A DDS Registry Appeal is an employee’s chance to clear their name. A successful appeal keeps their name of the Registry thereby allowing them to pursue employment in their chosen field.
DDS Registry Appeal Lawyer
The DDS Registry is a data base of employees who were either fired or left a job because they allegedly abused or neglected a person with an intellectual disability. Employers must check the Registry before offering employment to anyone. If you are on the Registry, you cannot work for DDS or any of the agencies who provide services to those with intellectual disabilities.
The Appeal is an Administrative Hearing presided over by a Hearing Officer. At the hearing, the agency who conducted the investigation will present evidence first. They will detail the sources, documentation and other information which they relied on in reaching their conclusion. They are subject to cross-examination by the employee’s lawyer.
Then the employee gets to present their side of the story by testifying and offering exhibits. They can also call other witnesses to support their position.
The primary issue to be decided is whether the allegations of abuse or neglect which were substantiated by the agency are supported by a “preponderance of the evidence.” In every day language this means more likely than not.
The Hearing Officer has ten business days to issue a proposed decision. The employee and DDS then have ten business days to submit written comments in support or in opposition to the proposed decision.
If the employee wins, their name is off the Registry. If they lose, they can take a further appeal to the Superior Court. However, appeals to the Superior Court are rarely successful. Therefore, it is critical to get it right the first time.
You may contact me by email or by calling my Fairfield office at (203) 259-5251 or in Stamford at (203) 356-1475 for further information concerning a DDS Appeal.