Section 21-5-2.7 - Procedure upon issuance of charge; further statement of alleged violation(a) Upon issuance of a charge by the commission or a member of the public, the commission shall notify the respondent of the charge in writing in accordance with section 21-2-4(d).(b) The respondent shall have twenty days after service thereof to answer the charge in writing. Requests to extend the time to answer shall be made pursuant to section 21-2-3.(c) The answer shall specifically admit, deny, or explain the charges filed against the respondent and shall set forth any other matter constituting an avoidance or affirmative defense.(d) After reviewing the answer and conducting any further investigation as warranted, the commission may close the matter, settle the matter on any terms it deems fair and in the public interest, issue an informal advisory opinion, or issue a further statement of alleged violation.(e) Upon issuance of a further statement of alleged violation, the commission shall enter an order erecting a firewall between the commission and its counsel, on one side, and the executive director, as charge counsel, on the other. Neither charge counsel nor the respondent shall have ex parte communications with the commission or its counsel by discussing or sharing information about substantive matters pertaining to the case. The executive director shall independently supervise and direct how the case against the respondent will be presented, argued, and otherwise conducted. Legal staff designated as commission counsel shall not be subject to supervision or direction by the executive director or other charge counsel on matters relating to the case.(f) The executive director shall prosecute each case, provided that, when the party filing the charge is not the commission, that party may move to prosecute the case. Such motion shall be filed no later than five days following publication of the notice of hearing as set forth in section 21-5-5. In considering the motion, the commission shall consider whether the movant has the ability to prosecute the case, whether the further statement of alleged violation includes allegations beyond those included in the charge, and whether granting the motion is in the public interest.(g) The respondent shall have twenty days after service of the further statement of alleged violation to answer in writing. The answer shall specifically admit, deny, or explain the charges filed against the respondent and shall set forth any other matter constituting an avoidance or affirmative defense.[Eff 11/28/2020] (Auth: HRS §§ 84-31(a)(5), 91-2, 97-6(a)(5)) (Imp: HRS 91-9.5, 97-6)