PROCEDURES FOLLOWED DURING HEARINGS BEFORE THE NCAA COMMITTEE ON INFRACTIONS (Revised August 1, 2012) The purpose of this document is to provide institutions, involved individuals and the NCAA enforcement staff with advance written information regarding the procedures that will be followed during a hearing before the Committee on Infractions (COI). Previously, much of this information was verbally conveyed by the COI chair at the hearing. In an effort to provide more time during the hearing for discussion of the allegations, these procedures are now provided in this document. The chair will still provide some verbal instructions at the beginning of the hearing, but they will be limited accordingly. TIME FRAME FOR A HEARING ? When establishing the date and time for the hearing, the committee attempts to accommodate the schedule of institutional representatives and involved individuals. Any conflicts with the hearing should be communicated as soon as possible to the director of the COI. ? Although it is difficult to predict the exact length of a hearing, the committee generally schedules hearings in either half-day or full-day blocks. On rare occasions, hearings are scheduled for multiple days. ? Time frames for the presentation of each allegation will be discussed at the prehearing conferences between the enforcement staff and the involved parties, and communicated to the COI through its staff in advance of the hearing. The chair may initiate a discussion with the parties prior to the hearing if the chair believes the time frames are unreasonable or unrealistic. During the hearing, the chair is authorized to encourage the parties to move along if the time frame for the discussion of an allegation has been exceeded or if discussion is becoming redundant. RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS ? A certified court reporter is present at all COI hearings to transcribe a record of the proceedings. ? The committee also records all hearings via digital media. ROOM SET UP ? Please refer to the attached sample room diagram. HEARING PROCEDURES August 1, 2012 Page No. 2 ____________ ? The exact configuration of the hearing room will depend on the number of individuals present at the hearing. ? During the hearing, the committee uses microphones to ensure that all parties can be heard and that an accurate recording is produced. (Please note: The chair will provide specific instructions on the use of these microphones at the beginning of the hearing.) ? Light refreshments and beverages will be provided throughout the hearing at the back of the room. INDIVIDUALS IN ATTENDANCE ? Committees on Infractions: In Division I, a minimum of four committee members will constitute a quorum, although the committee rarely convenes with less than six members. Also required for attendance is at least one coordinator of appeals. In Divisions II and III, a quorum consists of three members. ? Institution: At a minimum, the following individuals from the involved institution should be in attendance: Chief executive officer, director of athletics, compliance director, faculty athletics representative, head coach of the involved sport(s) and any currently employed staff members "at risk." ? NCAA staff: At a minimum the following NCAA staff members should be in attendance: vice president for enforcement services, director/enforcement who supervised the case, the assistant or associate director/enforcement who did the investigative work, the director of enforcement for secondary infractions, the general counsel, the assistant general counsel, the director, assistant director and assistant coordinators/COI's. ? Individuals at Risk: Individuals at risk are highly encouraged to attend and could be found for a failure to cooperate by the committee if they do not attend. ? Conference Representatives: One or more representatives from the institution's conference office typically attend infractions hearings, at the conference commissioner's discretion. ? Other Individuals: The committee has the discretion to allow other individuals to attend hearings on a case-by-case basis, including those individuals who may have information relevant to the case and who may have been granted limited immunity to appear before the committee. 2 HEARING PROCEDURES August 1, 2012 Page No. 3 ____________ INTRODUCTIONS ? The chair will call the meeting to order and introduce the members of the committee, its staff and the NCAA's general counsel personnel. ? Following the chair's introductions, the institution and the enforcement staff will introduce their respective attendees, followed by any conference representatives who are present and other involved parties ("at risk" individuals) in attendance. No discussion of the allegations should occur during the introductions. ? After introductions, the chair will make several announcements, followed by opening statements by the institution, other involved individual and then the enforcement staff. OPENING STATEMENTS ? A representative from the institution, usually the president/chancellor or designee, will first provide an opening statement, followed by each involved individual (if any), the conference representative (if present) and, lastly, a representative from the enforcement staff. ? Every effort should be made to limit the opening statements to approximately five minutes. It would be appreciated if the institution's president/chancellor confine his/her comments to the infractions case itself and avoid providing detailed background information about the institution's history, academic information and other data which is readily available to the committee through other sources, including the institution's written submission. If the institution's president/chancellor wishes, more in-depth information may be provided to the COI in writing prior to the hearing. The enforcement staff and other involved parties should also be provided a copy of any such submission. ? The opening statement should provide only brief information regarding each party's general view of the case. It should not include any specific information that will be reviewed during the consideration of the individual allegations and should not be used to introduce evidence that will be discussed in the allegations. COMMITTEE ON INFRACTIONS RECORD ? Upon receipt of the enforcement staff's case summary, a letter from the committee will be sent to all parties with a list of the items comprising the record in the case. What the committee knows about this case is limited to the information contained in this record. Please note that the committee does not receive all of the information and material which the enforcement staff has received or which the enforcement staff may have developed. In 3 HEARING PROCEDURES August 1, 2012 Page No. 4 ____________ particular, the committee does not see all the information that the enforcement staff has placed in the custodial file. Further: ? Subject to the approval of the committee for good cause shown, additional documents may be submitted at the hearing, provided copies (at least 15) are available for all in attendance. The committee has the discretion to determine what additional information will be made part of the record. The committee may ask other parties if they object to the inclusion of any additional information into the record. ? The committee may also request additional documentary evidence during the hearing or the committee's deliberations, with copies provided to all parties. ? The committee's findings in a case will be based on this record and any statements made at the hearing. Should there be adverse findings against the institution and any involved party that result in an appeal, the list of documents comprising the record, the hearing transcript and the committee's infractions report will constitute the full and complete record from these proceedings. ADDITIONAL FINDINGS AND SECONDARIES ? Based on information that may be discussed in the hearing, or that may have been raised in information submitted, the committee has the authority on its own initiative to make additional findings, or to amend allegations to conform with the information presented at the hearing. Additional findings may relate to any bylaw violation, including unethical conduct, lack of institutional control, or a failure to monitor. If the committee should decide that additional findings may be appropriate, it will inform all parties and give them the opportunity to respond. ? Each violation charged in the notice of allegations or in the enforcement staff case summary is considered to be a major violation of NCAA legislation unless specifically designated as a secondary violation. If the enforcement staff, the institution or any of the other involved parties believes a violation is secondary, including any initially alleged as a secondary violation by the enforcement staff, that party must make that known to the committee at the hearing and either then rest on its written submission, if any, or present evidence and argument why the violation is secondary. The committee will make the final decision after considering all of the information and arguments in the record. PROCEDURAL ISSUES ? If there are any concerns regarding the processing of this case and/or conduct of the enforcement staff, then such concerns must be addressed in a written submission to the 4 HEARING PROCEDURES August 1, 2012 Page No. 5 ____________ committee with a copy to the enforcement staff. This submission must address both the contours of any such procedural claim and what the involved party believes to be the consequent prejudice. The committee also will provide an opportunity for response from the institution and/or enforcement staff. Failure to raise such claims in a written submission may constitute a waiver of any such claim. Among other things, such a waiver precludes raising these issues on appeal. REVIEW OF THE ALLEGATIONS AND CONDUCT OF THE HEARING ? The COI will review each allegation separately, usually in the order contained in the case summary. ? The institution, any involved individual or the enforcement staff may request that the committee address the allegations in an order different from that contained in case summary. In those instances, individuals present at the hearing who are not named in all of the allegations will be excused from the hearing room when the allegations in which they are not named are discussed. When an involved party is excused from the hearing room, it is understood that there will be no discussion of the allegations involving the excused party. ? The COI allows all parties to present information relevant to the allegations. Although the committee does not set hard time limits on the discussion of an allegation, it may limit the amount of time the parties have to present their positions relative to the allegations in accordance with the time limits agreed upon during the prehearing conferences. ? For each allegation, the enforcement staff will present a general description of the allegation and the information it believes supports a finding of violation. ? The institution will then be provided an opportunity to respond to the allegation. The involved individuals who are named in allegations will also be permitted to respond to those allegations. ? Committee members may ask questions at any time during the discussion of an allegation. Any institutional representative or involved party may be questioned on any relevant issue. It is possible that the parties will be requested to respond to questions prior to their formal presentations. ? It is important that the committee have an opportunity to hear all of the information the institution, each involved individual and the enforcement staff wish to present at the hearing. Should the hearing continue beyond its anticipated ending time, the committee will make every effort to finish hearing the case that day. 5 HEARING PROCEDURES August 1, 2012 Page No. 6 ____________ ? Breaks throughout the hearing will occur as needed, usually lasting 10 to 15 minutes. A lunch break will be taken approximately at noon and last for one hour. If necessary, a dinner break will also be taken at 6 p.m. and last for approximately one and one-half hours. ? Any individual present at the hearing may leave the room at any time or request the chair for a break. ? If the institution, any involved individual or the enforcement staff wishes to ask a question of another party, that question should be directed to the committee, which will then decide whether the question is appropriate and will direct it to the appropriate individual. ? The committee may make additional findings, which were not contained in the notice of allegations or case summary, based on the evidence presented during the hearing. If the committee determines additional findings may be appropriate, it will provide the institution and involved individuals an opportunity to respond in writing and address the new information at another hearing if requested. CLOSING STATEMENTS ? After the discussion of all allegations contained in the notice of allegations and any additional allegations or admitted violations contained in the case summary, the COI will hear brief closing statements from all parties. ? The institution will make its closing statement first, followed by each involved individual that wishes to make a closing statement, a conference official (if present) and then the enforcement staff. ? Similar to opening statements, closing statements are not intended to discuss the details of the alleged violations. Closing statements should not be used to review evidence. The closing statement provides an opportunity for each party to summarize the discussions that occurred during the hearing and to provide a brief statement regarding the case, adding any thoughts participants may have that were not discussed during the hearing. DELIBERATIONS AND RELEASE OF REPORT The committee will, after adjournment of the hearing, spend whatever time is necessary in deliberations in order fully to consider all the information in the record and then to resolve the issues and determine if findings of violations are to be made. The committee will also consider the penalties, if any, to be imposed. A member of the committee will be assigned to write a working draft of the infractions report. The report will be divided into three parts: (1) an introduction in which the committee will provide an overview and context for its findings; (2) a 6 HEARING PROCEDURES August 1, 2012 Page No. 7 ____________ section that discusses the particulars of each violation; and (3) a section that outlines and explains any penalties that might be imposed. Once the working draft is completed, the entire committee will review it, typically on a conference call. The report will then be put in final form. The staff of the COI will provide a copy of the infractions report for review by the office of legal affairs 72 hours prior to the release time. The enforcement staff and the public affairs liaison will receive a copy of the report 48 hours in advance of the release time. The purpose of this pre-release to the enforcement staff is limited to permitting notation of factual errors in the report (e.g., inaccurate dates, bylaw citations, names, and similar formal [as opposed to substantive] information). Substantive decisions made by the COI relative to findings and penalties, as reflected in the infractions report, are not subject to change. Any factual errors found by the enforcement staff will be communicated to the COI's staff liaison via electronic mail (email) not less than 24 hours prior to the scheduled release. The COI's public and media relations liaison will notify the institution and any other involved parties of the release date 24 hours in advance. At 10 am (Eastern time) the day of the release the involved institution and parties receive materials via electronic mail. To facilitate this process, all involved parties must provide a valid electronic mail address to the office of the COI. Further, all involved parties must acknowledge receipt of materials to the office of the COI. In the event that electronic mail can't be received you will need to make arrangements with the office of the COI for delivery of materials using another method, prior to release of report. At 10:45 am the press release and public report will be posted on the NCAA's public website, NCAA.org and distributed to media. At 11 am the press call begins. There will be no other statements by members of the committee about this case. APPEAL OF DECISION As to any appeal of the infractions decision or penalty, all parties will have 15 days from the date the report is released to accept or to appeal the decision. The parties will receive a notice of appeal form with their copy of the infractions report. If a party accepts the decision, then the penalties are in effect from the date of the public release. If a party appeals, the Infractions Appeals Committee will hear the case and all appealed penalties are stayed until the public announcement of its decision. To exercise the appeal option, parties should send the notice of appeal form to Ms. Wendy Walters at the NCAA. Ms. Walters is staff liaison to the Infractions Appeals Committee. Parties must submit its appeal brief within 30 days after the appeals committee provides its written acknowledgment that it received the notice of appeal. One of the committee's two coordinators of appeals will respond to the appeal and represent the COI at the appeals hearing. 7 HEARING PROCEDURES August 1, 2012 Page No. 8 ROOM SETUP Head Table 1: 0mm ittee 0111 0 I curt Reporter Institution Enforc em ent. Staffjp Involve dlndividualar 0mm ittee supp orl. }aff' REFRESHMENTS 8