Section 8 - Appearance of the Judge(a) At the time and place set for the hearing, the Commission or the hearing officer shall proceed with the hearing, whether or not the judge has filed an answer or appears at the hearing. The Special Counsel shall present the case in support of the allegations of misconduct or disability contained in the notice of hearing.(b) The failure of the judge to answer or to appear at the hearing shall not, standing alone, be taken as evidence of the truth of the facts alleged to constitute misconduct or disability.(c) The proceedings at the hearing shall be reported by suitable means.(d) Witnesses, other than the respondent judge, shall be excluded from the hearing room and from a place where they can hear the proceedings. On its own motion, the Commission or the hearing officer may, and on request of a party the Commission or the hearing officer shall, order any witness, including the respondent judge, to refrain from discussing the facts of the proceedings with anyone other than Special Counsel, the respondent judge's counsel, or the respondent judge when he is acting as his own counsel. Upon a showing of good cause, and in the interests of justice, the Commission or the hearing officer may exempt any witness from its order. Any such order shall expire at the conclusion of the hearing.(e) Upon a motion by a party or by a person from whom the information was obtained, and for good cause shown and in appropriate limited circumstances, the Commission or the hearing officer may issue a protective order requiring that certain portions of the record remain confidential.Amended effective 7/1/2016; amended effective 9/4/2019; amended effective 5/1/2020.