W. Va. Code R. § 93-1-6
Any objection, referred to as "protest", to a ruling of the claim administrator shall be filed with the Office of Judges in writing and a copy served on the claim administrator and all parties. The protest shall include a copy of the ruling to which the protest has been made.
Any protest under this section shall be filed with the Office of Judges within sixty (60) days after receipt of the notice set forth in W. Va. Code § 23-5-1. As provided in W. Va. Code § 23-5-6, the period within which a protest must be filed may be expanded to one hundred twenty (120) days for good cause or excusable neglect.
Protests which do not meet the requirements of §6.1 will serve to meet the time limitations of §6.2 provided that any deficiency is corrected within a reasonable time after notification by the Office of Judges of the deficiency.
The Office of Judges shall determine if a protest is timely filed, acknowledge receipt of timely filed protests, and may issue Time Frame Orders in regard to the litigation of such protests. A Time Frame Order shall be interlocutory in nature and not subject to appeal.
A Time Frame Order shall set forth the sequence in which evidence shall be presented by the parties and the time periods within which such evidence shall be presented. A Time Frame Order may include such other matters as deemed appropriate by the Chief Administrative Law Judge or his/her designee. Except for those expedited issues identified in section nine [93-1-9 et seq.], a Time Frame Order may be modified, amended or extended at the request of a party, but only for good cause shown. The Office of Judges may modify or amend a Time Frame Order without such a request for appropriate administrative purposes. A request for modification, amendment, or extension, of the Time Frame, must be in writing and must be made no later than ten (10) days prior to the expiration of the existing Time Frame Order. Any extension request filed later than ten (10) days prior to the expiration of the requesting party's existing Time Frame Order shall be denied unless good cause is found for the untimeliness of the request. Any request, timely or otherwise, for an extension of time must set forth the reason an extension is necessary and shall include a statement of the efforts the party has made to comply with the Time Frame Order.
Except for purposes of section ten [93-1-10 et seq., "Failure to Prosecute Protest"] of this Rule, parties may file argument, explanation of case, or statement of authority in a case summation (sometimes referred to as a "closing argument"). Any such case summation or closing argument must be filed within ten (10) days after the expiration of the final Time Frame. Any argument, explanation of case, or statement of authority filed later than ten (10) days after the expiration of the final Time Frame may be considered at the discretion of the ALJ.
As noted in section ten [93-1-10 et seq., "Failure to Prosecute Protest"], argument submitted in lieu of evidence must be filed within the protesting party's time frame.
Evidence in regard to a protest shall be presented either concurrently or consecutively as set forth by Time Frame Order. The protesting party shall have the burden of going forth with evidence first in those protests with consecutive time frames. In the event that the claimant and at least one employer have protested, the parties shall proceed concurrently.
Any notice required by these rules shall be deemed adequate if served upon counsel of the other parties (or upon the party if not represented by counsel) as may be permitted as in Rule 5 of the West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure. Filing by facsimile is permitted together with other electronic means as may be approved by the Chief Administrative Law Judge. Receipt of notice shall be presumed seven (7) calendar days after the date of notice. If service at the last known address is returned by the United States Postal Service as undeliverable, a party shall notify the Office of Judges and thereafter need not continue serving notices at that address. It is the duty of each party to notify the Office of Judges and all other parties of any change of address.
The Chief Administrative Law Judge or his/her authorized representative shall review the transcripts of the hearings, testimony, the evidence, and arguments, and take such action with regard to the issues as shall be appropriate. The Chief Administrative Law Judge or his/her authorized representative may order further action in a protest when it appears that a legal issue has not been sufficiently addressed, or when the record appears to have been burdened with excessive submissions or designations. Any further action so ordered shall be limited to those matters specifically referenced in the order. Such further action may include additional hearings, the requirement of the filing of briefs or summations, the requirement of an explanation of the relevance and materiality of any evidence, or such other action as may promote the ends of justice and judicial economy.
W. Va. Code R. § 93-1-6