Solomon Saltsman & Jamieson
Win Major Victory before California Supreme Court
In a sweeping
opinion in cases brought by Ralph B. Saltsman and Stephen Warren
Solomon of Solomon Saltsman & Jamieson, the California
Supreme Court unanimously struck down the practice of attorneys
in administrative agency hearings submitting ex parte
communications to decision-makers within their agency. The
Supreme Court held such communication violated specific
prohibitions stated in the Administrative Procedure Act, the
statutory manifestation of Due Process of Law.
The Court’s ruling vindicated the rights of all ABC licensees
in California and will change how all administrative agencies in
California do business, and not just the ABC. There will no
longer be secret communications from agency attorney to
departmental decision-maker in any adversarial hearing. While
the decision was issued in cases prosecuted by the Department of
Alcoholic Beverage Control, the decision will impact
governmental agencies across the state, including other state
agencies as well as municipal and county governments.
The Court followed Saltsman’s argument before the court and
held: “[A] prosecutor cannot communicate off the record
with the agency decision maker or the decision maker’s
advisors about the substance of the case. But the one contact
that is forbidden is the one contact that occurred here.”
In the cases before the Court, Administrative Law Judges after
hearing in written proposed decisions, dismissed disciplinary
proceedings brought against ABC licensees. Those proposed
decisions were rejected, and the Department imposed suspensions
nevertheless. In each instance written ex parte documents were
submitted following the hearing by the prosecutor to the
Department’s Chief Counsel who acted as decision-maker. The
lawfim argued and the Court determined that this and any secret
communication from prosecutor to decision-maker was unlawful and
unconstitutional.
To review
the decision go to:
www.//ssjlaw.com/articles/Quintanar_Supreme_Court_Decision.pdf |
