SECTIONS 11455.10-11455.30 - California Statutes

GOVERNMENT CODE

SECTION 11455.10-11455.30

11455.10. A person is subject to the contempt sanction for any of
the following in an adjudicative proceeding before an agency:
(a) Disobedience of or resistance to a lawful order.
(b) Refusal to take the oath or affirmation as a witness or
thereafter refusal to be examined.
(c) Obstruction or interruption of the due course of the
proceeding during a hearing or near the place of the hearing by any
of the following:
(1) Disorderly, contemptuous, or insolent behavior toward the
presiding officer while conducting the proceeding.
(2) Breach of the peace, boisterous conduct, or violent
disturbance.
(3) Other unlawful interference with the process or proceedings of
the agency.
(d) Violation of the prohibition of ex parte communications under
Article 7 (commencing with Section 11430.10).
(e) Failure or refusal, without substantial justification, to
comply with a deposition order, discovery request, subpoena, or other
order of the presiding officer, or moving, without substantial
justification, to compel discovery.

11455.20. (a) The presiding officer or agency head may certify the
facts that justify the contempt sanction against a person to the
superior court in and for the county where the proceeding is
conducted. The court shall thereupon issue an order directing the
person to appear before the court at a specified time and place, and
then and there to show cause why the person should not be punished
for contempt. The order and a copy of the certified statement shall
be served on the person. Upon service of the order and a copy of the
certified statement, the court has jurisdiction of the matter.
(b) The same proceedings shall be had, the same penalties may be
imposed, and the person charged may purge the contempt in the same
way, as in the case of a person who has committed a contempt in the
trial of a civil action before a superior court.

11455.30. (a) The presiding officer may order a party, the party's
attorney or other authorized representative, or both, to pay
reasonable expenses, including attorney's fees, incurred by another
party as a result of bad faith actions or tactics that are frivolous
or solely intended to cause unnecessary delay as defined in Section
128.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(b) The order, or denial of an order, is subject to judicial
review in the same manner as a decision in the proceeding. The order
is enforceable in the same manner as a money judgment or by the
contempt sanction.