(a)At the discretion of the Director of Standards and Enforcement Services and with the consent of all parties, mediation with an outside mediator may be scheduled between the Commission and a Respondent or Applicant when the Commission anticipates initiation of an adverse action against a Respondent or Applicant or any time after initiation. [(a)A commission mediator will receive at a minimum 40 hours of formal training in ADR procedures through a program approved by the commission's administrator.] (b)SOAH mediators, employees of other agencies who are mediators, and private pro bono mediators, may be assigned to contested matters as needed. [(1)]Each such mediator shall: [first] (1)have received at least 40 hours of Texas mediation training; and [as prescribed by Texas law.] (2)[Each mediator shall] have some expertise in the area of the contested matter. (c)[(3)] If the mediator is a SOAH judge, that person will not also sit as the administrative law judge for the case if the contested matter goes to a SOAH [public] hearing. [If the mediator is an employee of the commission and dispute does not settle, that mediator will not have any further contact or involvement concerning the disputed matter.] (d)Upon unanimous motion of the parties and at the discretion of the administrative law judge, this section applies to a case referred to SOAH. (e)Respondents or Applicants participating in a mediation will pay one-half of any fees incurred for the mediation directly to the Commission before mediation begins.
The agency certifies that legal counsel has reviewed
the proposal and found
it to be within the state agency's legal authority
to adopt.
Filed
with the Office of the Secretary of State on February 24, 2014
TRD-201400861 Kerri Lewis
General Counsel
Texas Real Estate Commission
Earliest possible date of adoption: April 6, 2014
For further information, please call: (512) 936-3604
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