Alabama Administrative Code › Title 480 - ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF LABOR › Chapter 480-1-4 - HEARINGS AND APPEALS › Section 480-1-4-.04 - Conduct Of Hearings

Current through Register Vol. 42, No. 9, June 28, 2024
(1) The
			 proceeding shall be fair and impartial and shall be conducted in such manner as
			 the Hearing Officer may determine to be best suited to determine the rights,
			 duties and obligations of the parties. The order in which evidence is to be
			 presented shall rest within the sound discretion of the Hearing Officer.
			 Hearings shall be open to the public except in those cases where, in the
			 Hearing Officer's judgment, the nature of the testimony is scandalous or
			 lascivious to the extent that the presence of persons not a party to the
			 proceeding would inhibit witnesses from testifying freely. All oral testimony
			 shall be given under oath or affirmation. The Hearing Officer may examine any
			 party or witness to the extent deemed necessary and shall afford all parties
			 every assistance that does not interfere with the discharge of fairness and
			 impartiality. Hearings shall be confined to evidence relevant and material to
			 the issues involved.
(2) The
			 Hearing Officer may refuse admittance to or expel any party, witness or person
			 in attendance at a hearing whose conduct is disorderly. Subject to the
			 discretion of the Hearing Officer, witnesses may be excluded from the hearing
			 until called to testify. Those testifying shall be subject to direct and
			 cross-examination by the parties or their representatives and the Hearing
			 Officer. Documentary evidence may be received in the form of copies or excerpts
			 if the original is not readily available. All parties shall, upon a timely
			 request, be allowed to inspect and use any portion of the records necessary in
			 the presentation of their case.
(3)
			 Whenever necessary, the Hearing Officer may require the attendance at a hearing
			 of those employees of the Department of Industrial Relations having knowledge
			 of the facts involved in the proceeding or technical knowledge concerning the
			 matters in issue.
(4) The Hearing
			 Officer shall open the hearing by summarizing the issue or issues appearing to
			 be in dispute and prescribing the order in which the hearing will proceed. The
			 Hearing Officer shall consider and inquire fully into all issues involved
			 regardless of whether the issues were set forth as a ground for appeal and
			 shall receive in evidence the testimony of the parties and witnesses and any
			 documents which are relevant and material to any issue. If new issues arise
			 during the course of a hearing, the Hearing Officer shall apprise the parties
			 that the new issue is being considered, shall explain the newly arisen issue,
			 and inquire as to whether any interested party desires to enter a motion for a
			 continuance. If no motion is entered, the Hearing Officer shall proceed. If
			 such motion is entered, the Hearing Officer shall rule upon the motion and may,
			 in the exercise of his discretion, continue the hearing to a later
			 time.
(5) The parties may, subject
			 to the approval of the Hearing Officer, enter into stipulations as to all or a
			 portion of the facts involved in a proceeding. The Hearing Officer may make a
			 decision on the basis of such stipulations or may set the matter down for
			 hearing and take such further testimony or receive such further evidence as
			 deemed necessary.
(6) The Hearing
			 Officer may consolidate cases and conduct joint hearings thereon when the same
			 or substantially the same evidence is relevant and material to the matters in
			 issue. Notice of hearing shall be forwarded to all individuals or their
			 representatives whose cases have been consolidated for a joint
			 hearing.
(7) Oral proceedings shall
			 be recorded by the Hearing Officer either by mechanized means or by a qualified
			 shorthand reporter but need not be transcribed unless an appeal is applied for
			 or taken and a request is made by a party pursuant to Rule
			 480-1-2-.11. In order to maintain
			 confidentiality and limit the use of oral testimony to the contest of a
			 particular case, no other recording of the proceedings shall be made or
			 allowed.
(8) The Hearing Officer
			 may take official notice of facts commonly known in the community and facts of
			 a general, technical or scientific nature known within the Department of
			 Industrial Relations. Parties shall be notified during the hearing of facts
			 officially noticed and shall be afforded an opportunity to contest these
			 facts.
(9) Any official record of
			 the Director, including reports submitted in connection with the administration
			 of the Unemployment Compensation Law, may be introduced in evidence and, when
			 so introduced, become part of the record; provided, however, that when so
			 introduced the parties are given an opportunity to examine and rebut the
			 same.
(10) In the hearing of a
			 contested case, the Hearing Officer may announce that it shall not be necessary
			 that objections be made during the hearing and upon such announcement it shall
			 not be required or necessary that objection be made to any testimony or
			 evidence which may be offered by either party and on the consideration of such
			 cases, the Hearing Officer shall consider only such testimony and evidence as
			 is relevant, material, competent and legal, and shall not consider any
			 testimony or evidence which is irrelevant, immaterial, incompetent or illegal,
			 whether objections shall have been made thereto or not, and whether such
			 testimony be brought out on direct, cross or re-direct examination, or is
			 hearsay. On appeal, the court shall consider only such testimony as is relevant
			 material, competent and legal. Neither the Hearing Officer nor the Board of
			 Appeals shall be required to point out what testimony or evidence should be
			 excluded or not considered.
(11)
			 The Hearing Officer may, upon his own motion or upon petition of any interested
			 party, reopen the hearing for the receipt of relevant and material evidence
			 which was not presented at the scheduled hearing at any time prior to the
			 mailing of a decision.
(12) If an
			 absent party to a contested case appears late while a hearing is in progress,
			 the Hearing Officer shall, if time permits, interrupt the hearing, admit the
			 late party, summarize the proceedings to that point, administer the oath and
			 proceed. If time does not permit, the Hearing Officer may, in his discretion,
			 continue the hearing until another time or may refuse to admit the late party
			 advising such party of the right to file a written petition to reopen the case.
			 If an absent party arrives after the hearing has been adjourned, the Hearing
			 Officer shall notify the late party that the hearing has been adjourned and
			 that no evidence can be received in the absence of the other party. If the late
			 party indicates a desire to offer evidence, the Hearing Officer may, in his
			 discretion, reschedule the hearing with notice to all parties or may inform the
			 late party of the right to file a written petition to reopen the case.
			 Petitions to reopen by an absent party, may be ruled upon ex parte by the
			 Hearing Officer, or the Chief of the Hearings and Appeals division or his
			 designee and may be denied unless it is shown that the party was not given
			 proper notice as required in these rules or was prevented from a timely
			 appearance by an emergency or other unavoidable and unforeseen circumstance.
			 All requests to present evidence received after the issuance of a decision must
			 be made by a motion for rehearing pursuant to
Code of Ala.
			 1975
, §
								41-22-17.
(13) Any hearing may be adjourned or recessed
			 when deemed appropriate by the Hearing Officer.
Authors
: George Cocoris, C. Lamon Till
Statutory Authority
:
Code of Ala.
				1975
, §
									25-2-8.
History
: Effective September 30,
				1982.