Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 2 - Agriculture and Commerce › Part 1 - Rules of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce › Subpart 3 - Bureau of Plant Industry › Chapter 12 - Pure Seed Regulation › Administrative Procedures For the Arbitration Process › Section 2-1-3-12-123.1

Current through June 25, 2024
The Mississippi Pure Seed Law provides for arbitration
						when a consumer has a complaint alleging failure of seed to produce or perform
						as represented by the label. The process for filing such a complaint is as
						follows:
1. The consumer shall file a
					 sworn complaint (signed and notarized) with the Mississippi Department of
					 Agriculture and Commerce. A filing fee of $250 is also required for
					 administrative services. The complaint shall include the name and address of
					 the seedsman, kind and variety of seed, acreage planted and a detailed account
					 of the problem which the consumer is experiencing. The complaint must be
					 accompanied by documentation from a recognized professional verifying that
					 there is a connection between the seed and the performance or production
					 problem.
2. The Department shall
					 send a copy of the complaint to the seedsman.
3. The Seedsman shall file his/her reply
					 within 15 days.
4. The Department
					 shall refer the complaint to the Seed Arbitration Council or an appointed
					 arbitrator, for an investigation. If either party requests that the case be
					 heard by an arbitrator, the party making the request shall pay the arbitrator's
					 fees and expenses in advance of the hearing, failing which, the case shall be
					 heard by the Council.
5. The Seed
					 Arbitration Council or the arbitrator shall conduct an investigation. The
					 Council's inspectors or the arbitrator shall have the authority to enter the
					 consumer's fields without advance notice to inspect the crop and take
					 samples.
6. The hearing is
					 conducted with both parties presenting witnesses, evidence and material to
					 support their case. The Council or arbitrator shall determine the admissibility
					 and relevance of the evidence offered and may exclude evidence deemed to be
					 cumulative or irrelevant. The Council or the arbitrator may require a party to
					 produce any documents or material prior to, or at the hearing. Witnesses shall
					 be called upon by each party and shall also submit to questions from the
					 Council or arbitrator and the adverse party. The Council or the arbitrator
					 shall have the power to require the exclusion of any witnesses, other than a
					 party or their attorney, during the testimony of any other witnesses. In its
					 discretion, the Council or the arbitrator may receive the testimony of a
					 witness in the form of a written affidavit. No witness may testify until he/she
					 has been placed under oath. The hearing shall be open to the public, but the
					 deliberations of the Council concerning the merits of the case shall be closed
					 to the public. Upon completion of the hearing, the Seed Arbitration Council
					 shall make its written findings and recommendations to the Department. The
					 Council or arbitrator has the discretion to vary this procedure, provided that
					 the parties are treated with equality and each party has the right to be heard
					 and is given a fair opportunity to present their case.
7. The Department shall transmit the findings
					 and recommendations of the Council or the arbitrator to the consumer and
					 seedsman.
8. The consumer and
					 seedsman shall notify the Department of their acceptance or rejection of the
					 recommended terms of settlement within 30 days.
Complaints should be filed with:
Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce
						Attention:
Director, Bureau of Plant Industry
P.O. Box 5207
Mississippi State, MS 39762
Miss. Code Ann.
						§
												69-3-17.