CMTBC - BC Supreme Court grants injunction permanently prohibiting non-registrant from using reserved titles

On June 23, 2022, the BC Supreme Court granted an injunction prohibiting non-registrant Joe Turner from using reserved titles that only CMTBC registrants can legally use in BC.

The injunction ordered by the Court permanently restrains and enjoins Mr. Turner from using the reserved titles “massage therapist”, “registered massage therapist”, “massage practitioner”, “registered massage practitioner”, or any abbreviation of the titles, to describe his work, in association with or as part of another title describing his work, or in association with a description of his work, as long as he is not a CMTBC registrant.

The injunction also permanently restrains and enjoins Mr. Turner from using a name, title, description, or abbreviation of a name or title, in any manner that expresses or implies that he is a registrant or associated with CMTBC, as long as he is not a CMTBC registrant.

Read the BC Supreme Court order:
https://www.cmtbc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/BC-Supreme-Court-Order-entered-June-23-2022.pdf

CMTBC investigated Mr. Turner, who has never been a CMTBC registrant, after learning “RMT” was listed as one of his qualifications on the website for his business. The College sent Mr. Turner multiple letters identifying aspects of his advertising that contravened the Health Professions Act and asking Mr. Turner to revise his advertising to comply with the Act. Mr. Turner continued to advertise himself as an RMT. Ultimately, CMTBC petitioned the BC Supreme Court to order that Mr. Turner be permanently restrained and enjoined from using the reserved titles that only the College’s registrants can use.

Section 12.1 of the Health Professions Act prohibits the use of reserved titles by non-registrants. As outlined in the Massage Therapists Regulation, the titles “massage therapist”, “registered massage therapist”, “massage practitioner”, and “regulated massage practitioner” are reserved for exclusive use by registrants.

CMTBC registrants have met rigorous registration requirements, passed a multi-component registration exam, are required to abide by standards of practice and a Code of Ethics, and must meet the College’s continuing competence requirement. They are the only individuals who can legally use the reserved titles in BC. When CMTBC receives a report of unauthorized title use and the individual does not voluntarily agree to cease using reserved titles, the College may seek an injunction in civil court.

Anyone who is aware of an unauthorized person using a reserved title can submit a report to the College using the secure Unauthorized Use of Reserved Titles Form.