ruling or accepts an administrative penalty or plea agreement from USEF indicating that he or she has been found in violation of the rules. Individuals are free to be involved with licensed competition during the investigation and hearing process, unless they have been suspended. In the case of a written complaint, a staff member from the Regulation Department will collect records and documents; once it seems that there is sufficient evidence that a violation may have occurred, inquiry letters are sent to the accused and any other interested party. “All individuals involved have the opportunity to respond to the allegations and to submit any and all evidence to support their claims,” says Meyer. Once the USEF has received all of the evidence, the executive director or CEO of the Federation will review the materials and make a ruling on the matter. “Possible outcomes include no action, warning, Administrative Penalty, or issuance of a Charge,” says Meyer. If an Administrative Penalty is issued, the parties must send a signed acceptance of the penalty offered. “If they do not agree to the penalty, then they have the right to request a hearing on the matter and have the Hearing Committee hear and decide the case,” says Meyer. One major difference between the procedure for handling a written complaint and that for handling a Charge or Protest is that the review of a written complaint is done solely on the evidence submitted. “Parties do not attend the review of these matters and must rely upon their written submissions,” says Meyer. “If the parties do not agree with the Federation’s ruling,
they can request a hearing on the matter.” In the case of a Charge or Protest, once evidence has been collected, the matter will be reviewed at a Hearing in which all parties are able to be present. When receiving a Charge or Protest, the Federation’s first step is to send a written notification from the Regulation Department to both the accused and the individual filing the Charge or Protest. This must be done within 60 days of the initial complaint. “Both sides then have an opportunity to submit evidence to the Federation and must copy the opposing party on anything sent,” says Meyer. “The Regulation Department will gather and maintain all the evidence and prepare [it] for hearing or any pre-hearing motion.” A pre-hearing motion may be called for by either party. One such motion would be a request that the Federation review the file to determine if a Plea Agreement is appropriate. In this situation, the executive director or CEO reviews the file to determine if the matter might be resolved through Plea Agreement rather than a hearing. “Any Plea Agreement must ultimately be reviewed and approved by the Hearing Committee Co-Chairs before the matter can be resolved,” says Meyer. Another example of a pre-hearing motion is if the person bringing the Charge or Protest forward requests to have the matter withdrawn. On the other end of the spectrum, the accused may also request that the Charge or Protest be dismissed if they do not believe that the allegations are legitimate or are unsubstantiated. The Hearing Committee Co-Chairs review any such requests April 2013
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