Wormuth v. Lower Eastside Action Project, Inc.

In every case where an unlicensed professional violates the law by practicing without a State license — with or without the knowledge of the client — there exists a sympathetic claim of unjust enrichment. In the enforcement of this licensing statute, it would appear necessary to ignore the plight of the statute violator, even where the beneficiary of his services had knowledge of, and acquiesced in the statutory violation, or else we render our licensing laws meaningless.

*316In the past, we had statutes which did not expressly proscribe the practice of architecture without a State certificate or…