Section 180-12-10 - Prehearing Conference; Notice and Procedure The executive director may require attendance at a prehearing conference by the parties or their representatives. The purpose of a prehearing conference is to prepare for an orderly hearing, to narrow the issues to be resolved at hearing and to explore opportunities for settlement.
1.Notice. The executive director shall serve notice of the prehearing conference on the parties by mail. The notice must include the time, date and place of the conference or hearing.2.Required Information. The notice of prehearing conference may require the parties to provide either at the prehearing conference or up to one week prior to the date of the prehearing conference, the following information: A. A written statement of relevant issues of fact and law;B. An estimate of the time required for hearing;C. Proposed stipulations and admissions;D. Exhibits and a list of the names and addresses of witnesses intended to be offered at hearing;E. A concise description of the settlement posture of the case without reference to the specific figures involved in prior discussions or negotiations;F. Oral argument on any request for deferral; orG. Any other information which in the opinion of the prehearing officer may aid in resolution or narrowing of the disputed issues remaining for hearing.3.Documentary Evidence. The prehearing officer shall mark and admit all documentary evidence on which the parties agree. Disputed documentary evidence must be marked for identification and the basis of any objection noted by the prehearing officer. The Board shall rule on the admissibility of documentary evidence upon motion by the offering party at the evidentiary hearing. Documentary evidence offered under this rule must be submitted in 5 copies unless the executive director or prehearing officer permits the parties to submit evidence electronically. Only documentary evidence which was not available to the party offering it at the time of the prehearing conference or which was not known to exist at that time may be considered for admission by the Board at the time of hearing.4.Witness List. The prehearing officer shall make a witness list. Any change in the list of prospective witnesses must be communicated by each party to the others and to the Board at least 48 hours before the evidentiary hearing.5.Collective Bargaining Agreement. In any case where the complaint refers to a collective bargaining agreement, that agreement must be treated as an exhibit admitted in evidence unless objection is seasonably noted.6.Deferral to Arbitration. The executive director or prehearing officer shall cause a record to be made of argument concerning any request for deferral to arbitration and shall grant or deny the deferral request. Oral argument may be allowed, in the discretion of the executive director or prehearing officer, if a party requests it. If any party requests Board review of the deferral decision the executive director or prehearing officer must refer the record to the Board. The Board may confer telephonically or by other remote means to determine whether to grant or deny the motion to defer.7.Dispositive Legal Issue. If it appears to the prehearing officer that the determination of a legal issue will resolve the dispute and render a fact hearing unnecessary, the prehearing officer may order a severance and fix a briefing schedule to enable the Board to first determine the legal issue. If the date for a fact hearing has already been set by the executive director, the prehearing officer may order that the hearing be rescheduled.8.Settlement. The prehearing officer shall explore the settlement negotiations conducted by the parties and shall encourage a fair disposition of the case by settlement. The representatives of the parties shall make every reasonable effort to attend the prehearing conference with full authorization from their clients with respect to settlement.9.Failure to Participate is Grounds for Dismissal or Default. Failure of a complainant to attend a prehearing conference, to satisfy the requirements of the prehearing notice or to file a brief required by the prehearing officer may be grounds for dismissal of the complaint. Failure of a respondent to attend a prehearing conference, to satisfy the requirements of the prehearing notice or to file a brief required by the prehearing officer may be grounds for the entry of a default order against the respondent. The dismissal or default is with prejudice, unless otherwise stated in the order of dismissal or default, and is final unless the Board finds that the failure to participate in the conference or hearing or to satisfy the requirements of the prehearing notice was the result of excusable neglect.10.Prehearing Memorandum and Order. At the conclusion of the prehearing conference the prehearing officer shall issue a prehearing memorandum and order in which the fact issues for hearing are identified and amendments to pleadings agreed upon by the parties are recorded. The prehearing officer may order the parties to file legal memoranda or hearing briefs in advance of the hearing. Submission of such briefs is subject to the requirements of section 18 of this Chapter. The prehearing memorandum and order must indicate if additional copies of the complaint and the applicable collective bargaining agreement must be submitted prior to the hearing.12-180 C.M.R. ch. 12, § 10