Pursuant to this tribunal’s order of March 21, 2005, each party to the above-captioned
case was required to file a Prehearing Statement with this Court and serve the same on all parties
within twenty (20) days of the date of the order. However, Petitioner Aileen Scheer has not
responded to this tribunal’s Order for Prehearing Statements or to a letter from this tribunal dated
April 27, 2005, requesting the filing of a Prehearing Statement by May 6, 2005. Therefore,
pursuant to ALC Rule 23, this matter is hereby dismissed.
ALC Rule 23 provides that:
[t]he administrative law judge may dismiss a contested case or dispose of a contested
case adverse to the defaulting party. A default occurs when a party fails to plead or
otherwise prosecute or defend, fails to appear at a hearing without the proper consent of
the judge or fails to comply with any interlocutory order of the administrative law judge.
Any non-defaulting party may move for an order dismissing the case or terminating it
adversely to the defaulting party.
Id. (emphasis added).
By virtue of her request for a contested case, Petitioner had an obligation to defend her
position. However, Petitioner has not filed a Prehearing Statement with this Court, or requested
an extension or enlargement of time pursuant to ALC Rule 3(B) in order to comply with this
tribunal’s order. Rather, she has been unresponsive to all communications. Petitioner has been
given abundant opportunity to comply with this tribunal’s Order for Prehearing Statements and
has failed to do so. “There is a limit beyond which the court should not allow a litigant to
consume the time of the court . . . .” Georganne Apparel, Inc. v. Todd, 303 S.C. 87, 92, 399
S.E.2d 16, 19 (Ct. App. 1990).
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the above-captioned case is hereby DISMISSED
with prejudice.
AND IT IS SO ORDERED.
________________________________
JOHN D. GEATHERS
Administrative Law Judge
P.O. Box 11667
Columbia, SC 29211
May 11, 2005
Columbia, South Carolina
