Liable Charges: Civil Penalties

“(a) When the Office receives a complaint of unauthorized practice, the Director shall refer the complaint to Office investigators and prosecutors.

(b)(1) A person practicing a regulated profession without authority or an employer permitting such practice may, upon the complaint of the Attorney General or a State’s Attorney or an attorney assigned by the Office of Professional Regulation, be enjoined therefrom by the Superior Court where the violation occurred or the Washington County Superior Court and may be assessed a civil penalty of not more than $5,000.00.

(2)(A) The Attorney General or an attorney assigned by the Office of Professional Regulation may elect to bring an action seeking only a civil penalty of not more than $2,500.00 for practicing or permitting the practice of a regulated profession without authority before the board having regulatory authority over the profession or before an administrative law officer.

  (B) Hearings shall be conducted in the same manner as disciplinary hearings.

(3)(A) A civil penalty imposed by a board or administrative law officer under this subsection (b) shall be deposited in the Professional Regulatory Fee Fund established in section 124 of this chapter for the purpose of providing education and training for board members and advisor appointees.

  (B) The Director shall detail in the annual report receipts and expenses from these civil penalties.

(c) In addition to other provisions of law, unauthorized practice shall be punishable by a fine of not more than $5,000.00 or imprisonment for not more than one year, or both. Prosecution may occur upon the complaint of the Attorney General or a State’s Attorney or an attorney assigned by the Office of Professional Regulation under this section and shall not act as a bar to civil or administrative proceedings involving the same conduct.”

—3 VSA § 127