(1)
Notice of Appeal. Any appeal from a decision of an
administrative judge must be filed with the Department on the form prescribed
by the Department not later than 30 days from the filing date of the decision,
unless a late appeal is permitted by the Director as provided by M.G.L. c. 152,
§ 11C. A copy of the appeal shall be served by mail or in hand on counsel
for each party or on each unrepresented party.
(2)
Filing Fee. The
filing fee or a request for its waiver shall be submitted to the Reviewing
Board with the notice of appeal. The filing fee prescribed by M.G.L. c. 152,
§ 11C shall be 30% of the average weekly wage in the Commonwealth at the
time of payment. Any request for a waiver of the filing fee based on indigence
shall be filed on a form prescribed by the Department.
(3)
Reviewing Board.
An administrative law judge may require counsel or pro se
litigants to appear for a conference to consider waiver of the filing
fee, simplification of the issues on appeal, whether oral argument will be
held, and any other matters that may aid in the disposition of the
appeal.
(4)
Briefs. Unless otherwise ordered by the Reviewing
Board, a brief shall be filed by the appellant in all cases in accordance with
the following provisions:
(a)
Content. The brief of the appellant shall contain
under appropriate headings and in the order here indicated:
1. A statement of the issues presented for
review; stated with particularity. A statement that the decision on review is
beyond the scope of the administrative judge's authority, arbitrary or
capricious, or contrary to law, without more, shall not constitute a proper
statement of the issues presented for review;
2. A statement of the case, which shall first
indicate briefly the nature of the case, the course of proceedings and its
disposition following conference and hearing. There shall follow a brief
statement of the facts relevant to the issues presented for review, with
appropriate references to the record;
3. The argument, which shall contain the
contention of the appellant with respect to the issues presented, supporting
rationale and citations to the authorities, statutes, rules, regulations and
parts of the record on which the party relies. The Reviewing Board need not
decide questions or issues not argued in the brief. If oral argument is
permitted nothing argued in the brief shall be deemed to be waived by a failure
to argue the issue orally;
4. A
short conclusion stating the precise relief sought; and
5. The names, addresses and telephone numbers
of counsel and their firms.
(b)
Length and Form of
Briefs. All briefs and appendices shall be produced as follows:
1. Except by permission of an administrative
law judge, briefs shall not exceed 30 pages, exclusive of pages as may contain
a table of contents, tables of citations and any addendum containing statutes,
rules or regulations. Permission shall not be granted unless the moving party
specifies the relevant issue or issues and why such issues merit additional
pages.
2. All briefs and appendices
shall be produced by any duplicating or copying process that produces a clear
black image on white paper, which shall be eight and one-half inches in width
and eleven inches in height. The top, bottom, left and right margins shall be
at least one inch. The typeface shall be 12 point Courier font or larger size
and not exceeding 10.5 characters per inch. Text shall be double-spaced, except
that argument headings, footnotes and indented quotations shall be
single-spaced. The text may appear on both sides of the page, but the numbered
pages of text shall not exceed the page limit set for the brief.
3. On behalf of the Reviewing Board, an
administrative law judge may accept briefs filed which are not in substantial
compliance with
452 CMR 1.00.
(c)
Statutory
Provisions. If determination of the issues presented requires
consideration of statutory provisions, rules or regulations, or when an appeal
involves the application of amendments to M.G.L. c. 152, the parties shall
reproduce all relevant sections of the original act and any later amendments,
including all provisions regarding applicability and effective dates.
(d)
Citations.
References to decisions and other authorities shall include, in addition to the
page at which the decision or section begins, a page reference to the
particular material on which reliance is placed, and the year of the decision
or other authority.
(e)
Amicus Curiae. An amicus
curiae shall notify the Reviewing Board of its intention to file a
brief.
(f)
Response
Briefs. The brief of the appellee, cross-appellant or
amicus curiae shall conform to 452 CMR 1.15(4)(a) and (b) with
the exception that a statement of issues shall not be made unless the appellee
or amicus curiae is dissatisfied with the statement of the
appellant.
(g)
Designation of Parties. In their briefs and oral
arguments, counsel shall refer to the parties as designated by the
administrative judge in the decision, such as "the employee," "the claimant,"
"the employer," and "the insurer" and should keep to a minimum, references to
parties by such designations as "appellant" and "appellee".
(h)
Time for Filing.
Appellant shall file its brief 30 days after receipt of notification from the
Reviewing Board that it is due. The appellee, cross-appellant or amicus
curiae shall file its brief within 20 days of receipt of the
appellant's brief. A reply brief may be filed by the appellant 20 days
thereafter. No further briefs shall be filed without leave of the Reviewing
Board. When there are cross-appeals, the party that files its appeal first
shall be considered the appellant for the purpose of complying with the time
requirements for the filing of briefs,
(i)
Extension of
Time. A request for an extension of time to file a brief shall be
filed in writing with the Reviewing Board and shall state the length of
extension requested and the specific reason for the request.
(j)
Copies of
Briefs. The original and four copies of each brief shall be filed
with the Reviewing Board unless the Reviewing Board by order shall direct a
different number to be filed. One copy shall be served by mail or in hand on
counsel for each party or on each unrepresented party.
(5)
Dismissal of
Appeal. The Reviewing Board may dismiss an appeal or cross-appeal
for the following reasons:
(a) failure of the
appellant, without good cause, to file a brief, unless filing has been waived
by the Reviewing Board;
(b) failure
of the appellant or cross-appellant to submit a filing fee or a fee waiver
form;
(c) failure of the appellant
or cross-appellant to appear at oral argument without good cause.
(6)
Oral
Argument. If it elects to hear oral argument, the Reviewing Board
shall advise all parties and any amicus curiae of the time and place of
hearing. A request for postponement of the argument shall be made by motion
filed reasonably in advance of the date fixed for hearing. The appellant shall
argue first. Each party shall be allowed 15 minutes for argument unless the
time is extended or limited by the Reviewing Board. In advance of oral
argument, a party may request additional time, which will be granted only under
unusual circumstances.
(7)
Withdrawal of Appeal. The parties to any case pending
before the Reviewing Board shall notify the Reviewing Board in writing of any
settlement, withdrawal of appeal, adjustment or other disposition.
