La. Admin. Code tit. 46 § LXXXVI-1717

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 11, November 20, 2024

Section LXXXVI-1717 - Hearing Procedures

A. Purpose

1. A hearing will be conducted to determine whether a violation of the Code of Professional Ethics for Licensed Rehabilitation Counselors has occurred and, if so, to determine appropriate disciplinary action.

2. The committee shall be guided in its deliberations by principles of basic fairness and professionalism, and will keep its deliberations as confidential as possible, except as provided herein.

B. Notice

1. The LRC shall be advised in writing via certified mail by the chair administering the complaint of the time and place of the hearing.

2. If the LRC fails to appear at the hearing, the committee shall decide the complaint and determine what testimony it will hear on record. Failure of the LRC to appear at the hearing shall not be viewed by the committee as sufficient grounds alone for taking disciplinary action.

C. Conduct of the Hearing

1. The location of the hearing shall be determined at the discretion of the committee. The committee shall provide a private room to conduct the hearing and no observers or recording devices other than a recording device used by the committee shall be permitted.

2. The chair administering the complaint shall preside over the hearing and deliberations of the committee. At the conclusion of the hearing and deliberations of the committee, the chair shall promptly issue written notice to the LRC via certified mail of the committee's decision. The chair shall also notify the complainant in writing via certified mail of the disposition of the complaint. However, the chair shall not disclose the disciplinary action, if any, imposed on the licensee.

3. A record of the hearing shall be made and preserved, together with any documents presented in evidence, at the board's administrative office. The record shall consist of a summary of testimony received or a verbatim transcript, at the discretion of the committee.

4. The LRC and the complainant shall be entitled to have legal counsel or a representative present to advise and represent them throughout the hearing. Legal counsel for the board may also be present at the hearing to advise the committee and shall have the privilege of the floor.

5. Either party shall have the right to call witnesses to substantiate his/her version of the case.

6. The committee shall have the right to call witnesses it believes may provide further insight into the matter.

7. Witnesses shall not be present during the hearing except when they are called upon to testify and shall be excused upon completion of their testimony and any cross-examination.

8. The chair administering the complaint shall allow questions to be asked of any witness by the opposition or members of the committee if such questions and testimony are relevant to the issues in the case.

9. The chair administering the complaint will determine what questions and testimony are relevant to the case. Should the hearing be subject to irrelevant testimony, the chair may call a brief recess until order can be restored.

10. Both the complainant and the LRC, and any witnesses and legal counsel that they may have must pay their own expenses. Parties initiating telephone contact will assume the expenses related to the calls.

D. Presentation of Evidence

1. The chair administering the complaint shall be called upon first to present the charge(s) made against the LRC and to briefly describe the evidence supporting the charge. The chair shall also be responsible for examining and cross-examining witnesses on behalf of the complainant and for otherwise presenting the matter during the hearing.

2. The complainant or a member of the committee shall then be called upon to present the case against the LRC. Witnesses who can substantiate the case may be called upon to testify and answer questions of the LRC and the committee.

3. If the LRC has exercised the right to be present at the hearing, he/she may be called upon to present any evidence which refutes the charges against him/her. This includes witnesses as in Paragraph 2 above.

4. The LRC will not be found guilty simply for refusing to testify. Once the LRC chooses to testify, however, he/she may be cross-examined by the complainant and members of the committee, subject to the constitutional rights of the licensee.

5. Testimony that is merely cumulative or repetitious may, at the discretion of the chair administering the complaint, be excluded.

6. All parties providing testimony will be required to attest to the veracity of their statements.

E. Relevancy of Evidence

1. The committee hearing is not a court of law and is not required to observe formal rules of evidence. Evidence that would be inadmissible in a court of law may be admissible in the hearing before the committee, if it is relevant to the case. Therefore, if the evidence offered tends to explain, clarify, or refute any of the important facts of the case, it should be considered.

2. The committee will not consider evidence or testimony for the purpose of supporting any charge that was not set forth in the notice of the hearing or that is not relevant to the issues of the case.

F. Burden of Proof

1. The burden of proving a violation of the Code of Professional Ethics for Licensed Rehabilitation Counselors is on the complainant and/or the committee.

2. Although the charge(s) need not be proved "beyond a reasonable doubt," a committee finding that an LRC has violated the Code of Professional Ethics for Licensed Rehabilitation Counselors must be supported by substantial, objective, and believable evidence.

G. Deliberation of the Committee

1. After the hearing is completed, the committee shall meet in a closed session to review the evidence presented and reach a conclusion. The board's legal counsel may attend the closed session to advise the committee if the committee so desires.

2. The committee shall be the sole judge of the facts and shall weigh the evidence presented and assess the credibility of the witnesses. The decision of a majority of the members of the committee present shall be the decision of the committee and the board. The chair shall vote only to break a tie or when the committee consists of three members.

3. Only members of the committee who were present throughout the entire hearing shall be eligible to vote.

H. Decision of the Committee

1. The committee will first resolve the issue of the guilt or innocence of the LRC on each charge. Applying the burden of proof in Subsection F above, the committee will vote by secret ballot, unless all of the members of the committee entitled to vote consent to an oral vote.

2. In the event the committee does not find the licensee guilty, the charges will be dismissed. If the committee finds the LRC has violated the Code of Professional Ethics for Licensed Rehabilitation Counselors, it must then determine what sanctions shall be imposed.

La. Admin. Code tit. 46, § LXXXVI-1717

Promulgated by the Department of Health and Hospitals, Licensed Professional Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors Board of Examiners, LR 28:500 (March 2002).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 37:3441-3452 and 36:478.I.