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Answering a Michigan Board of Psychology complaint: your response and options

5 min read · Updated July 2026

How you answer a Michigan Board of Psychology complaint can decide the outcome — and in Michigan, one deadline matters above all others: a failure to respond within 30 days is treated as an admission of the allegations. This guide explains how to answer the complaint, why that deadline is so important, the options open to you, the sanctions the Disciplinary Subcommittee can impose, and how to build the strongest possible response.

What does answering the complaint involve?

When the department issues an administrative complaint, it sets out the allegations and the section of the Public Health Code said to have been violated. Your task is to file a written response that addresses each allegation — factually, professionally, and anchored in your contemporaneous records rather than in argument or emotion.

This response is not a formality. It frames the department's view of the case, shapes any settlement discussion, and becomes part of the record. It should be prepared with counsel, not sent off quickly to “clear things up.”

Why the 30-day written response is critical

Michigan law is unforgiving on timing. You have 30 days from receipt of the administrative complaint to respond — and you are deemed to receive it three days after it is mailed, so the clock may already be running when it reaches you. Under MCL 333.16231, a failure to respond within that period is treated as an admission of the allegations.

That makes the deadline the most consequential moment in the entire process. Missing it can hand the Disciplinary Subcommittee the basis to impose a sanction without a hearing at all. Calendar it immediately and treat it as immovable.

What are your options after the complaint?

Once you have responded, three broad paths are open. You can contest the allegations, setting out the facts and any defence. You can seek to resolve the matter at a compliance conference, negotiating a settlement acceptable to both you and the department. Or, if no settlement is reached, you can take the case to a hearing before an administrative law judge.

These are not mutually exclusive: many cases begin with a written response, move to a compliance conference, and settle there — with a hearing held only if agreement proves impossible. Which path serves you best is a legal judgement to make with counsel.

The compliance conference: negotiating a settlement

The compliance conference is where most contested Michigan cases are resolved. It is a negotiation, usually attended by you, your attorney, and a member of the department's staff, with the goal of reaching a settlement before a hearing. A board member who is not on the Disciplinary Subcommittee may attend to assist.

Any agreement is written up as a settlement or a stipulation and final order and sent to the Disciplinary Subcommittee for approval — the DSC must approve it before it binds you. A negotiated settlement gives you a measure of control over the outcome that a contested hearing does not.

What happens at an administrative hearing?

If the case is not settled, it proceeds to a contested-case hearing before an administrative law judge under Michigan's Administrative Procedures Act. Both the department and you present evidence and argument, and the ALJ prepares a proposal for decision.

The Disciplinary Subcommittee then makes the final determination and imposes any sanction. A final decision of the DSC may be appealed by right to the Michigan Court of Appeals — a distinctive feature of the state's health-discipline system.

What sanctions can the Disciplinary Subcommittee impose?

The sanctions available under MCL 333.16226 include a reprimand, a fine (which the Code caps at up to $250,000 for the most serious general-duty violations), probation, limitation of the license, suspension, revocation, and restitution. The subcommittee may also require a licensee to complete an educational, training, or treatment program or a competence examination.

The subcommittee weighs the nature of the violation, any patient harm, prior history, and evidence of insight and remediation in setting the sanction — and a reprimand or probation is a very different outcome from suspension or revocation.

How do you build the strongest response?

The strongest response combines timeliness, professionalism, and a genuine mitigation record. Meet the 30-day deadline, respond factually and with counsel, and be able to evidence insight, reflection and remediation — a candid account of what went wrong, corrective changes to your practice, and targeted education in the area of concern, whether that is boundaries, confidentiality, informed consent, or general ethics.

Because Michigan settlements frequently include a requirement to complete education, arriving at the compliance conference with that work already underway is especially persuasive — it can move a case toward a lighter outcome.

This article is general information for psychologists, not legal advice. Regulatory processes change and every case turns on its own facts — confirm current requirements with the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, the Board of Psychology, and your own attorney before acting.