Board of Review Rules of Procedure - ascap

5.5.5 Closing Argument: Unless otherwise agreed to among the parties orordered by the Board of Review, ASCAP shall make the first closingargument, followed by the Protesting Member, provided, however, that ina Protest brought under Rule 2.3, the Board or Review shall determine theorder of closing argument, taking into account the views of the parties.Closing arguments shall otherwise follow the procedure for openingstatements.5.6 Decisions of the Board of Review resolving Protests are confidential unless theProtesting Member, ASCAP, and any Affected Members all consent topublication. In the absence of that consent, the Board of Review shall authorize asummary of each decision to be published on ASCAP’s website that describes therule or regulation alleged to have been violated, the Board of Review’sconclusion, and, without revealing confidential information about any particularmember’s distributions, the reason for that conclusion.6. Expulsion from Membership6.1 When the Board of Directors of ASCAP seeks to expel a member (the “AccusedMember”), the Board of Directors shall send to the Secretary of the Board ofReview a copy of the written notice setting forth the reasons for the expulsion, asrequired by Article V, Section 9 of ASCAP’s Articles of Association, and proofthat such notice was sent to the Accused Member. Upon receipt of the notice, theSecretary of the Board of Review shall provide a copy of these rules to theAccused Member and shall inform the Accused Member of the name and addressof the Secretary of the Board of Review. The Accused Member shall then have45 days to file a written answer.6.2 Subject to Rule 7, both ASCAP and the Accused Member shall be entitled todiscovery of relevant evidence upon which the request for expulsion or defensethereto is based, including a copy of the Accused Member’s ASCAP membershipfile, a copy of any record of the proceeding before the Board of Directors relatingto the decision to seek his or her expulsion, and copies of any evidence presentedto the Board of Directors in connection therewith.6.3 The Accused Member or ASCAP may request, and the Board of Review may onits own initiative order, pre- and/or post-trial submissions under the procedure andsubject to the restrictions set forth in Rule 3 of these Rules.6.4 The trial and deliberations shall proceed as provided in Rules 5.3 through 5.6,except that ASCAP shall have the burden of presenting its case first and shall bearthe burden of proof with respect to facts supporting expulsion.6.5 The Board of Review encourages an Accused Member to be represented by legalcounsel.6

7. Confidentiality7.1 Meetings of the Board of Review and proceedings before it are confidential.Evidence, testimony, briefs, and other papers shall be held by the Board ofReview and the parties in strictest confidence and may be used for no purposeother than prosecuting or defending the Protest or expulsion. All such materials,and any copies thereof a party may have made, must be returned to the party thatproffered the materials upon the proffering party’s request after the Board ofReview has rendered its decision and the time for appeal (if any) has expired orthe appellate review (if any) has concluded. Failure to comply with theconfidentiality requirements of this rule may result in a summary decision of theProtest or expulsion adverse to the party that fails to comply. Nothing in this ruleshall be construed to impair a member’s ability to be represented by counsel or toprepare witnesses.7.2 Expulsions shall be subject to the additional requirement that the existence of theproceeding shall remain confidential until and unless the Board of Review decidesto expel a member. If ASCAP violates this rule, the Board may summarilydismiss the request for expulsion.8. Secretary of the Board of ReviewASCAP shall appoint an attorney to act as Secretary of the Board of Review. TheSecretary shall serve as counsel to the Board of Review. The Secretary may obtain theassistance of other legal personnel as necessary and appropriate.9. Distribution of RulesThese Rules shall be posted on ASCAP’s website and shall be provided to any memberupon request or upon filing a Complaint as provided in Rule 2.5, or upon receipt of notice underRule 6.1.10. Effect of RulesThe rules in effect for a particular proceeding shall be the rules in effect at the time theComplaint was filed or, in the case of expulsion, at the time the rules were provided to theAccused Member.7