Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a)
License required. An individual who is certified as an independent hearing
examiner must be licensed to practice law in the State of Texas.
(b) Representations prohibited. An
independent hearing examiner, and the law firm with which the independent
hearing examiner is associated, must not serve as an agent or representative
of:
(1) a school district;
(2) a teacher in any dispute with a school
district; or
(3) an organization of
school employees, school administrators, or school boards.
(c) Moral character and criminal history. An
independent hearing examiner must:
(1) possess
good moral character; and
(2) as
demonstrated by a criminal history report process required by the commissioner
of education, not have been convicted, given probation (whether through
deferred adjudication or otherwise), or fined for:
(A) a felony;
(B) a crime of moral turpitude; or
(C) a crime that directly relates to the
duties of an independent hearing examiner in a public school
setting.
(d)
Status as a licensed attorney. An independent hearing examiner must:
(1) currently be a member in good standing of
the State Bar of Texas;
(2) within
the last three years, not have had the independent hearing examiner's bar
license:
(A) reprimanded, either privately or
publicly;
(B) suspended, either
probated or otherwise; or
(C)
revoked;
(3) have been
licensed to practice law in the State of Texas or any other state for at least
three years prior to application; and
(4) have engaged in the actual practice of
law on a full-time basis, as defined by the Texas Board of Legal
Specialization, for at least three years.
(e) Experience. During the three years
immediately preceding certification, an independent hearing examiner must have
devoted a minimum of 50% of the examiner's time practicing law in some
combination of the following areas, with a total of at least one-tenth or 10%
of the independent hearing examiner's practice involving substantial
responsibility for taking part in a contested evidentiary proceeding convened
pursuant to law in which the independent hearing examiner personally propounded
and/or defended against questions put to a witness under oath while serving as
an advocate, a hearing officer, or a presiding judicial officer:
(1) civil litigation;
(2) administrative law;
(3) school law;
(4) labor law;
(5) family law;
(6) criminal law; or
(7) personal injury law.
(f) Continuing education. During each year of
certification, an independent hearing examiner must receive credit for ten
hours of continuing legal education, with three hours in the area of school law
and seven hours in the area of civil trial advocacy and legal writing skills,
which must include any combination of course work in evidence, civil procedure,
and legal writing skills, during the period January 1 to December 31 of each
year of certification.
(g) Sworn
application. In order to be certified as an independent hearing examiner, an
applicant must submit a sworn application to the commissioner of education. The
application shall contain the following acknowledgments, waivers, and releases.
(1) The applicant agrees to authorize
appropriate institutions to furnish relevant documents and information
necessary in the investigation of the application, including information
regarding grievances maintained by the State Bar of Texas.
(2) If selected as an independent hearing
examiner, the applicant has the continuing duty to disclose grievance matters
under subsection (d)(2) of this section at any time during the certification
period. Failure to report these matters constitutes grounds for rejecting an
application or removal as an independent hearing examiner.
(3) If selected as an independent hearing
examiner, the applicant has the continuing duty to disclose criminal matters
under subsection (d)(2) of this section at any time during the certification
period. Failure to report these matters constitutes grounds for rejecting an
application or removal as an independent hearing examiner.
(h) Assurances as to position requirements.
In the sworn application, the applicant must:
(1) demonstrate that the applicant currently
maintains an office or offices within the State of Texas;
(2) designate the office locations from which
the applicant will accept appointments;
(3) demonstrate that the applicant provides
telephone messaging and facsimile services during regular business
hours;
(4) agree to attend meetings
of independent hearing examiners in Austin, Texas, at the examiner's expense;
and
(5) agree to comply with all
reporting and procedural requirements established by the
commissioner.
(i)
Voluntary evaluations. The commissioner may solicit voluntary evaluations from
parties to a case regarding their observations of the independent hearings
process.
(j) Insufficient examiners
in a region. In the event that insufficient numbers of independent hearing
examiners are certified for any geographic region of the state, the
commissioner may assign an independent hearing examiner whose office is within
reasonable proximity to the school district.
(k) Annual recertification.
(1) Certification expires on December 31 of
each calendar year. All independent hearing examiners seeking recertification
shall reapply on a date specified by the commissioner. Certification as a
hearing examiner is effective on a yearly basis only and does not confer any
expectation of recertification in subsequent years.
(2) The commissioner, in his discretion,
after providing notice and an opportunity to respond, may decline to recertify
an independent hearing examiner, if the commissioner determines that the
independent hearing examiner has failed to perform the duties of an independent
hearing examiner in a competent manner. The commissioner may consider, but is
not limited to, the following factors:
(A)
timeliness;
(B) accuracy and
appropriateness of procedural and evidentiary rulings;
(C) decorum or control; or
(D) application of appropriate legal
standards.
(3) The
commissioner's decision in regard to recertification is final and not
appealable.
(l) Action
against certification. The commissioner, after providing notice and an
opportunity to respond, may take action against the certificate of an
independent hearing examiner if it is determined that the independent hearing
examiner or the law firm with which the independent hearing examiner is
associated, during the time the independent hearing examiner has been
certified, has:
(1) served as an agent or
representative of a school district;
(2) served as an agent or representative of a
teacher in any dispute with a school district;
(3) served as an agent or representative of
an organization of school employees, school administrators, or school boards;
or
(4) failed to timely issue a
recommendation.