Combining my clinical & ethical expertise creates a stronger defense for faster & better outcomes
Imagine what it would be worth to you to potentially avoid years of stress, lost income, and tens of thousands of dollars in expenses.
Peace of Mind. Saves Time and Money.
Protecting Your License. Strengthening Your Practice.
Confirming Suspicions. Strengthening Your Argument.
Sadly, most people do not understand the intersection of mental health codes of ethics and their state’s laws and rules regarding mental health treatment. This can lead some mental health treatment providers to behave in ways that result in client harm, even sometimes doing so unintentionally. Alternatively, many mental health treatment providers who have behaved ethically and legally find themselves facing board or litigation complaints, but are confused about how to defend themselves using mental health codes of ethics and their state’s laws and rules regarding mental health treatment. I can bridge both gaps.
Specialized expertise in board complaints, ethical dilemmas, and the laws and rules governing counseling practice for over 12 years. Independent review of ethical & legal issues and board complaint & litigation analysis for mental health treatment providers. Standard-of-care review for mental health treatment cases. Long-term mental health impact of developmental trauma and event trauma exposure, chronic pain, and workplace mistreatment cases. Expert testimony services.
Common Case Types
- Boundary issues
- Documentation deficiencies
- Improper diagnosis allegations
- Duty to warn issues
- Minor consent/confidentiality
- Telehealth complaints
- Supervision complaints
- Dual relationships
- Couple, Marriage, and Family complaints
- Insurance fraud allegations
- Scope of competence/practice issues
- Ethical and legal concerns
- Suicidality/risk assessment
Brief Listing of Areas of Expertise
- The Intersection of Codes of Ethics and US State-Specific Mental Health Codes
- American Counseling Association Code of Ethics
- American Mental Health Counselors Association Code of Ethics
- National Board for Certified Counselors Code of Ethics
- American School Counselor Association Code of Ethics
- US State-Specific Mental Health Codes
- Developmental trauma and event trauma long-term impact and treatment standards
- Chronic pain long-term impact and treatment standards
- Mental health long-term impact of workplace mistreatment
- Evidence-based counseling treatment standards
- Risk management
- Board complaints and litigation involving mental health issues
- Testimony experience
- I render my expert opinions independently and objectively, based on available records, applicable standards of care, and relevant ethical & US state-specific mental health code guidelines. I cannot guarantee outcomes or provide legal advice.
Services
Board Complaint and Litigation Consultation
- How to select an attorney
- Complaint response analysis
- Litigation response analysis
- Documentation review
- Risk exposure assessment
- Mitigation consultation
- Practice standards evaluation
- Deposition and investigative interview training
Expert Witness
- Standard of care review
- Ethical and legal code analysis
- Record review
- Rebuttal opinions
- Deposition testimony
- Trial testimony
Attorney Consultation
- Case merit analysis
- Cross-examination preparation
- Clinical terminology interpretation
- Diagnostic standard review
I got my letter and thought I could just call, talk to them, and get this misunderstanding sorted out. I was so naive. I had no idea that the person I was speaking with didn’t have a mental health counseling license, and everything that I sent and told them was ultimately going to be used against me. I can’t believe they even filed charges. I thought surely when I met with the board to discuss this issue, they would see that I had done nothing wrong. They didn’t believe me at all, even though I had an attorney helping me throughout the process, even before I replied to the letter. I had to go to an administrative law proceeding. At the first meeting, even the administrative law judge thought I was guilty. I hired Dr. Burns as my ethics consultant right before my absolute last administrative law court proceeding. My attorney and I clearly didn’t know what to say to prove I was innocent because we never got our message across at any time in the process up to that point. She did a deep dive into my case file and provided literal proof, through the ACA Code of Ethics and state law, that I was completely innocent. She was the one the administrative law judge listened to and cited continually in his final ruling that my case be completely dismissed. Thankfully, the board upheld that decision, and I totally won. I only wish I had hired her from the beginning. It’s taken 1.5 years and many thousands of dollars. If I had hired her and known how to prove my innocence from the start, I could have saved significant time and money beyond my insurance coverage limits. My only other recommendation is to maximize your State Licensing Board Defense Coverage. Having only the minimum protection was a costly mistake. – AM
Schedule a Confidential Consultation
Use the form below to contact me for an initial 25-minute consultation to discuss your situation for $74.99. If you have another need, please still use the form below to reach out.
