Background

This transmittal amends several sections in chapter I-4-1 of the Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law (HALLEX) manual to update instructions relating to new court case processing. We also made formatting and editorial changes throughout the sections.

Explanation of Content and Changes

This transmittal revises chapter I-4-1 as follows:

I-4-1-1 – We moved the information previously in this section to HALLEX I-4-1-2 A and removed the section.

I-4-1-2 – We changed the title of subsection A to “Filing a Complaint” and incorporated information previously in the introduction and subsection C. We made minor editorial changes to subsection B. We retitled subsection C “When Civil Action is Filed” and added information about determining the deadline to file a civil action and the date of the filing. We added a new subsection D titled “Response to a Complaint” and incorporated information formerly in HALLEX I-4-1-1.

I-4-1-10 – We retitled the section “Receipt of Notice of Civil Action.” We removed outdated processes and references to systems that are no longer in use. We updated the instructions to incorporate electronic business processes. We also added helpful references to other HALLEX sections.

I-4-1-12 – We retitled the section “Initial Answer Process — Court Case Preparation and Review Branch Responsibilities.” We removed outdated processes and references to systems that are no longer in use. We reorganized and revised the section to incorporate electronic business processes. We retitled subsection A “General” and included information that was previously included in subsection D. We retitled subsection B “Obtaining Paper Files (When Applicable)” and added information previously in subsections A, B, and C. We retitled subsection C “Answer Procedures,” and we incorporated information previously in subsection E. We deleted subsections D and E.

I-4-1-14 – We changed the title of subsection A to “Submitting Request for a Transcription.” We removed references to outdated paper processes and made other minor edits to match our current electronic business process. In subsection B, we reorganized and consolidated the content previously in subsection C. We added detailed information about the responsibilities of the contracts staff. Additionally, we retitled subsection C “Recording Returned as Inaudible,” and we moved the content formerly in subsection D to subsection C. We also removed references to outdated paper processes and made other minor edits. We moved the content formerly in subsection E to I-4-1-25 A, and deleted subsections D and E.

I-4-1-25 – We retitled the section “Analyst Review — Court Case Preparation and Review Branch.” We changed the title of subsection A to “General” and incorporated information from I-4-1-14 E regarding when a case must be assigned to an analyst. We moved the content formerly in subsection A into subsection B. We moved the information previously in subsection B to subsection C. We moved the information previously in subsection C into subsection D. Throughout the section, we removed references to outdated paper processes and made other minor edits to include our current electronic business process.

I-4-1-30 – We created two subsections titled “Purpose” and “General Procedures.” We placed information previously in the first paragraph of the section under the first subsection and added an overview of declarations. We placed the content previously in the second paragraph of the section in the second subsection and expanded the explanation for clarity.

I-4-1-31 – We removed three subsections and combined the information. We removed references to outdated paper processes and updated the procedures for our current electronic business processes. We also made other minor editorial changes.

I-4-1-32 – We reorganized subsection A “General” and removed references to outdated paper processes. We moved the information previously in a NOTE to subsection B. We retitled subsection B “Exception — 11th Circuit” and expanded the explanation of the exception. We also removed outdated information in subsection B.

I-4-1-33 – We combined subsections A and B. We also removed references to outdated paper processes and incorporated our current electronic business process.

I-4-1-35 – We retitled subsection A “General” and included an overview of the remaining subsections. We moved the information previously in subsection A to subsection B. We moved the information previously in subsection B to subsection C. We moved the information previously in subsection C to subsection D. We moved the information previously in subsection D to new subsection E.

I-4-1-36 – We deleted this section because it referenced outdated systems that are no longer in use.

I-4-1-40 – We deleted this section as the information was unnecessary.

I-4-1-41 – We added three subsections titled “General,” “Sentence Four Remands” and “Sentence Six Remands.” We made other minor edits to the information.

I-4-1-42 – We added two subsections titled “General” and “Expedited Appeals Process Procedures.” In the first subsection, we provided a more detailed description of the expedited appeal process. In the second subsection, we added instructions to verify whether a civil action filing is timely and noted the special requirements for the certified administrative record in expedited appeals. We inserted helpful citations to other HALLEX sections.

I-4-1-43 – We expanded this section to provide a more detailed explanation of the purpose and application of the Equal Access to Justice Act.

I-4-1-44 – We deleted this section because it referenced outdated processes.

I-4-1-46 – We added two subsections “Requests Received Before a Civil Action is Filed” and “Requests Submitted or Received After a Civil Action is Filed” and clarified processing instructions.

I-4-1-50 – We retitled this section “Overview of Preparing the Certified Administrative Record.” We reorganized the section for clarity and added helpful HALLEX citations. We made other minor editorial changes.

I-4-1-96 through I-4-1-115 – We deleted these sections because the examples were outdated.

Date: July 3, 2014