Busy, busy me.
At the moment, I have 19 active cases in front of the NMC and HCPC, with another 2 or 3 in the process of signing up. This is about my usual caseload, give or take 5 cases.
14 of them are NMC matters, the other 5 are HCPC referrals.
Those current cases range from a restoration application where the applicant was struck off because of benefit fraud, to a registration appeal where revalidation was refused due to an ongoing criminal allegation, to an imminent panel hearing for alleged falsification of an ESA Medical Report form.
Looking through them now it is noticeable, firstly, the number of them that involve allegations of dishonesty, and secondly, just how many of them involve criminal allegations and ongoing investigations or court cases.
It may be that those are the sort of cases, where it is clear to registrants themselves that they are out of their depth when they try to go it alone. Or maybe I gravitate towards the seemingly more difficult cases.
In each of my cases, I am using different tactics. In some, all out attack on the regulator's case. In others, full admissions as to impairment. In yet others, a mix of admissions and challenge to the allegations made, at different stages in proceedings. There are infinite subtleties in the defence of fitness to practice proceedings. Sometimes I need to be involved in the internal disciplinary proceedings, to prevent threatened fitness to practice referrals being made in the first place. I rely on my experience and my defensive and offensive instincts, as well as research and constant continuing development to guide me as to the right course in each case.
Each referral is different, but in every one my goal is the same - to get the best possible result for my client. It's very rare (but irksome nonetheless) that I finish a matter thinking that a much better result could realistically have been achieved. In each one of my 19 cases, I expect to come away with a good result. If you are a registrant reading this, I imagine you are probably thinking the opposite. So, get in touch and let's see what we can do.
