46 C.F.R. Subpart A—General Information
Title 46 - Shipping
The rules in this part govern procedure before the Federal Maritime Commission, hereinafter referred to as the “Commission,” under the Merchant Marine Act, 1920, Merchant Marine Act, 1936, Shipping Act of 1984, as amended by the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 1998, Administrative Procedure Act, and related acts, except that subpart R of this part does not apply to proceedings subject to sections 7 and 8 of the Administrative Procedure Act, which are to be governed only by subparts A to Q inclusive, of this part. They shall be construed to secure the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of every proceeding. To this end, all persons involved in proceedings conducted under the rules of this part shall be required to consider at an early stage of the proceeding whether resort to alternative dispute resolution techniques would be appropriate or useful. [Rule 1.] [49 FR 44369, Nov. 6, 1984, as amended at 58 FR 38649, July 19, 1993; 64 FR 7807, Feb. 17, 1999] (a) For purposes of filing of documents with the Commission, the hours of the Commission are from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday to Friday, inclusive. (b) Except for exhibits filed pursuant to §502.118(b)(4) and petitions for review of final agency orders served on the Commission pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2112(a), all documents required to be filed in, and correspondence relating to proceedings governed by this part should be addressed to Secretary, Federal Maritime Commission, Washington, DC 20573–0001. Petitions for review of final agency orders served on the Commission pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 2112(a) shall be addressed to General Counsel, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Maritime Commission, Washington, DC 20573–0001. (c) Documents relating to any matter pending before the Commissioners for decision or to any matter pending before the Commission which is likely to come before the Commissioners for decision, whether or not relating to proceedings governed by this part, shall similarly be filed with the Secretary, Federal Maritime Commission. Such documents should not be filed with or separately submitted to the offices of individual Commissioners. Distribution to Commissioners and other agency personnel is handled by the Office of the Secretary, to ensure that persons in decision-making and advisory positions receive in a uniform and impersonal manner identical copies of submissions, and to avoid the possibility of ex parte communications within the meaning of §502.11. These considerations apply to informal and oral communications as well, such as requests for expedited consideration. (d) No filings relating to matters scheduled for a Commission meeting will be accepted by the Secretary if submitted subsequent to public announcement of the particular meeting, except that the Commission, on its own initiative, or pursuant to a written request, may in its discretion, permit a departure from this limitation for exceptional circumstances. (See §503.82(e) of this chapter.) (e) Any pleading, document, writing or other paper submitted for filing which is rejected because it does not conform to the rules in this part shall be returned to the sender. [Rule 2.] [52 FR 27002, July 17, 1987, as amended at 53 FR 13270, Apr. 22, 1988; 64 FR 7807, Feb. 17, 1999] Persons named in a rule or order shall notify the Commission during business hours on or before the day on which such rule or order becomes effective whether they have complied therewith, and if so, the manner in which compliance has been made. If a change in rates is required, the notification shall specify the tariffs which effect the changes. [Rule 3.] All rules or orders issued by the Commission in any proceeding covered by this part shall, unless otherwise specifically provided, be signed and authenticated by seal by the Secretary of the Commission in the name of the Commission. [Rule 4.]
Title 46: Shipping
PART 502—RULES OF PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE
Subpart A—General Information
§ 502.1 Scope of rules in this part.
§ 502.2 Filing of documents; hours; mailing address.
§ 502.3 Compliance with rules or orders of Commission.
§ 502.4 Authentication of rules or orders of Commission.
§§ 502.5-502.6 [Reserved]
§ 502.7 Documents in foreign languages.
Every document, exhibit, or other paper written in a language other than English and filed with the Commission or offered in evidence in any proceeding before the Commission under this part or in response to any rule or order of the Commission pursuant to this part, shall be filed or offered in the language in which it is written and shall be accompanied by an English translation thereof duly verified under oath to be an accurate translation. [Rule 7.]
§ 502.8 Denial of applications and notice thereof.
Except in affirming a prior denial or where the denial is self-explanatory, prompt written notice will be given of the denial in whole or in part of any written application, petition, or other request made in connection with any proceeding under this part, such notice to be accompanied by a simple statement of procedural or other grounds for the denial, and of any other or further administrative remedies or recourse applicant may have where the denial is based on procedural grounds. [Rule 8.]
§ 502.9 Suspension, amendment, etc., of rules in this part.
The rules in this part may, from time to time, be suspended, amended, or revoked, in whole or in part. Notice of any such action will be published in the
§ 502.10 Waiver of rules in this part.
Except to the extent that such waiver would be inconsistent with any statute, any of the rules in this part, except §§502.11 and 502.153, may be waived by the Commission or the presiding officer in any particular case to prevent undue hardship, manifest injustice, or if the expeditious conduct of business so requires. [Rule 10.]
§ 502.11 Ex parte communications.
(a) No person who is a party to or an agent of a party to any proceeding as defined in §502.61 or who directly participates in any such proceeding and no interested person outside the Commission shall make or knowingly cause to be made to any Commission member, administrative law judge, or Commission employee who is or may reasonably be expected to be involved in the decisional process of any such proceeding, an ex parte communication relevant to the merits of the proceeding;
(b) No Commission member, administrative law judge, or Commission employee who is or may reasonably be expected to be involved in the decisional process of any agency proceeding, shall make or knowingly cause to be made to any interested persons outside the Commission or to any party to the proceeding or its agent or to any direct participant in a proceeding, an ex parte communication relevant to the merits of the proceeding. This prohibition shall not be construed to prevent any action authorized by paragraphs (e), (f) and (g) of this section;
(c) “Ex parte communication” means an oral or written communication not on the public record with respect to which reasonable prior notice to all parties is not given, but it shall not include requests for status reports or communications regarding purely procedural matters or matters which the Commission or member thereof, administrative law judge, or Commission employee is authorized by law or these rules to dispose of on an ex parte basis;
(d) Any Commission member, administrative law judge, or Commission employee who is or may reasonably be expected to be involved in the decisional process of any proceeding who receives, or who makes or knowingly causes to be made, an ex parte communication shall promptly transmit to the Secretary of the Commission:
(1) All such written communications;
(2) Memoranda stating the substance of all such oral communications; and
(3) All written responses and memoranda stating the substance of all oral responses to the materials described in paragraphs (d)(1) and (d)(2) of this section;
(e) The Secretary shall place the materials described in paragraph (d) of this section in the correspondence part of the public docket of the proceeding and may take such other action as may be appropriate under the circumstances;
(f) Upon receipt of an ex parte communication knowingly made or knowingly caused to be made by a party to a proceeding, the Commission or the presiding officer may, to the extent consistent with the interests of justice and the policy of the statutes administered by the Commission, require the party to show cause why his or her claim or interest in the proceeding should not be dismissed, denied, disregarded, or otherwise adversely affected on account of the making of such communication;
(g) An ex parte communication shall not constitute a part of the record for decision. The Commission or the presiding officer may, to the extent consistent with the interests of justice and the policy of the statutes administered by the Commission, consider a violation of paragraph (b) of this section sufficient grounds for a decision adverse to a party who has knowingly caused such violation to occur and may take such other action as may be appropriate under the circumstances. [Rule 11.]
[49 FR 44369, Nov. 6, 1984; 49 FR 47394, Dec. 4, 1984, as amended at 64 FR 7807, Feb. 17, 1999; 64 FR 23551, May 3, 1999; 64 FR 33762, June 24, 1999]
§ 502.12 Applicability of Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
In proceedings under this part, for situations which are not covered by a specific Commission rule, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure will be followed to the extent that they are consistent with sound administrative practice. [Rule 12.]
[58 FR 27210, May 7, 1993, as amended at 64 FR 7807, Feb. 17, 1999]
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