Looking for some insight and direction

[Brandonc]

Looking for some insight and direction Can I take legal action?

I am currently a resident in Nevada. in Dec 2009 I posted an ad on Craig's list in ; Portland Oregon * Clark/Cowlitz WA , targeting the Vancouver Washington Area for an advertisement for a massage therapist that wanted an ad placed. within about a week of posting the ad myself and the therapist received an email from the Board of Massage Therapy of Oregon advising that the posting must be taken down as the advert is for practicing in the state of OR without a license.

However in this case since Craig's list is geographically targeted where I posted the ad ( ; Portland Oregon * Clark/Cowlitz WA ) falls under the area as to where Vancouver WA is located. The ad itself addressed Vancouver WA and stated nothing in reference to Portland Oregon.

In march 2010 I received legal documentation that the Oregon Board of Massage therapy had made a subpoena request for the information from Craig's list and has cited and charged me with civil penalties of $500 dollars for practicing massage therapy without a license in the state of Oregon.
I reponded to their citation in writing with no response. originally when the email came from when the post was made on craigslist that email was also responded to and still no reply from the state of Oregon.

They have sent me several notices advising me that they had not heard from me however I not only faxed my response to them I mailed a hard copy to them as well and still no response. Since my last legnthy letter to them in july 2010 I have since received billing invoices for civil penalties for the amount of $500 which i refuse to pay since I am not a practicing massage therapist nor was my advertisement for the state of Oregon. I was simply posting an advert for a third party targeting Vancouver Washington as stated previously.

As of about a week ago I have also received documtation from the practitioners data bank ( US Department of Health & Human Services) as a claim now has been filed with the US Department of Health & Human Services that I am a practitioner of massage therapy without a license.

I do not feel I should pay a fine of any sort since I have not broken any law. I do not practice any massage therapy or medical practice and the advertisement was solely intended for the Vancouver Washington area. I have sent the board screen shots in my responses showing them that the omitted (cowitz,WA from their documents as well as the advertisement stating no such reference to Oregon.

I am quite overwhelmed with the fact that I am now being accused of practicing massage therapy without a license as well as now my name being plastered in the US Department of Health & Human Services data base as a non licensed practitioner when I dont practice anything. and that the compliance individual from the Board of Massage therapy failed to read and understand what the advert was about. Not only have they wasted my time I am made out to be someone who has broken the law which is not the case. If i broke the law I'd pay the 500 dollars and would admit that I was practicing without a license but I dont even live in Oregon and have never been there.

I'd like to think that this would be somewhat considered discrimination or slander of some sort and being falsely accused of something I have not done. Please help.

 

[Dave1952]

So, you've been cited and charged with rubbing people the wrong way. The citation tells you when to appear and where to answer this charge. Since you are in Nevada you'll probably wish to hire an attorney go to court and tell your story.
Or did you blow off the court date?
Anyway, this is not defamation or slander.

Good luck

 

[Brandonc]

So, you've been cited and charged with rubbing people the wrong way. The citation tells you when to appear and where to answer this charge. Since you are in Nevada you'll probably wish to hire an attorney go to court and tell your story.
Or did you blow off the court date?
Anyway, this is not defamation or slander.

Good luck

no i have not been charged and there has not been a cort date. I posted an advert and was cited for practicing massage therapy without a license in the state of oregon when the advert was not posted in Oregon. Thank you for your comment however you wree no help as you did not read and made assumptions because i do not practice massage therapy and have never practiced massage therapy as stated in my posting.

 

[quincy]

Both Oregon and Washington have massage therapy licensing laws. Is the massage therapist for whom you placed the ad licensed as a massage therapist in Washington?

To obtain a massage therapy license in Washington, you must have 500 hours of education, pass an NCETMB or MBLEx exam, and maintain the license through 16 hours of education biennially. The licensing organization is the Washington State Department of Health - Massage Therapy Program. See .

To obtain a massage therapy license in Oregon, you must have 500 hours of education, pass an NCETMB or MBLEx exam and a practical exam, and maintain the license with 25 hours biennially and current CPR. The licensing organization is the Oregon Board of Massage. See [url=http://www.oregon.gov/OBMT/licensing.shtml[/url].

I think you would have been wise to have removed the ad when first notified by the Oregon Board of Therapy in 2009. I think you should have reviewed the ad for clarity, to see if it could legitmately be read as the Oregon Board of Therapy read it, and then revised the ad accordingly (if, in fact, the massage therapist is licensed in Washington - if not licensed, a revision would not have helped).

I think, based on what you have posted here, you (or the massage therapist for whom you submitted the ad) owe the $500.

I think neither you nor the massage therapist have a case for defamation, based strictly on the information you have provided here.

You can always consult with an attorney in your area, however, for a review of all of the facts.

 

[Dave1952]

The Oregon Board of Massage Therapists has a web site where one may read the minutes of their meetings. In those minutes they discuss cases by the case number and briefly discuss the ruling This board meets in public and you or your representative could have spoken at that time. The Board may impose fines up to $1000 without using the courts.
Do you know your case number? If there was a board ruling then your fine seems to be legal and you have been found by the Board to have practiced without a license. In that case there is no defamation in reporting the unlicensed practice.
Paying the fine is probably your cheapest recourse. You may hire some lawyer in Salem to pursue this matter for you but that will be expensive.

Good luck