Does your attorney stay current with Texas laws and rules?

You need to hire a lawyer for some assistance whether it be for a case before the Texas Board of Nursing/BON, or a family law matter, or a real estate issue, or a criminal matter, or whatever.  How do you make sure you find an attorney that is current on laws or rules?

 I have just concluded two days of continuing legal education for Texas Administrative Law (this is the area of law involving regulatory agencies such as the Texas Board of Nursing/BON).  What I found surprising were how many lawyers that advertise that they represent nurses were missing from the conference roster.  There are two big conferences per year and a few smaller conferences to keep administrative lawyers up to date on changes to the law. Those lawyers could be attending the other conferences, but there are some attorneys that I have never seen at a CLE for administrative law.  This is an important point for not only administrative /BON cases but with any legal issue you find yourself in--you need to make sure the lawyer you are considering hiring is current in the area of law you need help with.  Each area of law has continuing education to keep the lawyers current and knowledgeable and you need to know if the lawyer you are looking at hiring is current.  There is not a listing of what attorneys attend which conferences out there for the public to look over. So, how do you ensure your desired attorney is up to date on changes in the law?  I can think of two ways:

 1.  Ask the attorney to provide a list of the conferences they have attended in the last 1-2 years.  Then review the list to see if the area of law you are interested in hiring the attorney for makes up at least part of the courses they have taken.  Laws and rules are constantly changing so you want someone who knows what is changing in order to keep your interests safe.

2.  Check to see if the attorney is Board Certified in that particular area of law.  Texas attorneys are required to obtain 15 hours of CLE plus 3 hours of ethics every year.  However, I am Board Certified in Administrative Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and that means I have to obtain approximately 20 hours of CLE each year specific to Administrative Law because at the end of 5 years when it is time for recertification I have to show 100 hours of CLE specific to Administrative Law. This is the same requirement for any attorney who is Board Certified in a specific specialty.  There are several areas of Board Certification and you can find info at www.tbls.org.  

The requirements for continuing education is in addition to the specific knowledge an attorney has to show to become Board Certified in their specific area of practice.  So, if an attorney advertises that they are Board Certified you can be assured they are staying current in that area of law.

Every Nurse Needs Insurance!!

 I have posted before on why nurses should obtain malpractice insurance and the myths nurses are told that keeps them from protecting themselves.  Once again I have to present options to a client and because of the HUGE expense of fighting the BON, the nurse is unable to make the BON prove up the allegations with evidence.  Over and over, I shake my head with disgust that a nurse has to settle for discipline when the facts of the case do not support discipline.  Until nurses have the financial ability to fight the BON, the Board will continue to do what they want and continue to increase the level of discipline and to impose discipline when it is not warranted.  Please buy insurance and if you are not sure, read my earlier posts on exposing the myths.

Changes to Texas BON's Crminal Guidelines

I continue to hear from nurses (who have spoken with other attorneys in regards to criminal convictions) that are told they are going to receive disciplinary action or that they will have to obtain some type of evaluation; in many cases this is not true because the guidelines changed.  The Texas BON revised  their criminal guidelines in 2018 and some attorneys apparently have not kept up with the new regulations and policies.  What the Texas BON used to do in response to convictions before 2/2018 has changed and you need to be sure you are receiving current information.  Before agreeing to anything, be sure to speak to several attorneys that have experience with the BON (check Google or AVVO.com for information on attorneys and their experience).