent to an answer, within 15 days after service of the Accusation. (Please note that Code of Civil Procedure section 1013 more than likely applies to the Read more…
California’s Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA), the department supervising almost all professional licensing agencies, boards, and bureaus throughout the state of California, has eliminated a number of renewal requirements for active duty military and their spouses/domestic partners. Most notable is the elimination of any fees associated with license renewal. The Read more…
Agriculture is a major industry for the Golden State. With 88,000 farms and ranches, California agriculture is nearly a $36.6 billion dollar industry that generates at least $100 billion in related economic activity. In 1919, the California Legislature created a single department responsible for protecting and promoting agriculture. The California Read more…