Chapter: I-4-3
Subject: Declarations
This transmittal amends sections I-4-3-5 and I-4-3-10 of the Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law (HALLEX) manual to update our policies and instructions concerning how the Court Case Preparation and Review Branches (CCPRB) of the Office of Appellate Operations' (OAO) Division of Civil Actions (DCA) prepare declarations after a civil action has been filed against the Commissioner. The updates primarily reflect updates to DCA's business processes after a civil action has been filed.
I-4-3-5 – We removed the note based on the agency's extension of court litigation rights to Appeals Council dismissals of requests for review of an administrative law judge's decision.
I-4-3-10 – We added a note to clarify that if a case does not involve the expedited appeals process and the record contains neither a request for hearing nor a hearing decision, the branch chiefs will attest that there is no request for hearing and no hearing decision in the claim(s) file and that no action is currently pending with either the hearing office or the Appeals Council. We deleted subsection B in accordance with the agency's extension of court litigation rights to Appeals Council dismissals of requests for review of administrative law judge decisions.
Date: June 26, 2023