KEN KIRSCHENBAUM, ESQ
ALARM - SECURITY INDUSTRY LEGAL EMAIL NEWSLETTER / THE ALARM EXCHANGE
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Comment on working under anothers license
December 7, 2018
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Comment on working under anothers license from November 30, 2018
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Ken,
This is situation what we run into often in Louisiana.
Our company is continually being referred by some of our manufacturer’s reps, to work with out of state companies that do not hold the two license required to do work in Louisiana. It’s unfortunate that we have to turn down the work, and the Companies that are contacting us find another that is unaware of the laws or willing to disregard them. An example of this would be an out of state security company does several locations for their customer in their state, and the customer has a new location or locations in Louisiana and wants to sub contract us to do the install. The end user, the unlicensed contractor, and our company would be in violation and if caught could be fined and possibly have our license’s revoked. The correct way to do this is for the customer (end user) to hire either us directly or another company properly licensed.
I have spoken with the Louisiana Fire Marshal’s office and inquired about our company doing Sub Contract work for an unlicensed company. They informed us that it is illegal for our company to be subcontracted to do security work for a company not licensed by the State Fire Marshal in Louisiana. This is also a violation of the STATE OF LOUISIANA Contractors Licensing Board. An unlicensed out of state contractor cannot HIRE a licensed Contractor to do work in Louisiana.
The Fire Marshal had me reference the following:
RULE
Department of Public Safety and Corrections
Office of the State Fire Marshal
Fire Protection Licensing (LAC 55:V.Chapter 30)
§3041. Prohibited Acts and Equipment
A. The following acts are prohibited and shall be considered grounds for administrative action to be taken against firms, persons and/or employees committing such:
13. contracting to a firm or person who is not properly certified or licensed through the Office of the State Fire
Marshal to perform acts regulated by the provisions of R.S. 40:1664.1 et seq., or these rules;
S 40:1664.12. Prohibited acts
No person or firm shall do any of the following:
(1) Engage in life safety and property protection contracting without a valid license.
(2) Aid and abet an unlicensed individual, employee, or firm in life safety and property protection contracting.
These are the licensing laws the Louisiana Contractors Licensing Board had me reference:
STATE OF LOUISIANA Contractors Licensing Law and Rules and Regulations August 1, 2017
Part I. GENERAL
LA R.S. 37:2150. Purpose; legislative intent
§2150.1. Definitions
(4)(a) "Contractor" means any person who undertakes to, attempts to, or submits a price or bid or offers to construct, supervise, superintend, oversee, direct, or in any manner assume charge of the construction, alteration, repair, improvement, movement, demolition, putting up, tearing down, or furnishing labor, or furnishing labor together with material or equipment, or installing the same for any building, highway, road, railroad, sewer, grading, excavation, pipeline, public utility structure, project development, housing, or housing development, improvement, or any other construction undertaking for which the entire cost of same is fifty thousand dollars or more when such property is to be used for commercial purposes other than a single residential duplex, a single residential triplex, or a single residential fourplex. A construction project which consists of construction of more than two single residential homes, or more than one single residential duplex, triplex, or fourplex, shall be deemed to be a commercial undertaking.
(b) The term "contractor" includes general contractors, subcontractors, architects, and engineers who receive an additional fee for the employment or direction of labor, or any other work beyond the normal architectural or engineering services.
§3041. Prohibited Acts and Equipment
A. The following acts are prohibited and shall be considered grounds for administrative action to be taken against firms, persons and/or employees committing such:
13. contracting to a firm or person who is not properly certified or licensed through the Office of the State Fire Marshal to perform acts regulated by the provisions of R.S. 40:1664.1 et seq., or these rules;
MB
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Response
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Louisiana is not unique when it comes to making it illegal for a non-licensed alarm company to engage a licensed company to do work. This would be aiding and abetting an unlicensed contractor. I think the key is who is contracting with the subscriber. If it’s the unlicensed alarm company then the subcontractor should not be performing the work. Note that the Louisiana statute specifically deals with “contracting”.
Some state have license requirements for doing the work and don’t mention the “contracting”. In those states it’s who does the work and not who contracted for it, at least for commercial work.
But I agree that the general rule is that if you’re not licensed in the jurisdiction you can’t enter into a contract in that jurisdiction.
An interesting scenario arises when you and the subscriber have offices in the same jurisdiction but the installation or alarm services are to be performed in another jurisdiction where you are not licensed. In that scenario I think you have a stronger argument that you can enter into the contract as long as you use a licensed subcontractor to do the work.
If you have sufficient work in a jurisdiction then you should get licensed or engage someone who is. See The Alarm Exchange in the License Holder category.
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Ken Kirschenbaum,Esq
Kirschenbaum & Kirschenbaum PC
Attorneys at Law
200 Garden City Plaza
Garden City, NY 11530
516 747 6700 x 301
ken@kirschenbaumesq.com
516 747 6700
www.KirschenbaumEsq.com