Ifjb Standing Rules

Standing Rules of the Interfraternity Council Judicial Board Part 1: General Provisions

Rule 1: Purpose of Rules. The purpose of these Rules is to establish procedural guidelines for the operation of the Interfraternity Council Judicial Board, hereafter referred to as the IFJB. All judicial proceedings shall conform to these Rules.

Rule 2: Effect of failure to comply with Rules. Compliance with these Rules is required. In case of a failure to comply with these Rules, the IFJB may dismiss the case, reverse or affirm the judgment of the case, render judgment, strike the pleading, brief, or record, or take such other action as is necessary to induce compliance with these rules and to facilitate the speedy and fair resolution of the case.

Rule 3: Scheduling of Hearings. As soon as a case within the original jurisdiction of the IFJB is filed with the Interfraternity Council (hereafter IFC) President, Adviser, or Chief Justice, it shall be assigned to the IFJB and written notice shall be sent to the Chief Justice. The Chief Justice shall set the place and time for the hearing to be held, and the time shall be within the periods stated in these Rules. As soon as the case is assigned, the Chief Justice shall notify all parties to the case and the members of the IFJB of the hearing. In the case of the Interfraternity Council being the accused party, notification shall be delivered to the IFC President. Such notice must be given no earlier than 30 days, and no later than 7 days before the hearing, and must (1) state the charges with sufficient particularity to enable the accused to prepare a defense and the time and place of the hearing and (2) provide the accused to state a response of “guilty”, “not guilty”, or “no contest”.

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(a)

Hearings. Hearings shall take place between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on regular school days in the fall and spring academic semester. Hearings shall not take place on mandated University holidays or breaks. Hearings may take place during the summer; however, the notice of the hearing must be given no earlier than thirty (30) days, and no later than fourteen (14) days before the hearing is scheduled to take place.

(b)

Acknowledgement of Hearing. Upon receipt of notification, the accused party shall have two working days to respond to the charges by filing, with the IFC Adviser, one of the three responses. The accused party shall also determine a time with the Adviser for a pre-hearing. Failure to respond within two working days will automatically result in a response of “no contest”, and appropriate sanctions will be decided upon by the IFJB without a hearing.

Rule 4: Conflict of Interest. If any of the Associate Justices are members of the fraternity of either the accused party or the complainant, they shall recuse their seat as Associate Justice for the hearing and shall be replaced by an Assistant Justice who is not associated with either the accused party or the complainant. In the case that the Chief Justice is a member of the fraternity of either the accused party or the complainant, he shall not be allowed to make recommendations during the decision of the IFJB. In the event an insufficient number of justices are available to hear a case, a member of the Interfraternity Council Executive Council, as chosen by the Chief Justice, will take the position of Associate Justice for the specific case and is subject to all the rules, roles, and responsibilities concerning Associate Justices serving on a case.

Rule 5: Evidence. Evidence shall be compiled into a file which shall be made available to the accused party, the complainant, the IFC President, and Adviser at least two (2) days prior to the scheduled hearing. Evidence shall consist of affidavits, exhibits, and names of witnesses.

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(a)

Affidavits. Affidavits shall be filed with the Chief Justice at least four (4) days prior to the hearing. Affidavits shall be on standard letter size paper, 8 ½ X 11 inches.

(b)

Exhibits. Exhibits shall be filed with the Chief Justice at least four (4) days prior to the hearing.

(c)

Witnesses. Names of witnesses shall be filed with the Chief Justice at least four (4) days prior to the hearing.

Rule 6: Conduct of Hearings. Conduct of hearings shall be regulated by the Chief Justice. In the event that a party in the hearing behaves out of order, he/she may receive disciplinary action. Hearings shall be semiformal in attire. Hearings shall be private. Only directly related individuals shall be allowed to remain in the room at all times.

Rule 7: Roles of Directly Related Individuals. Directly related individuals shall be the Chief Justice, the Associate Justices, the IFC Vice President of Administrative Affairs, the IFC Adviser, the accused student(s)/fraternity, the accused student(s)/fraternity’s advisor, the complainant, and the complainant’s advisor.

(a)

Role of the Chief Justice. The Chief Justice shall (1) review all cases with the IFC President and Adviser prior to the hearing to ascertain jurisdiction and validity, (2) conduct the hearing in an orderly and progressive manner, (3) call witnesses as requested, (4) rule on the relevancy and admissibility of evidence, (5) prevent antagonistic questioning, (6) prevent interference by any disruptive individuals, (7) vote on the guilt or innocence of the accused party in the event of a tie between the voting Associate Justices, and (8) announce the final ruling.

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(b)

Role of the Associate Justices. The Associate Justices shall (1) listen to the testimony given by all individuals and evaluate the evidence, (2) ask questions for clarification and additional information, and (3) come to a decision on the guilt or innocence of the accused party and the subsequent appropriate sanctions.

(c)

Role of the IFC Vice President of Administrative Affairs. The IFC Vice President of Administrative Affairs shall (1) keep minutes at all hearings and (2) send all notices and necessary correspondence.

(d)

Role of the IFC Adviser. The IFC Adviser shall (1) advise the board concerning procedure and (2) advise the Chief Justice.

(e)

Role of the Accused Student(s)/Fraternity. The accused student(s)/fraternity shall (1) serve as a representative of themselves or their fraternity and (2) ask questions of the witnesses.

(f)

Role of the Accused Student(s)/Fraternity’s Advisor. The accused student(s)/fraternity’s advisor shall (1) assist the student(s)/fraternity in the preparation of their case, (2) accompany the student(s)/fraternity to the hearing, (3) advise the student(s)/fraternity as to the questioning of witnesses but shall in no way be allowed to make any statements or present the case for the accused student(s)/fraternity.

(g)

Role of the Complainant. The complainant shall (1) serve as a representative of a fraternity, the IFC, the University of Oklahoma, or himself, (2) ask questions of the witnesses, and (3) summarize the case proceedings.

(h)

Roles of the Complainant’s Advisor. The complainant’s advisor shall (1) assist the complainant in the preparation of their case, (2) accompany the complainant to the hearing, (3) advise the complainant as to the questioning of witnesses but shall in no way be allowed to make any statements or present the case for the complainant.

Rule 8: Procedure of Hearings

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All hearings of the IFJB shall follow the following procedure:

(a)

The Chief Justice shall call the proceedings to order and request that only directly related individuals remain in the room. Witnesses shall remain outside until called for. Witnesses shall not discuss the case with another witness; failure of a witness to comply with said policy shall result in sanctions against the individual and/or the group they represent.

(b)

The Chief Justice shall state the date and time, case number, and introduce the council and all participants and briefly describe their roles in the trial. The Chief Justice shall state the purpose of the hearing – “Today’s Interfraternity Council Judicial Board Hearing has been convened to consider alleged violations of the University of Oklahoma Interfraternity Council Bylaws or Constitution. It is alleged that (read charges from Hearing Notice). This is an informal proceeding, not comparable to a trial. The participants are required to treat each other with respect and courtesy.

(c)

The Chief Justice shall ask if either party wishes to challenge an Associate Justice. If a party wishes to challenge an Associate Justice, they must state their reasons for such a challenge. The reasons shall be reviewed by the IFJB members (with the exception of the challenged Associate Justice) in private. If the IFJB votes to decline the challenge, the hearing shall proceed. If the IFJB votes to accept the challenge, or if the vote is split, then the challenged Associate Justice shall be asked to remove himself from the panel. In this case, an Alternate Justice shall be asked to replace the removed Associate Justice. All challenges must be made at the commencement of the hearing.

(d)

The Chief Justice shall request opening statements, first from the Complainant, then from the Accused Student/Fraternity. Statements shall be no longer than seven minutes in length.

(e)

The Chief Justice shall call witnesses, first from the Complainant, then from the Accused Student/Fraternity. Witnesses shall be informed that “The

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Interfraternity Council Judicial Board expects that all information presented will be true and correct. Be advised that willfully providing false information will result in disciplinary action.” Questions deemed appropriate by the Chief Justice may be asked in the following order – (1) Complainant, (2) Accused Student/Fraternity, (3) Justices. Upon completion of questioning by the Justices, the Chief Justice shall ask if there are any more questions. If none, the witness shall be dismissed, and the next witness shall be called. (f)

After all witnesses have been questioned, the Chief Justice shall instruct both parties to make closing remarks, with the Complainant first, then the Accused Student/Fraternity.

(g)

The Chief Justice informs both parties that the decision will be available at the Greek Affairs Office within two business days, and that both parties have the right to an appeal through the Greek Affairs Office within one week of the receipt of the IFJB’s ruling.

(h)

The hearing is dismissed by the Chief Justice.

Rule 9: Rulings The ruling of the IFJB shall be submitted in writing to the IFC Adviser within two business days of the scheduled hearing date. Included in this ruling shall be (1) the judgment of the IFJB (guilty, not guilty); (2) the sanctions and to be imposed on the Accused Student/Fraternity, if any, and the interpretations thereof; and (3) references to existing IFC laws and past rulings used in making the judgment.

Rule 10: Voting Procedures For all cases involving the guilt or innocence of the accused party, a verdict shall be determined by a majority vote of the voting Associate Justices, and in the event of a tie, the Chief Justice shall decide the verdict by casting a tie breaking vote. The decision of sanctions, excluding Expulsion, shall be determined by a majority vote of the voting Associate Justices. If a majority vote is not attained between the voting Associate Justices,

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the decision process shall continue until a sanction(s) is/are decided upon and approved by a majority vote. The voting procedure regarding the sanction of Expulsion shall be as follows: 1) The decision to issue a sanction of Expulsion shall require a unanimous vote of the voting Associate Justices, and

2) Approved by the Interfraternity Council Executive Council by a majority vote of the officers. The majority must be of all Executive Council positions, regardless of vacancy, and not simply a majority of the Executive Council officers in attendance. Executive Council officers who are members of the member fraternity involved shall be allowed to vote.

Rule 11: Sanctions The IFJB shall have the power to impose one or more of the following sanctions upon a ruling of guilty:

(a)

Admonition: A letter of condemnation of a violation of IFC and/or University of Oklahoma policies and suggests further modification of behavior. This sanction shall not be included in the fraternity’s permanent judicial file.

(b)

Warning: A written letter of an official warning which indicates a violation of IFC and/or University of Oklahoma policies and suggests future modification of behavior.

(c)

Fines: A monetary fine which shall not exceed $5,000. All fines are to be used for IFC scholarship purposes as approved by the IFC Executive Council.

(d)

Probation: A defined period of probation during which time further violations of policy will result in substantially harsher sanctions.

(e)

Restitution: A monetary payment to an individual or group for the cost of damages.

(f)

Community Service: A community service project assigned to an individual or group as a form of non-monetary restitution to the community.

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(g)

Programming: A program hosted or attended by the guilty student/fraternity, relevant to the policy violation. The outline of the program must be cleared with the IFC Adviser before the program may take place.

(h)

Suspension: This sanction may include the loss of voting privileges in IFC Congress, and any IFC related committees, for a period no greater than one calendar year and may include any of the following stipulations: a.

Restriction of participation in Greek Week and/or any IFC sponsored programs including Recruitment activities.

b. Restriction of participation in any intramural activity as an organization or by any member of the member fraternity on behalf of the organization. c.

Restrictions on hosting or participation in any social events, which shall include but is not limited to: date parties, fraternity-sorority mixers, or participation in University Sing, Scandals, or Homecoming activities.

(i)

Expulsion: This sanction shall result in an indefinite loss of voting privileges in IFC Congress, and any related committees, and consequently an indefinite loss of IFC recognition at the University of Oklahoma. It shall also result in an official recommendation to the University of Oklahoma that the member fraternity’s status as a registered student organization be removed. An official letter citing the reasoning and resulting consequences of the IFC expulsion shall be sent to the member fraternity’s national organization. This form of sanctions is reserved for member fraternities who continually, either deliberately or negligently, defy previous IFJB sanctions or instructions or commit an offense that is unequivocally deemed significantly unbecoming and in direct contradiction to the moral character of the Interfraternity Council at the University of Oklahoma.

Rule 12: Appeals Appeals shall be made within one week of receipt of the IFJB’s ruling. Appeals may be made by either the accused party or the complainant for one or more of the following reasons: (1) the accused student/fraternity has been deprived of due process, (2) the facts appear insufficient to

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establish guilt or innocence, or (3) the recommended sanction is inappropriate for the violation. All appeals shall be submitted in writing and shall include a copy of the charges, a copy of the decision, and a statement detailing the reasons for appeal. All appeals shall be referred to the Executive Committee. If the appeal is granted, it shall be sent to the IFJB. The Associate Justices shall be selected by the Chief Justice and the IFC Adviser. Hearings for appeals shall follow the same guidelines as regular hearings.

Rule 13: Amendment These rules may be amended at a regularly held meeting by a majority vote of the Interfraternity Council Judicial Board.

Rule 14: Adoption These rules shall be adopted at a regularly held meeting by a majority vote of the Interfraternity Council Judicial Board. These rules shall be applicable in perpetuity.

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