§ 4-21.5-3-11 — Ex parte communications; violations

Indiana § 4-21.5-3-11

• Jurisdiction: Indiana
• Art. 21.5: ADMINISTRATIVE ORDERS AND
• Ch. 3: Adjudicative Proceedings

Text

(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) or
unless required for the disposition of ex parte matters specifically
authorized by statute, an administrative law judge serving in a
proceeding may not communicate, directly or indirectly, regarding any
issue in the proceeding while the proceeding is pending, with:
(1) any party;
(2) any individual who has a direct or indirect interest in the
outcome of the proceeding;
(3) any individual who presided at a previous stage of the
proceeding; or
(4) any individual who is prohibited from assisting the
administrative law judge under section 13 of this chapter;
without notice and opportunity for all parties to participate in the
communication.
(b) A member of a multimember panel of administrative law judges
may communicate with other members of the panel regarding a matter
pending before the panel, and any administrative law judge may
receive aid from staff assistants. However, a staff assistant may not
communicate to an administrative law judge any:
(1) ex parte communications of a type that the administrative law
judge would be prohibited from receiving under subsection (a);
or
(2) information that would furnish, augment, diminish, or modify
the evidence in the record.
(c) Unless required for the disposition of ex parte matters
specifically authorized by statute, a person described by subsection
(a)(1), (a)(2), (a)(3), or (a)(4) may not communicate, directly or
indirectly, in connection with any issue in that proceeding while the
proceeding is pending, with any person serving as administrative law
judge without notice and opportunity for all parties to participate in the
communication.
(d) If, before serving as administrative law judge in a proceeding,
an individual receives an ex parte communication of a type that would
not properly be received while serving, the individual, promptly after
starting to serve, shall disclose the communication in the manner
prescribed in subsection (e).
(e) An administrative law judge who receives an ex parte
communication in violation of this section shall:
(1) place on the record of the pending matter all written
communications received, all written responses to the
communications, and a memorandum stating the substance of all
oral communications received, all responses made, and the
identity of each individual from whom the administrative law
judge received an ex parte communication; and
(2) advise all parties that these matters have been placed on the
record.
Any person described by subsection (a)(1), (a)(2), (a)(3), or (a)(4) shall
be allowed to rebut a charge of wrongful ex parte communication upon
requesting the opportunity for rebuttal within fifteen (15) days after
notice of the communication.
(f) If necessary to eliminate the effect of an ex parte communication
received in violation of this section, an administrative law judge who
receives the communication may be disqualified and the portions of the
record pertaining to the communication may be corrected, modified, or
preserved by protective order.
(g) A violation of this section is subject to the sanctions under
sections 36 and 37 of this chapter.

Legislative History

As added by P.L.18-1986, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.35-1987, SEC.8.