Connecticut Administrative Code › Title 22 - Agriculture. Domestic Animals › 7 - Description of Organization and Rules of Practice › Article 3 - CONTESTED CASES › Part 3 - Hearings, Procedure › Section 22-7-33a - Rules of evidence

Current through July 10, 2024
The following rules of evidence shall be applied at
					 hearings on contested cases within the Department of Agriculture:
(a)
General.
No formal rules of
				  evidence shall govern proceedings in a contested case before the Department of
				  Agriculture. It is within the discretion of the Commissioner or the hearing
				  officer to receive any oral or documentary evidence, but the Commissioner or
				  the hearing officer shall exclude any evidence deemed to be irrelevant,
				  immaterial or unduly repetitious. Documentary evidence may be received in the
				  form of copies of excerpts. Upon request, parties shall be given an opportunity
				  to compare the copy with the original if the original is readily available, and
				  such comparison will not unduly delay the hearing. All evidence shall be taken
				  in the presence of the Commissioner or the hearing officer. The Commissioner or
				  the hearing officer may request such additional information as is deemed
				  necessary to render a decision. In order to enter a document or record into
				  evidence at the hearing, the party must identify the document or record and
				  must allow it to be marked. The party offering the exhibit shall provide one
				  copy for the Commissioner or the hearing officer and one copy for each party.
				  Other parties will be allowed to inspect the document or record and to state
				  any objections to the proposed exhibit. If an objection is overruled, the
				  Commissioner or the hearing officer shall receive the document or record into
				  evidence. It is solely the function of the Commissioner or the hearing officer
				  to assess the weight and credibility of the witnesses and evidence. All
				  evidence admitted and the names and addresses of all witnesses shall be made a
				  part of the record of the proceeding.
(b)
Cross Examination.
The
				  Commissioner or the hearing officer may allow such cross-examination of
				  witnesses as may be required for a full and true disclosure of the
				  facts.
(c)
Facts
				  Noticed.
The Commissioner or the hearing officer, on their own
				  initiative or at the request of any party, may take notice of judicially
				  cognizable facts, including prior decisions and orders of the Commissioner or
				  the Department of Agriculture, or of generally recognized technical or
				  scientific facts within the Department of Agriculture's or their own
				  specialized knowledge. Parties shall be afforded an opportunity to contest the
				  material so noticed by being notified before or during the hearing, or by
				  appropriate reference in preliminary reports or otherwise, of the material
				  noticed. The Commissioner or the hearing officer shall nevertheless employ the
				  experience, technical competence, and specialized knowledge of the Department
				  of Agriculture in evaluating the evidence presented at the hearing for the
				  purpose of making findings of the facts and arriving at a decision in any
				  contested case.