D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 1, r. 1-2811

Current through Register Vol. 71, No. 49, December 6, 2024

Rule 1-2811 - FILING OF PAPERS; REPRESENTATIONS TO OAH

2811.1

A "paper" means any pleading, motion, exhibit, witness list, or any other written submission filed with OAH.

2811.2

Any paper filed at OAH shall be legible and signed by a party or a party's representative.

2811.3

To file any paper at OAH, a person shall bring; mail; email to oah.filing@dc.gov; submit via the eFiling portal; or have the paper delivered to the Clerk's Office during regular business hours from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on a business day.

(a) A paper is filed on the day the Clerk's Office receives it during business hours, except as provided in §§ 2811.4, 2811.5, and 2811.6.

(b) This Section permits any party to file papers by email with OAH or via the eFiling portal and the District to file data electronically. It also permits OAH to serve orders and notices by e-mail. The filing of any paper by email or via the eFiling portal following the procedures set forth in this Section constitutes filing for all purposes under these Rules.

2811.4

[REPEALED]

2811.5

The filing date for an email filing received in the correct OAH email box before 5:00 p.m. on any OAH business day shall be the date it is received. The filing date for an email filing received at other times shall be the next day that the Clerk's Office is open for business. The date and time recorded in the correct OAH email box shall be conclusive proof of when an email filing was received.

2811.6

The filing date for a paper received and date-stamped through the eFiling portal before 5:00 pm on any OAH business day shall be the date it is received, which the Clerk's Office shall communicate by email through the eFiling portal. The filing date for an eFiling portal paper received at other times shall be the next day that the Clerk's Office is open for business. The date and time recorded on the eFiling portal date stamp shall be conclusive proof of when the paper was filed.

2811.7

A party filing any paper by email or by the eFiling portal is responsible for any delay, disruption, or interruption of electronic signals, as well as for the legibility and completeness of the transmitted image, and accepts the risk that the paper may not be filed.

2811.8

(a) All papers, documentary exhibits, and photographic exhibits to be filed by email or via eFiling portal shall be in portable document format (PDF). The papers shall be attached to an email, and not contained in the body of the email itself.

(b) Audio and video exhibits filed with a paper shall be filed on a flash drive with the Clerk's Office; by email; via eFiling portal; or other electronic platform approved by the Clerk's Office. All audio and video exhibits shall be in mp4 format.

2811.9

OAH may reject any email filings that do not conform to this Section.

2811.10

Pursuant to §§ 2806, every paper filed by email or via eFiling portal shall contain:

(a) The name, mailing address, telephone number, and email address of the person filing it;

(b) The case number assigned by OAH, or a statement that a case number has not yet been assigned; and

(c) A brief description of the paper (for example, "request for hearing in a Medicaid matter," "motion for new hearing date for an unemployment hearing," "exhibits/documents for hearing in rental housing case").

2811.11

A filing that does not contain the information in §§ 2811.10 is subject to rejection. A cover page that can be used to satisfy this requirement is available at OAH. The "subject" line of the email shall also contain a brief description of the paper.

2811.12

If a paper filed by email or via eFiling portal is rejected, the party shall be notified by email. A rejected paper does not constitute a filing at OAH.

2811.13

Every filing, including papers filed by email or via the eFiling portal, shall contain a signature. A paper filed by email by an unrepresented party, that does not contain a signature as required by this Subsection, shall not be rejected on that basis alone.

2811.14

The certification requirement of §§ 2811.15 shall apply to all papers filed by email and via the eFiling portal.

2811.15 A party or representative filing a paper with OAH certifies in good faith that the party or representative:

(a) Has read the paper;

(b) Is not presenting it for any improper purpose, such as to harass, to cause unnecessary delay, or to increase the cost of litigation needlessly;

(c) Any legal contentions are warranted by existing law or a good faith argument to change existing law; and

(d) Any factual contentions have or are likely to have evidentiary support.

2811.16

If, after notice and an opportunity to respond, an Administrative Law Judge determines that an attorney or representative has violated this Section, the Administrative Law Judge may impose sanctions, including those authorized by §§ 2808.7 and 2810.12.

D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 1, r. 1-2811

Final Rulemaking published at 51 DCR 6399 (June 25, 2004); as amended by Emergency and Proposed Rulemaking published at 51 DCR 9322 (October 1, 2004) [EXPIRED]; as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 52 DCR 720 (January 28, 2005); as amended by Notice of Final Rulemaking published at 5 7 DCR 12541, 12550 (December 31, 2010); Final Rulemaking published at 63 DCR 6556 (4/29/2016); amended by Final Rulemaking published at 71 DCR 13913 (12/1/2024)

Authority: The Chief Administrative Law Judge of the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH), pursuant to the authority set forth in Sections 8(a)(7) and 8(b)(7) of the Office of Administrative Hearings Establishment Act of 2001, effective March 6, 2002 (D.C. Law 14-76, D.C. Official Code §§ 2-1831.05(a)(7) and (b)(7)) .