Administrative Hearing Request Packet - North Carolina

NORTH CAROLINA ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING REQUEST PACKET

Initial Route, Deadline, and Petition Draft

This packet does not create a hearing right. Start with the agency decision, governing program law, and current official instructions. Do not assume that Chapter 150B supplies the only deadline or that every matter begins with OAH Form H-06.

1. STOP-GATE: IDENTIFY THE HEARING AUTHORITY

1.1 Agency action and source record

1.2 Contested-case fit

Section 150B-2 defines a contested case as a Chapter 150B proceeding resolving an agency-person dispute involving the person's rights, duties, or privileges. It excludes rulemaking, declaratory rulings, and the award or denial of a scholarship, grant, or loan.

☐ The matter fits the current contested-case definition.

☐ The petitioner is a “person aggrieved” substantially affected in person, property, or employment.

☐ Another review, grievance, rulemaking, declaratory-ruling, court, contract, or internal process applies instead: [________________].

1.3 Informal process

Section 150B-22 favors informal resolution before a contested case. Record any available process, but do not let an informal request consume the filing period. Section 150B-23(f) states that a later informal-settlement request does not suspend the petition period when no informal request was received before the agency issued its notice.

2. SELECT THE CORRECT ROUTE

2.1 Article 3 — petition filed with OAH

Select only after confirming the agency-specific hearing authority:

☐ General Article 3 route. A petition, fee or waiver if required, certificate of service, and attachments will be filed with OAH.

☐ Specialized OAH form. Use the current official form for:

• personnel;
• child-support tax intercept, distribution, or credit reporting;
• special education or manifestation determination;
• contested tax;
• Child/Adult Care Food Program;
• agency failure to act; or
• another category identified on the current OAH forms page.

☐ Medicaid recipient appeal. Use the hearing-request form supplied by DHHS or the managed care organization, as the current OAH forms page directs.

☐ General Form H-06. Use only after excluding a specialized form.

2.2 Article 3A — agency or board route

Section 150B-38 applies Article 3A to the listed occupational-licensing, banking, insurance, State IT, building-code, and fire-marshal bodies. These cases ordinarily proceed through the agency's hearing notice and rules. Section 150B-40 permits the agency, in specified circumstances, to request an OAH administrative law judge; that does not convert the matter into the ordinary Article 3 H-06 intake route.

☐ Respondent is within § 150B-38.

☐ The agency notice, rules, response deadline, recipient, hearing officer, and venue are attached.

☐ General OAH Form H-06 is not being filed unless current authority expressly requires it.

2.3 Route decision

3. DEADLINE CONTROL

3.1 Do not default blindly to 60 days

Section 150B-23(f) supplies a general 60-day limitation only when another state statute, federal statute, or federal regulation does not set the time for petitions against the specified agency. The agency's written notice must state the action and inform known aggrieved persons of the right, procedure, and time limit.

☐ The program-specific deadline is shorter than 60 days.

☐ The general § 150B-23(f) period applies after current-law review.

☐ Deadline remains uncertain. Treat as urgent and do not file from this draft without counsel.

4. FEE AND FORM CONTROL

4.1 Current fee

Section 150B-23.2 sets a $125 amount but authorizes OAH to establish a lesser fee by rule and requires waiver routes for in forma pauperis matters and mandated federal causes of action. The current official H-06 instructions and OAH fee page show multiple $0, $20, and $125 categories. Do not hard-code one amount for every petition.

4.2 Current form

The official forms page identified Form H-06 for most general cases but directs specified categories to specialized forms. Attach the downloaded current official form; do not rely on an old local copy.

5. REPRESENTATION AND CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION

5.1 Representation

☐ Individual petitioner appears without counsel.

☐ North Carolina counsel appears: [NAME / BAR NUMBER].

☐ Business entity files the current OAH Notice of Non-Attorney Representation form.

For a business entity, § 150B-23(a) permits only the listed officer, LLC manager or member-manager, W-2 employee with written authorization, or at-least-25% owner with written authorization. Prior written notice must be made under penalty of perjury on the OAH form.

5.2 Confidential-information screen

The current official H-06 instructions warn against including confidential identifying information unless law or order expressly requires it. Before filing, inspect the petition and every attachment for:

☐ Social Security or taxpayer-identification numbers.

☐ Driver-license, State-ID, or passport numbers.

☐ Bank, credit-card, debit-card, PIN, or password information.

☐ Medical, student, personnel, trade-secret, or other protected information requiring a separate rule or sealing analysis.

Redaction or omission must preserve information the governing law or official form actually requires.

6. FORM H-06 COMPANION DRAFT

Use this section only for a general Article 3 matter after Sections 1-5 are complete. Transfer the final content to the current official H-06 or a counsel-approved petition.

6.1 Caption and parties

County of petitioner's residence: [________________]

Petitioner: [FULL LEGAL NAME]

Respondent State agency or board: [FULL OFFICIAL NAME]

Agency case / notice number: [________________]

6.2 Facts showing harm and agency error

On [__/__/____], Respondent [DESCRIBE THE FINAL OR REVIEWABLE ACTION]. Petitioner received or was given written notice on [__/__/____] by [METHOD]. The notice is attached as Exhibit [____].

The action affects Petitioner's rights, duties, or privileges as follows:

[____________________________________________________________]

[____________________________________________________________]

The material facts are:

1. [____________________________________________________________]

2. [____________________________________________________________]

3. [____________________________________________________________]

4. [____________________________________________________________]

6.3 Section 150B-23(a) allegation matrix

Check at least one harm category and at least one agency-error category only when supported by specific facts.

Harm / substantial prejudice:

☐ Deprived Petitioner of property: [FACTS].

☐ Ordered Petitioner to pay a fine or civil penalty of $[________________].

☐ Otherwise substantially prejudiced Petitioner's rights: [FACTS].

Agency error:

☐ Exceeded authority or jurisdiction: [FACTS AND AUTHORITY].

☐ Acted erroneously: [FACTS AND AUTHORITY].

☐ Failed to use proper procedure: [FACTS AND AUTHORITY].

☐ Acted arbitrarily or capriciously: [FACTS].

☐ Failed to act as required by law or rule: [FACTS AND AUTHORITY].

6.4 Amount in controversy

Amount in controversy, if applicable: $[________________]

Method used to calculate the amount: [________________]

6.5 Requested determination

Petitioner requests a contested case hearing and the relief the administrative law judge is authorized to grant under the governing program law and current Chapter 150B provisions, specifically:

[____________________________________________________________]

This draft does not promise attorney fees, a stay, damages, an injunction, or another remedy without separately verified authority.

6.6 Signature

Date: [__/__/____]

Telephone: [________________]

Email: [________________]

Mailing address: [____________________________________________________________]

Printed name: [________________]

Capacity: ☐ Petitioner ☐ Attorney ☐ Authorized non-attorney representative

Signature: ______________________________________

7. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE COMPANION

Section 150B-23(a) requires service on all other parties and, in a license dispute, the license holder, plus filing of a certificate of service with the petition. The current H-06 instructions direct the filer to use the agency notice or current process-agent information to identify the person served.

I certify that on [__/__/____], I served the Petition and listed attachments on:

The agency notice's service instructions were followed: ☐ Yes ☐ No ☐ Not provided

Printed name: [________________]

Signature: ______________________________________

Date: [__/__/____]

8. FILING CONTROL

The current OAH filing page states that an original petition must be filed with OAH and a copy served on the opposing party. It currently permits unregistered filers to use U.S. Mail, fax, or email, while registered e-filers must upload a Word or PDF document through the e-filing system and may not use fax or email.

8.1 Filing route selected

☐ Registered e-filer — upload through the current OAH system.

☐ Unregistered filer — U.S. Mail.

☐ Unregistered filer — fax to the current Clerk's Office number confirmed on [__/__/____].

☐ Unregistered filer — email with a PDF or Word attachment to the current Clerk's address confirmed on [__/__/____].

☐ Personal delivery under current OAH instructions.

☐ Different agency or specialized-form route: [________________].

8.2 Receipt record

Do not treat transmission alone as proof of filing. Retain the accepted receipt, file stamp, portal confirmation, readable fax confirmation, or other evidence required by the selected route.

9. ATTACHMENT AND FINAL REVIEW CHECKLIST

☐ Current agency decision or notice.

☐ Current official petition or hearing-request form.

☐ Additional fact pages, if needed.

☐ Governing program statute, rule, or notice establishing the hearing right and deadline.

☐ Filing fee or current waiver / in forma pauperis request.

☐ Certificate of service.

☐ Current non-attorney representation form and authorization, if applicable.

☐ Documents required by the agency notice or specialized form.

☐ Confidential-information review completed.

☐ Every date, agency name, party name, address, citation, and requested remedy checked.

☐ Filing and service receipts retained.

10. POST-FILING HANDOFF

This packet intentionally does not supply generic discovery requests, subpoenas, mediation papers, a stay motion, a prehearing order, or a judicial-review petition. After acceptance, use the assigned order, the current OAH or agency rules, the governing program law, and any specialized procedure to create those documents.

OFFICIAL CURRENT-SOURCE LINKS

• North Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 150B section PDFs: https://www.ncleg.gov/Laws/GeneralStatutes
• OAH hearing forms: https://www.oah.nc.gov/hearings-division/filing/hearing-forms
• OAH filing instructions: https://www.oah.nc.gov/hearings-division/hearing-process/filing-contested-case
• OAH filing-fee page: https://www.oah.nc.gov/hearings-division/filing/contested-case-filing-fees
• Current General Petition Form H-06 page: https://www.oah.nc.gov/documents/form-h-06-general-petition-form