Appeals

Individuals who disagree with a determination of nonmonetary benefit eligibility, or a redetermination of monetary eligibility, can file an appeal. Employers may also appeal a determination that charges their accounts for benefits paid out. There are two levels of the appeals process -- the administrative level and the judicial level.

At the initial administrative level, the Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH), an independent state agency, assigns an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) to hear the case. At the hearing, the claimant, the employer and the department can provide sworn testimony, witnesses can be called, and evidence can be presented. Other individuals who may be present at the hearing include interpreters, claimant/employer representatives or attorneys. Since all of these hearings are public, anyone else who is interested can also attend. The ALJ will hear the testimony, consider the evidence, and issue a decision. The department then takes appropriate action to comply with the decision.

If the claimant or employer disagrees with the decision of the ALJ, a petition for Commissioner Review can be filed and the issue will be elevated to the next level of administrative review. (If the department disagrees with an ALJ’s decision, it can request that the Commissioner’s representative take the matter under advisement.) In this process, the Commissioner’s representative reviews the proceedings of the appeal hearing. In most cases, the decision of the Commissioner is based solely on this review. The decision of the Commissioner is generally the last step in the administrative review process and it becomes final if no further action is requested.

However, an applicant or employer who disagrees with the results of the administrative appeals process can take the process further by filing for judicial review in the Superior Court system. However, unlike administrative review, judicial review is at the expense of the petitioner.