607. FILING REQUIREMENTS

607 MEDIATION AND CONCILIATION PROGRAM 607.1 The Office shall exert every possible effort to resolve matters by mediation and conciliation, to the extent possible, rather than through litigation. 607.2 The Executive Director shall designate a Senior Administrative Judge to implement the mediation and conciliation program of the Office. 607.3 The Senior Administrative Judge responsible for mediation and conciliation shall review the appeals pending in the Office and assign cases where there is a reasonable likelihood of settlement to the mediation and conciliation docket. 607.4 Any party may file a request for mediation and conciliation with the Office which, upon the consent of all parties, shall place the matter on the mediation and conciliation docket. 607.5 The Senior Administrative Judge responsible for mediation and conciliation shall assign the matter to a mediator who shall promptly convene a conference for the purpose of attempting to reach a voluntary resolution of the appeal. The Administrative Judge assigned to an appeal may not serve as mediator on that appeal. A mediator may not be called as a witness in any proceeding concerning matters raised in a case to which he or she is assigned to attempt mediation or conciliation. 607.6 The employee and his or her representative shall attend the conference. A representative of the agency with authority to approve a settlement by the agency shall either attend the conference or be available by telephone at the time set for and throughout the conference. The parties shall engage in good-faith discussion to resolve the matter. 607.7 If the mediator finds that a party has failed to engage in settlement discussions in good faith (including a failure to have available a representative with authority to settle), the mediator shall submit such a finding to the Senior Administrative Judge supervising the mediation and conciliation docket, who may enter such sanctions against the party as may be appropriate to further the objectives of the mediation and conciliation program. 607.8 The discussions at the conference and the offers of the parties shall be confidential and may not be offered or received into evidence or otherwise disclosed in subsequent adjudication or litigation. 607.9 Upon the failure of the parties to reach settlement through mediation and conciliation, the Senior Administrative Judge shall refer the matter to the assigned Administrative Judge for adjudication. 607.10 If the parties reach settlement, the matter shall be dismissed in accordance with D.C. Code § 1-606.6(b). SOURCE: As amended by Final Rulemaking published at 46 DCR 9297 (November 19, 1999).