Background

This transmittal amends section I-2-6-60 of the Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law (HALLEX) manual to clarify instructions to follow if a claimant or appointed representative is disruptive during a hearing.

Explanation of Content and Changes

HALLEX I-2-6-60 is amended as follows:

I-2-6-60 A – We changed the title to “Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Responsibilities” and incorporated information previously in a NOTE in subsection D because the information was more appropriately placed in subsection A. We made other editorial changes throughout the subsection.

I-2-6-60 B – We changed the title to “Right to Question Witnesses,” and made editorial changes throughout the subsection. We also incorporated information previously in subsection D regarding excluding a witness from the hearing when he or she is not testifying because the information was more appropriately placed in subsection B.

I-2-6-60 C – We changed the title to “Claimant's Right to Be Present During the Entire Hearing” to better clarify what information is included in the subsection. We made editorial changes throughout and added an example noting that under certain circumstances, an ALJ can exclude a claimant who is a minor from the hearing proceedings. We moved instructions relating to disruptive claimants or representatives to subsection D.

I-2-6-60 D – We moved the information previously in subsection D to subsections A (information relating to ruling on an objection to the presence of other persons during the hearing), B (information regarding excluding a witness from a hearing), and E (information relating to testimony when there are multiple parties to the hearing). We retitled the subsection “Disruptive Claimant or Representative,” incorporated information previously in subsection C, and expanded the instructions to better explain what actions an ALJ will take when a claimant or appointed representative is disruptive to the hearing proceedings.

I-2-6-60 E – We titled the subsection “Obtaining Testimony When There Are Multiple Parties to the Hearing” and incorporated information previously in subsection D. We made other editorial changes.

Date: January 15, 2016