Publications

• Informed Consent - Creating a Partnership of Communication and Understanding with Your Clients
• Is Your Practice Vulnerable to Client Complaints
• Client Communication: Prevent Complaints, Confusion & Misconduct Claims
• When Intention Doesn't Matter

Specialties & Experience of this Expert Witness

Additional Information

Expert Witness & Consultative Services in Massage & Spa Legal Cases Felicia Brown, LMBT, LMT has been a massage therapist since 1994. Her expertise, experience and opinions come from nearly 30 years as a practitioner, owner, coach, consultant, educator and client in the spa and massage industries. Since 2015, she has served as an expert witness or consultant over eighty legal cases involving the massage and spa industries, with more than seventy of those cases being related to Inappropriate Touch, Sexual Abuse or Sexual Misconduct. Working on both Plaintiff and Defense cases, Ms. Brown has provided detailed reviews of deposition, case materials and testimony; consultations on standard business practices and standards of care; and conducted research related to the cases. An advocate for the massage and spa industries, Ms. Brown approaches each case by being curious and thorough in her analysis. She strives to provide direct and thoughtful consultation, opinions and/or testimony for each situation and case. Experience Ethics: Ms. Brown began teaching professional ethics in 1997 as part of the curriculum for the Guilford Technical Community College – Professional Massage Therapy Program and Natural Touch School of Massage. She is an Approved Provider for the National Certification Board for Massage & Bodywork and teaches professional ethics classes as continuing education for licensed massage therapists. Business Practices: Since 1996, Ms. Brown has owned and managed several spas. This experience combined with years of networking and collaborating with – and consulting for – similar professionals provides her with direct knowledge of common and accepted business and management practices, policies, and procedures in businesses employing massage therapists. Ms. Brown has taught and/or consulted with hundreds of massage and spa professionals on workplace issues including but not limited to dealing with inappropriate clients; harassment/sexual harassment issues, hiring classification and embezzlement. Additionally, she advises clients on issues related to screening, hiring, training and supervising employees; policies and procedures; business operations; working with renters and/or independent contractors; professionalism and ethics; customer service and care; safety and sanitation; and various spa and massage product liability issues. Massage & Spa Industry Standard of Care/Standards of Practice: From proper treatment protocols and appropriate draping to privacy, client care, comfort and confidentiality, Ms. Brown provides a wealth of information of what should and should not occur within a massage session or other spa service. Spa Owner/President: From start-up and turn-around to inventory control, operations, management and more, Ms. Brown is familiar with the complex inner workings of a spa or massage practice. Her first business, Balance Day Spa, grew from a private practice into a company with fifty employees and annual sales of over $1.6 million. She sold the business in 2005. Her last spa, A to Zen Massage, in operation 2013 - 2021 employed thirty-one staff members pre-COVID. Massage Therapist: Ms. Brown has been a massage therapist since 1994, licensed in North Carolina and Florida. Speaker & Educator: Ms. Brown has been creating courses and educating massage and spa professionals since 1996. In addition numerous sharing business, ethics, marketing and treatment-related topics with conference audiences in the US and abroad, she also develops and teaches classes on professional communication, ethics, boundaries and sexual situations in the massage and spa workplace. Spa & Massage Client: Ms. Brown is an avid client of massage and spa services and has received more than 1000 massage sessions at her businesses as well as spas around the US and abroad. The variety of differing client experiences have been instrumental in creating Ms. Brown's well-rounded perspective of massage and spa businesses.