Malicious fitness to practise allegations

In the second of two NMC interim order hearings this week, I represented a nurse facing allegations of misconduct.

The nurse was alleged to have engaged in an inappropriate relationship in breach of professional boundaries. On one view it could be argued that the allegations were being made maliciously.

Where such allegations are made, it can be very difficult to prevent a panel from imposing interim restriction. In this case, the NMC were asking for an 18 month interim suspension order.

The case was a complex one and required a great deal of pre-hearing preparation, in a short space of time. Typically, a registrant will only receive 7 days’ notice of an interim order hearing.

The panel were given the documents on which the NMC relied, and our bundle of 20-odd pages, and then they heard oral submissions from the NMC case presenter and from me.

Although registrants have the right to give oral evidence in interim order hearings, it is rarely advisable. There is too great a risk of a registrant saying something that is harmful to their case, and that will cause them difficulty later on in the process.

On reviewing the respective documents and hearing the parties’ submissions, the panel deliberated and finally announced their decision - no interim order necessary!

Even where malicious allegations are being made, and in our experience this happens often, a carefully constructed strategy can defeat an interim order application, and result in a positive outcome.

Constructing such strategy requires tactical awareness and experience - fortunately, we have both!