Chapter 1. General Rules & Regulations.

1.1          Issuing Body.

  These rules and regulations are issued by the City of Chicago’s Department of Administrative Hearings.  The Department of Administrative Hearings currently maintains five divisions; The Buildings Hearings Division, the Consumer Affairs Hearings Division, the Municipal Hearings Division, the Environmental Safety Hearings Division, and the Vehicle Hearings Division.

1.2          Power to Adopt Rules & Regulations.

  These rules and  regulations are promulgated pursuant to the Municipal Code of Chicago, chapter 2-14, sections 2-14-030(3), 2-14-030(5) and other chapters, sections and/or subsections which provide that the Director of the Department of Administrative Hearings may promulgate rules and regulations for the conduct of administrative hearing proceedings and other matters related to the operation of chapter 2-14.  The Director may also promulgate or adopt additional rules and regulations for the conduct of administrative hearings before a particular division or section of a division of the Department of Administrative Hearings.

1.3          Scope of Rules & Regulations.

These rules and regulations shall apply to the conduct of all cases before the Department of Administrative Hearings.

1.4          Subject to Amendment.

These rules and regulations shall be subject to change or amendment by the Director of the Department of Administrative Hearings.

1.5          Prior City Department or Agency Rules & Regulations Regarding Administrative Hearings Proceedings.

These rules and regulations shall supercede any and all rules and regulations, or portions thereof, for the conduct of administrative hearing proceedings promulgated by a city department or agency that was formerly vested with jurisdiction to conduct administrative hearings.  The superseding authority of the rules and regulations of the Department of Administrative Hearings over the rules and regulations, or portions thereof, of other city departments or agencies is expressly narrowed and limited to the rules and regulations, or portions thereof, that dealt with the conduct of administrative hearing proceedings.

1.6          Supremacy of Ordinances.

Nothing in these rules and regulations shall act to override, restrict or relax the procedural requirements and/or provisions of the applicable provisions of the ordinances of the Municipal Code of Chicago.  In the event of a conflict between provisions of these rules and regulations and provisions of the Municipal Code of Chicago, the Municipal Code of Chicago shall take precedence.

1.7          Construction with Other Laws.

The controlling statutory authorities in these municipal administrative adjudicatory proceedings are article 1, division 2.1 of the Illinois Municipal Code (65 ILCS 5/1-2.1) and chapter 2-14 of the Municipal Code of Chicago.

Pursuant to section 2-14-076(h) of the Municipal Code of Chicago and section 1-2.1-6 of the Illinois Municipal Code, the formal and technical rules of evidence shall not apply in the conduct of administrative hearings.  Evidence, including hearsay, may be admitted only if it is of a type commonly relied upon by reasonably prudent persons in the conduct of their affairs.

Pursuant to Illinois case law, the Illinois Administrative Practice Act, the Illinois Code of Criminal Procedure and the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure are inapplicable to these types of administrative adjudicatory proceedings.  (See, Macon Co. v. Bd. of Ed. of Decatur School Dist. No. 61, 165 Ill.App.3d 1 (4th Dist. 1987) app. den 119 Ill2d 588, City of Chicago v. Joyce, 38 Ill.2d 368, 373 (1967), and Desai v. Metropolitan San. Dist. of Greater Chicago, 125 Ill.App.3d 1031, 1033 (1st. Dist. 1984) respectively.)

1.8          Order and Other Pleading Forms.

The Director of the Department of Administrative Hearings shall have the authority to create and/or require the format and/or use of order and related pleading forms in the hearing process.

1.9          Effective Date.

These rules and regulations shall be in full force and effect upon the date of issuance by the Director of the Department of Administrative Hearings, July 14, 1997.  Subsequent amendments shall be in full force and effect upon the date of issuance by the Director of the Department of Administrative Hearings.

1.10        Publication.

A copy of these rules and regulations and subsequent amendments may be published by depositing a copy or subsequent copy with the City of Chicago, Municipal Reference Library.  Additional publication may be made by depositing a copy or subsequent copy with the Chicago Public Library and the Cook County Law Library.