The state Architects Licensure Board has upheld a hearing examiner's recommendation to dismiss a complaint alleging that a Fayette County architect lied about his graduation from a Hungarian university, a lawyer said Thursday.
The licensure board decided Thursday to affirm a proposed order from November that favored Michael S. Molnar, said Robert B. Hoffman, a Harrisburg attorney representing Molnar.
A spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of State said the board has not issued a formal opinion on the disciplinary case.
"From what I understand, they'll probably uphold it," Brian McDonald said.
Since 1963, the 76-year-old Molnar has operated a Uniontown firm that has designed several schools, housing projects and public service buildings in Fayette County.
He was born in Hungary, but immigrated to the U.S. in 1957 and received his professional architecture license in Pennsylvania in 1960.
Before starting his own firm, Molnar worked for H. Wesley Altman, an architect whose son, Mark, filed a complaint alleging Molnar did not earn the degree he listed in his license registration.
During the disciplinary proceedings, Mark Altman presented a 2003 sworn statement from an official of the former Technical University of Budapest stating Molnar had not received a diploma at the school's department of architecture or the department of civil engineering.
Molnar testified during a hearing that he completed the requirements for a degree in architecture, including four years of coursework and a "diploma plan," or thesis.
He contended he presented the diploma plan to a panel of instructors in late 1954 or early 1955, but the communist government of Hungary prohibited university graduation ceremonies.
After the thesis presentation, Molnar served as a second lieutenant in the Hungarian army, then worked as an architectural engineer for the Hungarian Ministry of Defense, according to findings of fact in the case. Molnar later became involved in the Hungarian revolution against Russia in October 1956 and fled the country when the Soviets overran Hungary a month later.
In his recommendation to the licensure board, hearing examiner Frank C. Kahoe Jr. said Molnar would not have been able to work for the government if he had not earned a degree.
Hoffman said Molnar was pleased with the decision but noted the eventual opinion could be appealed.
"We had won at the first stage, but if you don't win at the second level, it doesn't matter," Hoffman said. "Hopefully, it's over."
Molnar faced a range of penalties if the board ruled against him, including the potential loss of his professional license.
The Altman family has said it pursued the complaint against Molnar to maintain the professionalism of the architectural field.
