Within the last month, the Veterinary Medical Board (“Board”) elected to close two investigations into veterinarians Simas & Associates, Ltd. represented. In both cases the Board closed the investigation without so much as a letter of education, which is typically the least invasive form of discipline. In these two cases however, Read more…
Occasionally, licensees being investigated for potential violations of their respective practice acts are given advanced notice of the investigation by the licensing authority. When providing this notice, the investigating licensee agency may or may not be transparent regarding the nature of the investigation. Specifically, some licensing agencies are quite opaque; Read more…
On March 7, 2017, voters in the County of Sonoma were tasked with deciding whether to authorize the county to impose taxes on commercial marijuana operations in unincorporated areas of the County. Specifically, Measure A asked voters: Shall an ordinance be adopted imposing a cannabis business tax in unincorporated Sonoma Read more…
With the legalization of recreational marijuana on the near horizon, the legal topic du jour in administrative law is everything and anything about medical cannabis or recreational marijuana. As such, there are a lot of upcoming conferences attempting to address legal and practical questions about the burgeoning industry. Whether you Read more…
The California Medical Association, which represents about 43,000 of the state’s licensed physicians, is working with state Assemblywoman Anna Caballero, D-Salinas, on a new bill, Assembly Bill 505, which would bar the Medical Board of California from entering a settlement agreement placing on probation any physician who has committed "serious Read more…
California Supreme Court held today that the California Public Records Act (PRA) law provides the public with a right to emails and other communications, such as text messages, regarding government business written or received by public officials and employees, regardless of whether the communication was done using a private account Read more…
On April 20, 2017, Steven L. Simas, owner and founder of Simas & Associates, Ltd., will be serving as one of several presenters for Writs of Administrative Mandamus Demystified: A Step by Step Guide. This day-long seminar is being hosted by Pincus Professional Education. The seminar will be held at the Tsakopoulos Library Read more…
Current California law makes it legal for human patients and their designated primary caregivers to possess and cultivate marijuana for their personal medical use with the recommendation or approval of a California-licensed physician or surgeon. In addition, the recently passed Proposition 64 “Legalizes marijuana under state law, for use by Read more…
Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) Director Awet Kidane plans to resign from his position at the end of February 2017 to purse a new opportunity, he told state employees in a message this week. Kidane has led a department that oversees more than 40 professional licensing boards, including ones that regulate medical Read more…
10 years of discipline data from the Medical Board of California shows a relationship between race and professional license discipline outcomes, so reports the California Research Bureau. Having conducted the research at the behest of the Medical Board of California (Board), the Research Bureau looked at the discipline imposed by Read more…