Section 11-10-526 - Claims - Administrative appeal - Procedure(a)(1) The Board of Review, appeal tribunal, and special examiners shall not be bound by common law or statutory rules of evidence or by technical rules of procedure, but any hearing or appeal before the tribunals shall be conducted in such manner as to ascertain the substantial rights of the parties.(2) In like manner as provided at § 11-10-307(a) for the adopting, amending, or rescinding of general rules by the Director of the Division of Workforce Services, the board may adopt reasonable rules governing the manner of filing appeals, the conduct of hearings, and other appellate procedures, consistent with this chapter.(b) Hearings on appeals before an appeals tribunal or before the board shall not be held sooner than five (5) days from the date of the mailing of notice thereof to the parties to the appeal.(c) When the same or substantially similar evidence is relevant and material to the matters in issue in claims by more than one (1) individual or in claims by a single individual with respect to two (2) or more weeks of unemployment, the same time and place for considering each claim may be fixed, hearings jointly conducted, a single record of the proceedings made, and evidence introduced with respect to one (1) proceeding considered as introduced in the others, provided that in the judgment of the examiner or tribunal having jurisdiction of the proceeding, consolidation would not be prejudicial to any party.(d) No person shall participate on behalf of the director or the board in any case in which he or she has a direct or indirect interest.(e) A record shall be kept of all testimony and proceedings before special examiners or in connection with an appeal, but the testimony need not be transcribed unless further review is initiated.(f) Witnesses subpoenaed pursuant to §§ 11-10-520 - 11-10-532 shall be allowed fees at a rate fixed by the director, and fees of witnesses subpoenaed on behalf of the director or any claimant shall be deemed part of the expense of administering this chapter. Amended by Act 2019, No. 315,§ 824, eff. 7/24/2019.Amended by Act 2019, No. 910,§ 256, eff. 7/1/2019.Acts 1941, No. 391, § 6; 1943, No. 138, § 6; 1983, No. 482, § 24; A.S.A. 1947, § 81-1107; Acts 1997, No. 234, § 19; 2009, No. 802, § 8.