Section 100.13  Hearings

a)         All hearings conducted in any proceedings shall be open to the public.

b)         Hearings will be conducted by the Director or by an administrative law judge appointed by the Director.  If the Director conducts the hearings, any reference in this Section to the administrative law judge shall be read to refer to the Director.

c)         The administrative law judge shall conduct hearings; administer oaths; issue subpoenas; hold informal conferences for the settlement, simplication, or definition of issues; dispose of procedural requests, motions, and similar matters; continue the hearing from time to time when necessary; examine witnesses; and rule upon the admissibility of evidence.

d)         The administrative law judge shall direct all parties to enter their appearances on the record.

e)         Written opening arguments and written closing arguments shall not be permitted unless all parties so stipulate.

f)          Parties may by stipulation agree upon any facts involved in the proceeding.  The facts stipulated shall be considered as evidence in the proceeding.  Unless precluded by law, disposition may be made of any contested case by stipulation, agreed settlement, consent order, default, or by motion.

g)         At any stage of the hearing or after all parties have completed the presentation of their evidence, the administrative law judge may call for further testimony, subject to cross-examination by the parties.

h)         The rules of evidence and privilege as applied in civil cases in the circuit courts of this State shall be followed.  However, evidence not admissible under such rules of evidence may be admitted (except where precluded by statute) if it is of a type commonly relied upon by reasonably prudent persons in the conduct of their affairs.  Immaterial, irrelevant, or unduly repetitious material shall be excluded. A copy of the whole or any part of an admissible book, record, paper, or memorandum of the Department which is made by photostatic or other method of accurate and permanent reproduction may be admitted in evidence at the hearing without further proof of the accuracy of such copy. Objections to evidentiary offers may be made and shall be noted in the record. (Section 10-40 of the IAPA)

i)          Official notice may be taken of matters of which circuit courts of this State may take judicial notice. In addition, official notice may be taken of generally recognized technical or scientific facts within the Department's specialized knowledge.  Parties shall be notified either before or during the hearing, or by reference in preliminary reports or otherwise, of the material noticed, including any staff memoranda or data, and they shall be afforded an opportunity to contest the material so noticed.  The Department's experience, technical competence and specialized knowledge may be utilized in the evaluation of evidence. (Section 10-40 of the IAPA)

j)          A party may offer into evidence any of the following documents without foundation or other proof, provided that a copy of the document has been timely provided to all other parties in accordance with Section 100.12(b):

1)         records and reports of health care facilities, doctors, nurses, physical therapists, or other health care providers; however, such records and reports shall not include affidavits or other documents specifically prepared for litigation.

2)         investigation reports from government law enforcement agencies.

k)         For good cause shown, including but not limited to age, infirmity, or inability to travel, evidentiary depositions shall be allowed.

l)          Absent a showing of good cause, no document shall be offered into evidence which was not disclosed in accordance with the requirements in Section 100.12(b), and no witness shall testify whose name was not provided pursuant to Section 100.12(c).  For purposes of this subsection, a showing of good cause shall mean that a party, through no fault of its own, did not have knowledge of a document to be offered into evidence or the name of a witness within the timeframe necessary for compliance with Section 100.12(b) and (c).

m)        The Department will arrange for a certified stenographic reporter (court reporter) to make a stenographic record of the hearing in all administrative hearings under these rules.  Any person may make arrangements to obtain a copy of the stenographic record from the reporter.  The Department reserves the right to employ a certified stenographic reporter.  A copy of any stenographic record made by a Department employee may be purchased from the Department at a cost of one dollar per page.  There shall be no audio or video taping apart from any made by the certified stenographic reporter employed for those purposes by the Department without the express consent of the administrative law judge and all parties to the hearing.

n)         Corrections to the transcript of the record may be made by the Director or administrative law judge.

o)         If a party, or any person at the instance of or in collusion with a party, violates any ruling of the administrative law judge, the administrative law judge, on motion, may enter such orders as are just, including, among others, the following:

1)         that further proceedings be stayed until the order or rule is complied with;

2)         that the offending party be barred from filing any other pleadings relating to any issue to which the refusal or failure relates;

3)         that he or she be barred from maintaining any particular claim or defense relating to that issue;

4)         that a witness be barred from testifying concerning that issue;

5)         that, as to claims or defenses asserted in any pleading to which that issue is material, an order of default be entered against the offending party or that his or her pleading be dismissed without prejudice; or

6)         that any portion of his or her pleadings relating to that issue be stricken and, if thereby made appropriate, judgment be entered as to the issue.

p)         At any time, the administrative law judge may order the removal of any person from the hearing room who is creating a disturbance whether by physical actions, profanity or otherwise engaging in conduct which disrupts the hearing.

q)         At the request of any party, the administrative law judge may exclude all witness from the hearing room, except that each party or a representative of a party, in addition to legal counsel, shall be allowed to remain.

(Source:  Former Section 100.13 renumbered to Section 100.14; new Section 100.13 renumbered from Section 100.12 and amended at 21 Ill. Reg. 3208, effective March 3, 1997)