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CPA Gregory D. Barton asks California Board to lift trustee restriction after discipline
Summary
Gregory D. Barton, a CPA with a 40‑year career, told the California Board of Accountancy he has implemented firmwide controls and seeks removal of a permanent restriction barring him from acting as a trustee; the board took the matter under submission and will deliberate in closed session.
Gregory D. Barton, a certified public accountant who has run Barton CPA for nearly two decades, asked the California Board of Accountancy on Jan. 23 to lift a permanent restriction that prevents him from serving as a trustee.
Barton testified that the restriction stems from a 2020 accusation alleging negligence and breaches of fiduciary duty in his role as a trustee. He told the board he accepted responsibility for the errors, completed probation, and implemented systemic reforms at his firm, including appointing a director of tax and compliance, elevating a chief operating officer, adopting multi‑tier review processes for returns, purchasing new calendaring and practice software, and hiring outside consultants. “The buck stops with me,” Barton said, acknowledging the failures that led to discipline.
The petition hearing focused on whether those changes and evidence of rehabilitation meet the standards for removing a restricted area of practice. DAG Ted Durkar summarized the accusation as involving late notifications, untimely distributions, failures in trust accounting and tax reporting errors; he noted the restriction remains in place even though formal probation has ended. Barton’s counsel, Noel McCauley, urged the board to apply the rehabilitation criteria in California Code of Regulations §99.1 and said Barton has complied with all probationary terms and implemented “massive systemic changes.”
Board members questioned both the scope of the restriction (Durkar clarified it applies to Barton personally, not necessarily other firm employees) and the relevance of Barton’s continuing education. Barton reported submitting 171 hours of continuing education over four years and described routine firm practices such as weekly executive meetings and two-review checks for higher‑tier returns. Several members pressed whether those CE hours included trustee‑specific training and whether Barton would be ready to perform trustee duties if relicensed. Barton said he does not intend to return to routine trustee work and that, if reinstated, he would focus on tax and accounting services; he also said he wants a “clean record” ahead of an eventual retirement or transition of the firm.
No formal vote was taken at the hearing. The board closed the record and recessed to deliberate in closed session; parties were told they would be notified later of the decision.
