A CSLB Accusation starts a 15-day clock to file your Notice of Defense — miss it and you can lose your license by default.

A contractor opens the mail and finds an Accusation from the Contractors State License Board. It is formal, it is alarming, and buried in it is the single most important fact in the whole case: you have only 15 days to respond, or you lose by default.

The 15-day rule

When the CSLB files an Accusation seeking to discipline your license, it triggers the Administrative Procedure Act. Under Government Code 11506, you have 15 days from service of the Accusation to file a Notice of Defense. Miss that deadline, and the Board can take your default - meaning it can discipline or revoke your license without a hearing, based solely on the allegations. The 15-day clock is the most unforgiving deadline in licensing defense.

Filing the Notice of Defense is what preserves your right to a hearing before an administrative law judge at the Office of Administrative Hearings, where you can contest the charges, present evidence, and be represented by counsel.

Why contractors lose by default

The tragedy is how often capable contractors lose their livelihood not because the charges were strong, but because they did not respond in time. They assume they will "deal with it later," or that they can explain things informally to the Board. By the time they take it seriously, the 15 days have run and the default is entered. A license built over decades can be lost to a missed deadline.

What to do the day it arrives

Treat a CSLB Accusation as an emergency. Note the service date, calendar the 15-day deadline immediately, and get the Notice of Defense filed - then build your defense. Do not contact the Board to "explain" before filing; preserve your rights first. An attorney who handles license defense can file the Notice of Defense and begin shaping the case for the OAH hearing.

The bottom line

A CSLB Accusation starts a 15-day clock under Government Code 11506. File the Notice of Defense within those 15 days or risk losing your license by default. The deadline, not the merits, is what sinks most contractors who do not act fast. Calendar it the day the Accusation arrives, and respond.

Law Office of Michael Benavides, Esq. — California administrative & licensing defense | CA State Bar No. 270714 | 707-362-4166 | attorneymichaelbenavides.comATTORNEY ADVERTISING. General information about California law, not legal advice; no attorney-client relationship is formed by reading this. Administrative and licensing deadlines are strict and fact-specific — consult counsel promptly. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.