Procedure at hearingsU.K.
26.—(1) Hearings shall be conducted by the Authority, sitting with such employees of the Authority acting as advisers as it thinks fit.
(2) At a hearing every party to a case may appear in person or be represented by any other person whom he may have authorised to represent him, and may produce oral and written evidence and may examine any other party to that case, any person whom the Authority hears pursuant to regulation 25(2) and any witnesses produced by any such party or person: the Authority may, to such extent as it thinks fit, permit any person heard by it pursuant to regulation 25(2) to exercise at the hearing the rights set out in this paragraph of a party to the case.
(3) Any person who has served an objection or representation pursuant to regulation 20 but who does not wish to be heard, may make a written submission which he shall serve on the Authority not less than 3 working days before the date fixed for the hearing of the case.
(4) Every hearing shall be held in public unless the Authority shall otherwise decide in relation to the whole or part of a particular case F1....
(5) Where any person consulted by the Authority pursuant to regulation 21 has responded in writing and that person or a person acting on behalf of that person attends the hearing the Authority shall give him opportunity at the hearing to make observations on the evidence and arguments advanced by the parties to the case and by any persons heard by the Authority pursuant to regulation 25(2), and where any such observations are made the Authority shall give the parties to the case, and any person heard pursuant to regulation 25(2), opportunity at the hearing to respond to them.
(6) The failure of the Authority or of any person to give notice or publish any particulars in the time or manner provided for in the Act or in these Regulations or any other procedural irregularity shall not invalidate the action taken by the Authority; and the Authority may, and shall if it considers that any person may have been prejudiced, take such steps as it thinks fit before reaching its decision to cure the irregularity, whether by the giving of notice or otherwise.
(7) All the proceedings at a hearing of the Authority in connection with a case shall be recorded by a shorthand writer or by some other means, and if any person requests a record of the proceedings the Authority shall cause a mechanical recording or transcript of the shorthand or other record to be made available for purchase by that person at a reasonable price:
Provided that—
(a)the Authority shall not be required to make available a mechanical recording or transcript of the record of the proceedings at any time after the expiry of one year from the day of publication of its decision of the case; and
(b)a mechanical recording or transcript of the record of proceedings conducted otherwise than in public shall only be required to be made available for purchase by any party to the case or by any other person heard by the Authority at those proceedings.
(8) When the Authority provides to a person having a right of appeal pursuant to regulation 27(1)—
(a)notification in writing of its decision of the case, the notification shall specify a date, being not less than 3 working days after the date on which a copy of the notification was available for collection by or despatch to that person (which date is hereinafter referred to as “the decision date”;
(b)a mechanical recording or transcript of the record of proceedings in the case pursuant to a request made by that person within 7 days after the decision date, the recording or transcript shall be accompanied by a statement specifying a date, being not less than 3 working days after the date on which the recording or transcript was available for collection by or despatch to that person (which date is hereinafter referred to as “the transcript date”;
and the Authority shall as soon as may be thereafter publish the decision date and the transcript date.
Textual Amendments
F1Words in reg. 26(4) omitted (3.11.2008) by virtue of The Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Order 2008 (S.I. 2008/2683), art. 1, Sch. 1 para. 48
Commencement Information