OAR 137-003-0501: Rules for Office of Administrative Hearings

(1) OAR 137-003-0501 to 137-003-0700 apply to the conduct of all contested case hearings conducted for an agency by an administrative law judge assigned from the Office of Administrative Hearings unless: (a) The case is not subject to the procedural requirements for contested cases; or (b) The Attorney General, after consultation with the Chief Administrative Law Judge, has exempted the agency or a category of the agency's cases, by order, from the application of these rules in whole or in part. (2) Any procedural rules adopted by the agency related to the conduct of hearings shall not apply to contested case hearings conducted for the agency by an administrative law judge assigned from the Office of Administrative Hearings unless required by state or federal law or specifically authorized by these rules or by order of the Attorney General. (3) An agency may have rules specifying the time for requesting a contested case hearing, the permissible scope of the hearing and timelines for issuance of a proposed or final order. A request for hearing will be deemed to be a general denial of the matters alleged in the notice, unless a more specific response is required by statute or by agency rule. An agency rule establishing a different requirement for the response must be based on the agency’s determination that, due to the complexity of the program or category of cases, a more specific response is warranted. Such rules should also provide parties the opportunity to amend their responses except when doing so would be unduly prejudicial. The amendments to this subsection apply to all hearing requests filed after January 31, 2012. (4) Agencies with authority to assess the costs of an action or proceeding against a party may have rules specifying procedures related to assessment of costs. (5) The agency's substantive rules, including those allocating the burden of proof, shall apply to all of its hearings. (6) If permitted by law, the agency may delegate to an administrative law judge any of the agency's functions under these rules, including the authority to issue a final order. This delegation must be in writing and may be for a category of cases or on a case-by-case basis. (7) For purposes of OAR 137-003-0501 to 137-003-0700, "good cause" exists when an action, delay, or failure to act arises from an excusable mistake, surprise, excusable neglect, reasonable reliance on the statement of a party or agency relating to procedural requirements, or from fraud, misrepresentation, or other misconduct of a party or agency participating in the proceeding. (8) OAR 471-060-0005, Request for Change of Administrative Law Judge, applies to contested cases conducted by the Office of Administrative Hearings.