§674-9  Panel hearing or review
proceedings; fact-finding; evidence.  No persons other than the panel or
hearings officer, the claimant, representatives of the concerned state agency,
legal counsel, witnesses, and persons called by the panel to assist in its
review, shall be present during any hearing or other proceedings conducted by
the panel, except with the permission of the chairperson.  For every claim
filed, the department shall be notified and shall be entitled to be present
during any hearing or other proceeding conducted by the panel.  The panel may,
in its discretion, conduct an inquiry of a party, witness, or any other person
without the presence of any or all parties.



All proceedings shall be informal.  Except as
otherwise provided in this chapter, chapters 91 and 92 shall not apply.  For
the purpose of this chapter, the panel shall prepare a record of each claim. 
The record shall include:



(1)  All correspondence, pleadings, motions, and
rulings;



(2)  Evidence received or considered, including oral
or written testimony, exhibits, and a statement of any matters officially
noticed;



(3)  Offers of proof and rulings thereon;



(4)  Proposed findings and exceptions;



(5)  Staff memoranda, including investigative reports,
submitted to members of the panel in connection with their review of the claim;



(6)  Recommended or proposed findings of the hearings
officer who presided at the hearing; and



(7)  The panel findings and advisory opinion.



No matters outside the record shall be considered by
the panel in reviewing and evaluating a claim.  Unless otherwise provided by
chapter 92F, the record of each claim shall be public and open for public
inspection, except that staff memoranda, including investigative reports, shall
be confidential and shall be made public only after a hearing has been held on
the claim pursuant to the panel's rules.  At the discretion of the panel, staff
memoranda, including investigative reports, may be disclosed to the parties
prior to a hearing on the claim.  Any party to whom a staff memorandum or
investigative report is disclosed shall maintain its confidentiality and may
make public its contents only after a hearing has been held on the claim.



The panel may require a stenographic record of
all or part of its proceedings for the use of the panel, but the stenographic
record shall not be made available to the parties.  The panel may receive any
oral or documentary evidence, or any matter that, in the opinion of the panel,
may contribute to its function under this chapter, whether or not the
statement, document, information or matter would be admissible in a court of
law.  Questioning of parties, and witnesses may be conducted by the panel, and
the panel may, in its discretion, permit any party, or any counsel for a party
to question other parties, witnesses, or other persons appearing before the
panel.  Discovery by the parties shall not be allowed. [L 1991, c 323, pt of
§1; am L 1993, c 351, §6]