Administrative hearings are screwy things!

I typically advise clients to stay away from their day in court when it comes to administrative hearings. There are three primary reasons for this. One, often the judges are employed by the very Department that has brought the charges. Frequently, those judges used to work for the Departments and personally know the investigators and attorneys involved. Before you say that violates the “appearance of fairness,” just wait. Second, the judges tend to believe the Department. I suppose that they think that the Department is a neutral enforcement agency. Why would they be biased? The Departments are sort of like the police, meant to protect and serve. And we all know the police don’t lie, right? Third, the administrative law judges are generally not of the same caliber as we might find, say, in Superior Court or Federal District court.That system does not appear fair. It isn’t really, but it is fair enough. The appearance of fairness doctrine is more complicated than it sounds. It does not serve to indict the whole system. So, if you go to hearing, you live with its flaws. When you don’t like its findings, you can always appeal to the Superior Court for review.