R994-508-118. What Constitutes Grounds to Reopen a Hearing

(1) The request to reopen will be granted if the party was prevented from appearing at the hearing due to circumstances beyond the party's control.

(2) The request may be granted upon such terms as are just for any of the following reasons: mistake, inadvertence, surprise, excusable neglect, or any other reason justifying relief from the operation of the decision. The determination of what sorts of neglect will be considered excusable is an equitable one, taking into account all of the relevant circumstances including:

(a) the danger that the party not requesting reopening will be harmed by reopening;

(b) the length of the delay caused by the party's failure to participate including the length of time to request reopening;

(c) the reason for the request including whether it was within the reasonable control of the party requesting reopening;

(d) whether the party requesting reopening acted in good faith;

(e) whether the party was represented at the time of the hearing. Attorneys and professional representatives are expected to have greater knowledge of Department procedures and rules and are therefore held to a higher standard; and

(f) whether based on the evidence of record and the parties' arguments or statements, taking additional evidence might affect the outcome of the case.

(3) Requests to reopen are remedial in nature and thus must be liberally construed in favor of providing parties with an opportunity to be heard and present their case. Any doubt must be resolved in favor of granting reopening.

(4) Excusable neglect is not limited to cases where the failure to act was due to circumstances beyond the party's control.

(5) The ALJ has the discretion to schedule a hearing to determine if a party requesting reopening satisfied the requirements of this rule or may, after giving the other parties an opportunity to respond to the request, grant or deny the request on the basis of the record in the case.