Holloway v. Arkansas State Board of Architects

101 S.W.3d 805, 352 Ark. 427, 2003 Ark. LEXIS 164
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedApril 3, 2003
Docket02-1096
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 101 S.W.3d 805 (Holloway v. Arkansas State Board of Architects) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Holloway v. Arkansas State Board of Architects, 101 S.W.3d 805, 352 Ark. 427, 2003 Ark. LEXIS 164 (Ark. 2003).

Opinion

Tom Glaze, Justice.

We granted the' Arkansas State stice. petition for review in this appeal to resolve an apparent conflict between the court of appeals’ decision in this case and prior case law.

Appellant Robert Holloway is a licensed professional engineer. In 1999, Holloway prepared and filed plans for a pre-engineered metal building to be assembled for the Rosenbaum Industrial Supply Facility on Doyle Venable Road in North Little Rock. On September 21, 1999, Tim Yelvington, an architect, filed a complaint with the Arkansas State Board of Architects, alleging that Holloway, as a non-architect, had designed and stamped different aspects of the project. Acting on Yelvington’s complaint, the Board sent a letter to Holloway on November 10, 1999, notifying him of Yelvington’s complaint. Holloway responded to the Board’s letter, asserting that it was his understanding that his work on the facility was well within the realm of activity of engineering.

On March 1, 2000, the Board served an order and notice of hearing on Holloway, alleging that Holloway had practiced architecture without a license, in violation of Ark. Code Ann. § 17-15-301 (Repl. 2001). The Board conducted a hearing on May 11, 2000. At that hearing, the only witness to testify was John Harris, Director of the Board. Holloway did not appear, but his attorneys were present. The Board found that Holloway had practiced architecture without a license, and it imposed a fine of $5,000 pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. § 17-15-203(d)(4)(A)(i) (Repl. 2001).

Holloway filed a timely appeal to the Pulaski County Circuit Court, and reasserted the arguments he had raised before the Board. In that appeal, Holloway alleged first that the statutes defining the practice of architecture and the practice of engineering are void for vagueness and, as applied to him, the statutes violated his due-process rights. In addition, Holloway argued that the Board had failed to make necessary findings of fact, and that the civil penalty imposed upon him was arbitrary, capricious, and an abuse of discretion. Finally, he asserted that the Attorney General’s office should be disqualified as counsel for the Board of Architects due to a conflict of interest. On November 22, 2000, the circuit court heard the matter, and, on December 11, 2001, it affirmed the Board on all four issues.

Holloway then appealed to the court of appeals, which considered the same four arguments that were presented to the Board and the circuit court. The court of appeals held that Holloway did not preserve his constitutional issue because the Board did not rule on it; that court remanded the case to the Board for further fact finding and for a ruling on the constitutional question. The court of appeals also remanded the case so the Board could make further findings of fact concerning whether Holloway’s actions fell within the definition of the practice of engineering. That court also held that, because it was remanding the case, it was vacating the civil-penalties argument. The court of appeals did address and affirm the trial court’s final ruling that the Attorney General’s office was not disqualified merely because it represented both the Board of Architects and the Board of Engineers. We subsequently granted the Board’s petition for review.

Upon a petition for review, we consider a case as though it has been originally filed in this Court. Sharp County Sheriff's Office v. Ozark Acres Improvement Dist., 349 Ark. 20, 75 S.W.3d 690 (2002); Edens v. Superior Marble & Glass, 346 Ark. 487, 58 S.W.3d 369 (2001). Our review is directed not toward the circuit court, but toward the decision of the agency. Arkansas State Police Comm’n v. Smith, 338 Ark. 354, 994 S.W.2d 456 (1999). That is so because administrative agencies are better equipped by specialization, insight through experience, and more flexible procedures than courts, to determine and analyze legal issues affecting their agencies. McQuay v. Arkansas State Bd. of Architects, 337 Ark. 339, 989 S.W.2d 499 (1999); Social Work Licensing Board v. Moncebaiz, 332 Ark. 67, 962 S.W.2d 797 (1998). Our review of administrative decisions is limited in scope. Such decisions will be upheld if they are supported by substantial evidence and are not arbitrary, capricious, or characterized by an abuse of discretion. McQuay, supra; Wright v. Arkansas State Plant Board, 311 Ark. 125, 842 S.W.2d 42 (1992).

Holloway’s first argument on appeal is that the statutes defining the practice of architecture and the practice of engineering are void for vagueness. We initially need to mention that our review of the record reflects that Holloway’s counsel, at the Board hearing, raised this constitutional issue challenging the statutes defining the practices of architecture and engineering. Counsel made his point as foEows:

“We are chaEenging also the definition of the practice of architecture in [section] 17-15-102, in that it is unconstitutionaEy vague and is in direct conflict with Arkansas statute [s] 17-30-101 and 17-30-104. So that it is our assertion that it is void for vagueness.”

Sections 17-30-101 and 17-30-104 pertain to the practice of engineering. The Board, through its hearing officer, responded that it noted HoEoway’s objection and overruled it. Because HoEoway raised this constitutional issue before the Board and obtained the Board’s ruling on it, we conclude that Holloway preserved his argument on appeal. See Arkansas Contractors Licensing Bd. v. Pegasus Renovation Co., 347 Ark. 320, 64 S.W.3d 241 (2001); AT&T Communications of the Southwest v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm’n., 344 Ark. 188, 40 S.W.3d 273 (2001).

We turn now to Holloway’s first point for reversal: the statutes defining the practice of architecture and engineering are void for vagueness and, as applied in this case, constitute a violation of Holloway’s due-process rights. Holloway first cites Ark. Code Ann. § 17-15-102(5)(A)(i) and (ii) (Repl. 2001), which read as follows:

(A)(i) The “practice of architecture” means the provision of, or offering to provide, those services hereinafter described in connection with the design and construction, enlargement, or alteration of a building or group of buildings, and the space within and surrounding such buildings, which is designed for human occupancy or habitation. The services referred to include planning, providing preliminary studies, designs, drawings, specifications, and other technical submissions, and administration of construction contracts.

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Bluebook (online)
101 S.W.3d 805, 352 Ark. 427, 2003 Ark. LEXIS 164, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/holloway-v-arkansas-state-board-of-architects-ark-2003.