LISA BONNY WEAVER, APPELLANT,
v.
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, BOARD OF NURSING, APPELLEE
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Lisa Bonny Weaver, a registered nurse, appeals the permanent revocation of her nursing license for statutory violations. The court affirmed, holding that administrative proceedings for license revocation do not implicate Sixth Amendment counsel rights, and therefore no ineffective assistance of counsel claim can be raised collaterally in such proceedings.
No ineffective assistance of counsel claim can be raised to challenge the revocation of a nursing license in administrative proceedings because no Sixth Amendment right to counsel exists in administrative proceedings involving the revocation of state-issued licenses. A party represented by counsel of their own choosing cannot collaterally challenge the effectiveness of that counsel.
[1] A Sixth Amendment right to counsel does not exist in administrative proceedings concerning the revocation of state-issued professional licenses.
[2] A party cannot collaterally challenge the effectiveness of counsel in administrative proceedings where there is no constitutional right to counsel.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“An ineffective assistance of counsel claim is premised on a violation of an individual's Sixth Amendment right to counsel.”
Establishes the constitutional foundation required for ineffective assistance claims.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceMs. Weaver, a registered nurse, had her nursing license permanently revoked by the Department of Health, Board of Nursing for violations of sections 4…
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Lisa Bonny Weaver, a registered nurse, appeals a final administrative order permanently revoking her nursing license for violations of sections 456.072(l)(c) and 464.018(l)(d)2., Florida Statutes (2015). We affirm.
On appeal, Ms. Weaver argues that her attorney failed to properly represent her by providing sufficient facts to the Department of Health, Board of Nursing, so that it could make an informed decision. Ms. Weaver’s dissatisfaction with her counsel and the quality of her representation is not a basis for reversal. An ineffective assistance of counsel claim is premised on a violation of an individual’s Sixth Amendment right to counsel. See, e.g., Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, *1284687, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984); Mullins v. Dep’t of Law Enf., 942 So.2d 998, 1000 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006). However, no Sixth Amendment right to counsel exists in the context of administrative proceedings involving the revocation of state-issued licenses. Mullins, 942 So.2d at 1000; see Santacroce v. State, Dep’t of Banking & Fin., 608 So.2d 134, 136 (Fla. 4th DCA 1992) (explaining that while agency cannot prevent person from obtaining and utilizing counsel in administrative proceedings, constitutional guarantee of right to counsel is not applicable to administrative proceedings involving revocation of licenses issued by state to those engaged in regulated businesses and professions); see also Slavin v. Comm’r, 932 F.2d 598, 601 (7th Cir. 1991) (recognizing “[t]here is no principle of effective assistance of counsel in civil cases”).
Because there is no right to counsel, there is no right to collaterally challenge the effectiveness of counsel. Accordingly, Ms. Weaver, who was represented by counsel of her own choosing, cannot now complain that the representation was inadequate as a means to challenge the permanent revocation of her nursing license. See Mullins, 942 So.2d at 1001 (concluding that officer had no right to collaterally challenge effectiveness of his counsel in revocation of his law enforcement license proceedings); Prieto v. Fla. Dep’t of Bus. & Prof'l Regs., 876 So.2d 633, 633-34 (Fla. 3d DCA 2004) (rejecting ineffective assistance claim brought by real estate appraiser to challenge agency’s suspension of his license).
AFFIRMED.
ORFINGER and BERGER, JJ., and JACOBUS, B.W., Senior Judge, concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (U.S. 1984)
- Santacroce v. State, 608 So. 2d 134 (Fla. 4th DCA 1992)
- Hamdy v. Yahya Kiwan, 942 So. 2d 998 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006)
- Mullins v. Dep't OF LAW Enf't, 942 So. 2d 998 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006)
- Prieto v. Fla. Dep't of Bus. & Prof'l Regulations, 876 So. 2d 633 (Fla. 3d DCA 2004)
- Slavin v. Commissioner OF Internal Revenue, 932 F.2d 598 (7th Cir. 1991)