Administrative Law Practice

Businesses and licensed professionals of all kinds are affected daily by an ever-changing scheme of regulation, licensing, inspections, and permitting by governmental agencies at the federal, state, county, and municipal levels. The MLG Administrative Law Practice Group assists licensed professionals and licensed businesses in addressing the traditional federal and state regulatory “bumps in the road” in the course of daily business, as well as defending their most precious commodity - their license - the ability to practice their profession. The Practice Group also houses the ability to apply for a variety of licensed or certified professions within the state of Florida. Be it license defense, complying with regulations, or beginning a new business under a professional license, the Maldonado Law Group stands ready to assist your administrative law needs. The Administrative Law Practice Group is prepared to assist you in addressing various administrative law needs and accepts referrals from other law firms that may have a client with a civil liability issue who also has a related professional license issue.

THE ADMIN LAW LICENSE DEFENSE:
If you work in any profession or career field that requires a license, whether included above or not, maintaining that license requires that you adhere to a series of conduct guidelines, conversely, there is also usually a series of acts that are on a list of “violations.” Too often, a simple complaint by a disgruntled client or consumer will trigger an administrative process that will automatically include:

• A review of the allegations by a probable cause panel to determine if probable cause exists for a formal investigation.

• An investigation as to the details, witnesses and progress of which will not be known to you until the agency is ready to make a determination of guilt or innocence.

• A determination of violation, and issuance of a charging document informing you of your violations, whether you believe you committed them or not. Those determinations can carry significant fines, suspension of your professional license for various periods of time, restitution of alleged harm and or damage to your clients, or complete, permanent revocation of your license, which can also bar your obtaining that same license again in any other state.

• After you receive the agency’s determinations regarding your guilt and penalties, you will then usually have the option of choosing an informal hearing to explain your position, or a formal, trial-like formal hearing with evidence gathering and the issuance subpoenas and a determination by an administrative law judge, or “hearing officer,” which in most cases results in a “recommendation” to the agency that brought the charges, which can be followed or rejected by he agency.

• If it is rejected, you will have to appeal the agency’s final decision and order to a civil court at the circuit or appellate level. If you fail to overturn the agency decision at your first level of appeal you can continue up the appellate ladder until you succeed, or the courts refuse to hear the matter further.

Each level of appeal of an agency decision becomes both exponentially more costly, as well as more difficult to prevail. Courts are resistant to overturning the wide discretion of the government agencies. The Administrative Law Practice Group is geared to seek the wiser and more expedient solution, which is to resolve the problem as early in the process as possible, or go the distance if necessary.

Zoning and Land Use Practice Group

Land development of South Florida has changed dramatically over the past ten years. Land once undeveloped agricultural or everglades now situates homes, business and municipal infrastructure, and similarly, neighborhoods once in economic decline are now seeing re-vitalization. However, state and local authorities must balance this increased development with environmental, regulation, and population growth concerns. The constant push in South Florida to develop, or re-develop, has placed zoning and land use issues at the forefront of concern for not only real estate developers, but also ordinary businesses and landowners alike.

The newest of the MLG practice groups is the Zoning and Land-Use Practice Group. The Practice Group’s focus is simple: Work with clients and municipal government alike to resolved expediently the clients zoning and land use needs balanced with local government’s policy objectives and mandates. The Practice Group’s services include the representation of developers, businesses and Home Owners in the following areas:

• Administrative Zoning Variances
• Condo Conversion Zoning Variances
• Abatement of Municipal and County Violations
• Petitioning of Zoning Variances for Industrial and Business Facilities
• County and Municipal Zoning Decision Appeals
• Business Planning of Zoning Variances for Developers
• Representation and Presentations at Hearings before Municipal Councils and County Boards

To assist in all these services, the Practice Group maintains relationships with various architects and engineers that are utilized, if and when necessary, to accomplish the client’s zoning or land use goals.