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OR LPC Jurisprudence study materials
OR LPC Jurisprudence study resources

OR LPC Jurisprudence: Oregon Statutes and Administrative Rules Governing Professional Counseling

OR LPC Jurisprudence · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.

All guide sections

Oregon Statutes and Administrative Rules Governing Professional Counseling

The two-layer legal framework

Oregon counseling law comes from two main sources: the statutes in ORS 675.705–675.840 and the Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists rules in OAR chapter 833. The statutes create the board, define professional counseling, require licensure, set qualification categories, and authorize discipline. The administrative rules supply the operational detail: application procedures, supervised-experience documentation, exam requirements, continuing education, ethics enforcement, and complaint processing. A board rule cannot conflict with a statute; if the two differ, the statute controls. The Administrative Procedure Act, ORS chapter 183, governs rulemaking and contested-case hearings, so due-process rights in board actions come from the APA as well as from board rules.

How the sources fit together

  • Use the statute to confirm authority and definitions.
  • Use the board rule for current operational requirements.
  • Use the adopted ethics code for professional-conduct standards.
  • Use the APA for hearing, notice, and appeal procedure.

The board adopts a professional ethics code by reference, and Oregon has adopted the ACA Code of Ethics. Board rules may be more specific or more stringent. A licensee must satisfy both; an ethics code does not excuse a rule violation, and a rule does not excuse unethical conduct. Because rules are amended, candidates should study the current OAR text rather than memorized old rule numbers.

Worked example

A counselor wants to know whether a particular advertising statement is permitted. The statute prohibits false or misleading advertising; the board rule adds specifics about titles and representations; the ethics code also prohibits misleading advertising. The correct analysis checks all three sources and follows the most restrictive compliant approach. Relying only on the ethics code leaves the licensee exposed under Oregon rule.

Traps that cost marks

Treating the ethics code as the only authority; assuming board staff can waive a statutory requirement; citing an outdated OAR number; forgetting that the APA controls hearing rights; and treating a national certification as a substitute for Oregon law.