ALJDEC - Licensing
2024A-03521-CHC-ROC · Registrar of Contractors · 2024-07-01
IN THE OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
Andrew Mosier,
COMPLAINANT,
v.
Spectra Kitchen And Bath, LLC
License Nos. ROC 334702, 339939,
RESPONDENT.
No. 2024A-03521-CHC-ROC
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE DECISION
HEARING: Convened and concluded on June 10, 2024.
APPEARANCES:
For Complainant: Andrew Mosier and Janette Mosier.
For Respondent: No appearance.
For the Registrar: Investigator Gregory Johndrow.
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE: Samuel Fox
EXHIBITS ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE: Notice of Hearing packet provided by the Registrar of Contractors. Complainant Exhibits 1 through 5.
_____________________________________________________________________
FINDINGS OF FACT
Spectra Kitchen and Bath, LLC (Respondent) is the holder of Licenses Numbered 334702 and 339939, issued by the Arizona Registrar of Contractors (the Registrar).
On February 1, 2024, Andrew Mosier (Complainant) entered into a contract with Respondent for renovating Complainant’s kitchen, including among other things new cabinetry and flooring.
On March 25, 2024, Complainant filed a Licensed Complaint Form with the Registrar, claiming Respondent abandoned the project.
The Registrar assigned the complaint to Investigator Gregory Johndrow, who issued a Jobsite Inspection Notice on March 26, 2024, scheduling the inspection for June 26, 2024.
Investigator Johndrow testified that Respondent had been in communication with the Registrar, stating that Respondent would be voluntarily surrendering its license and filing for bankruptcy. The Registrar determined that all strict abandonment cases for Respondent should be expedited. On April 2, 2024, Investigator Johndrow confirmed with Complainant that this matter was strictly abandonment.
On April 3, 2024, the Registrar issued a Citation against Respondent, charging possible violations of A.R.S. § 32-1154(A)(1).
On April 16, 2024, Respondent submitted an Answer, admitting that no work had been done and saying that Respondent had ceased operations and would be filing for bankruptcy.
The Registrar referred the matter to the Office of Administrative Hearings, an independent state agency, for an evidentiary hearing.
On May 9, 2024, the Registrar issued a Notice of Hearing on Contested Case setting the hearing for 1:00 PM on June 10, 2024. The Registrar mailed the Notice of Hearing to Respondent at its address and email address of record.
A May 17, 2024 order from the Office of Administrative Hearings provided the parties the information necessary to connect to the hearing via Google Meet. The order was sent to Respondent at its email address of record.
The hearing was held via Google Meet on June 10, 2024.
Respondent did not request that the hearing be continued. Although the start of the hearing was delayed, Respondent did not appear through an authorized member, employee, or attorney. Consequently, Respondent did not present any evidence.
Complainant testified that Respondent did not perform any work as required under the contract and that there was no reason provided for the delay.
Complainant testified that Complainant entered a contract with Respondent to renovate their kitchen. Complainant paid twelve thousand five hundred dollars ($12,500), but Respondent did not do any work on the home. Complainant felt pressured into signing the contract and making a payment quickly. Shortly thereafter, Complainant saw on Yelp that Respondent was closing down.
Administrative notice was taken of Respondent’s prior License record on June 25, 2024. According to that record, Respondent’s License No. 334702 was first issued on September 2, 2021; it was revoked on May 23, 2024; and there were two open complaints and one resolved/settled complaint against Respondent’s license. According to that record, Respondent’s License No. 339939 was first issued on August 5, 2022; it was revoked on May 23, 2024; and there were no complaints against Respondent’s license.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
Respondent is deemed to have received the Notice of Hearing by methods reasonably calculated to effect notice. The Registrar mailed copies of the Notice of Hearing on Contested Case to its address and email address of record, and the Office of Administrative Hearings sent the order setting the hearing date to Respondent at its email address of record.
This matter lies within the Registrar’s jurisdiction.
Respondent’s revoked license does not deprive Complainant of his right to prosecute his complaint or prevent the Registrar from determining the merits of the complaint.
Complainant bears the burden of proof to establish Respondent’s statutory violations by a preponderance of the evidence.
“A preponderance of the evidence is such proof as convinces the trier of fact that the contention is more probably true than not.”
The evidence established that Respondent abandoned the project in violation of A.R.S. § 32-1154(A)(1).
RECOMMENDED ORDER
Based on the foregoing, it is recommended that on the effective date of the Order, the Registrar shall revoke Respondent’s Licenses Numbered 334702 and 339939.
It is further recommended that the Registrar require Respondent to pay the sum of $500.00 as a civil penalty pursuant to A.R.S. § 32-1154(E).
No future license shall be issued to any entity consisting of persons associated with Respondent, as defined in A.R.S. § 32-1101(A)(5), unless Respondent tenders payment of any outstanding prior civil penalty.
Pursuant to A.R.S. § 41-1092.08(I), the licensee may accept the Administrative Law Judge Decision by advising the Office of Administrative Hearings in writing not more than ten (10) days after receiving the decision. If the licensee accepts the Administrative Law Judge Decision, the decision shall be certified as the final decision by the Office of Administrative Hearings.
In the event of certification of the Administrative Law Judge Decision by the Director of the Office of Administrative Hearings, the effective date of the Order will be forty (40) days from the date of that certification.
Done this day, July 1, 2024.
/s/ Samuel Fox
Administrative Law Judge
Transmitted by either mail, e-mail, or facsimile to:
Tom Cole
Registrar of Contractors
c/o Legal Department
[email redacted]
Andrew Mosier
[email redacted]
Spectra Kitchen And Bath, LLC
[email redacted]
Gregory Johndrow
[email redacted]
By: OAH Staff