SECTION 155.405. Participation by Telephone or Videoconference

(a) Request to appear by telephone. A party may request to appear or present testimony by telephone or to present the testimony of a witness by telephone.

(1) To appear or present testimony by telephone, a party must file a motion no later than ten days before the proceeding unless a different time period is allowed by the judge.

(2) A motion shall include at least the following:

(A) the reason for the request;

(B) the name of the party or witness who will appear by phone;

(C) the telephone number at which the party or witness may be reached at the time of the proceeding;

(D) a statement that the party or witness will be the same person who will appear by telephone at the proceeding; and

(E) a certificate of conference complying with §155.305(b)(2) of this chapter.

(3) A timely, unopposed motion will be deemed granted without the necessity of an order, unless denied by order.

(b) Request to appear by videoconference. A party may request to appear or present the testimony of a witness by videoconference.

(1) To appear or present testimony by videoconference, a party must file a motion no later than ten days before the proceeding.

(2) A motion shall include a statement of the reason for the request, the name of the party or witness who will appear by videoconference, and the city in which the party or witness will be located at the time of the proceeding.

(c) Hearings and prehearing conferences by telephone or videoconference. The judge may conduct hearings and prehearing conferences by telephone or videoconference upon notice to the parties, even in the absence of a motion.

(d) Substantive and procedural rights. All substantive and procedural rights apply to telephone and videoconference proceedings, subject only to the limitations of the physical arrangement.

(e) Documentary evidence. Prior to the hearing, the parties must exchange, and provide to witnesses appearing telephonically or by videoconference, all documents necessary for effective participation in the hearing.

(f) Failure to appear at telephone or videoconference proceeding. For a telephone or videoconference proceeding, the following may be considered a failure to appear and grounds for default, dismissal for want of prosecution, or other adverse action if the conditions exist for more than ten minutes after the scheduled time for the proceeding:

(1) failure to answer the telephone or videoconference line;

(2) failure to free the line for the proceeding; or

(3) failure to be ready to proceed.

Source Note: The provisions of this §155.405 adopted to be effective November 26, 2008, 33 TexReg 9451; amended to be effective January 1, 2017, 41 TexReg 8593