Current through Rules and Regulations filed through March 20, 2024
1.
Availability. The parties may
have the opportunity to submit a settlement to the Adjudicator or submit a
request for alternative dispute resolution under Rule
120-2-2-.24(4).
2.
Form. A settlement must be in
the form of a proposed settlement agreement, a consent order, and a motion for
its entry, which must include the reasons it should be accepted and must be
signed by the consenting parties or their authorized representatives.
3.
Content of Settlement
Agreement. The proposed settlement agreement must contain the following:
a. an admission of all jurisdictional
facts;
b. an express waiver of
further procedural steps before the Adjudicator or the Department, of any right
to challenge or contest the validity of the order entered into in accordance
with the agreement, and of all rights to seek judicial review or otherwise to
contest the validity of the consent order;
c. a statement that the order will have the
same force and effect as an order made after full hearing; and
d. a statement that matters in the parties'
filings required to be adjudicated, if any, have been resolved by the proposed
settlement agreement and consent order.
4.
Settlement Adjudicator; Alternative
Dispute Resolution.
a. The
Adjudicator, upon motion of a party or upon her/his own authority, may request
that the Commissioner appoint a Settlement Adjudicator to conduct settlement
negotiations or remit the adjudication to alternative dispute resolution as the
Department may provide or to which the parties may agree. The order appointing
the Settlement Adjudicator may confine the scope of settlement negotiations to
specified issues. The order must direct the Settlement Adjudicator to report to
the Commissioner at specified times.
b. If a Settlement Adjudicator is appointed,
(s)he must:
i. convene and preside over
conferences and settlement negotiations between the parties and assess the
practicalities of a potential settlement,
ii. report to the Adjudicator describing the
status of the settlement negotiations and recommending the termination or
continuation of the settlement negotiations, and
iii. not discuss the merits of the case with
the Adjudicator or any other person who does not have a need to know under
Department rules, and not appear as a witness in the case.
c. Settlement negotiations conducted by the
Settlement Adjudicator must terminate upon the order of the Commissioner issued
after consultation with the Settlement Adjudicator.
d. Notwithstanding the provisions of Rule
120-2-2-.45 (Interlocutory Review),
no decision concerning the appointment of a Settlement Adjudicator or the
termination of the settlement negotiation is subject to review or rehearing by
the Adjudicator or the Department.
5. The Adjudicator (or Settlement
Adjudicator) may require that the attorney or other representative of each
party be present and that the parties, or agents having full settlement
authority, also be present or available by telephone.
6. None of the following is admissible in
evidence-on behalf of any party-either to prove or disprove the validity or
amount of a disputed claim or to impeach by a prior inconsistent statement or a
contradiction:
a. furnishing, promising, or
offering (or accepting, promising to accept, or offering to accept) a valuable
consideration in compromising or attempting to compromise the claim;
or
b. conduct or a statement made
during compromise negotiations about the claim.
7. The Adjudicator (or Settlement
Adjudicator) may impose on the parties and persons having an interest in the
outcome of the Adjudication such other and additional requirements as are
necessary for the efficient resolution of the case, consistent with Agency
precedent.
8. The conduct of
settlement negotiations must not unduly delay the adjudication.
O.C.G.A. §
33-2-9et
seq.
