39 Miss. Code. R. 1-15-103
Rules of evidence at hearings shall conform to the requirements of the courts of record in this State, provided that the Commission, in its discretion, may permit such deviations from said requirements as it deems in the public interest.
The Commission at hearings is not bound by the Mississippi Rules of Evidence. No informality in any proceeding or in the manner of taking testimony invalidates any order made, approved or confirmed by the Commission. The Commission, with or without objection, may exclude evidence that is irrelevant, unduly repetitious, inadmissible on constitutional or statutory grounds, or inadmissible on the basis of any evidentiary privilege provided by statute or recognized in the courts of Mississippi, and may order the presentation of such evidence to stop. All other evidence may be admitted if it is a type generally relied upon by prudent persons in the conduct of their affairs. The Commission's expertise, technical competence and special knowledge may be used in the evaluation of the evidence.
Documentary evidence may be received in the form of copies or excerpts. Upon request, parties shall be given an opportunity to compare the copy with the original if available. However, the Commission may permit photostatic, photographic or other copies of documents, or any part or parts thereof, to be introduced in evidence upon a satisfactory showing of their correctness or upon showing that it would be impractical or inconvenient to introduce the originals. When a party offers in evidence any portion of a transcript, exhibit, or other record from any other proceeding before the Commission, the portion offered must be specifically described and, if admitted, will be made an exhibit.
Where relevant and material matter offered in evidence is embraced in a book, paper or document containing other matter not material or relevant, the party shall plainly designate the matter so offered. If such immaterial matter unnecessarily encumbers the record, such evidence will not be received but may be marked for identification, and, if properly authenticated, the relevant and material matter may be read into the record, or if the Commission so directs, a true copy of such matter in proper form shall be received as an exhibit, and like copies delivered by the party offering the same to opposing parties who shall be given opportunity to examine same and to offer in evidence any other portions thereof if found to be relevant or material.
The Commission may take official notice at hearings and in its orders:
When officially noticing on its own motion, the Commission will give the parties appropriate opportunity to respond or refute such matters noticed.
Grounds for objection to the admission or exclusion of evidence must be stated briefly at the time the evidence is offered. An offer of proof may be made for the record which consists of a statement of the substance of the excluded evidence. When a party objects to the admission of evidence, the Commission will rule on the objection or the Commission may receive the evidence.
The Commission may order a witness's prefiled testimony previously distributed to all parties to be incorporated in the transcript as if read if timely filed pursuant to an order, statute, notice or rule requiring its filing before hearing. Without objection, the Commission may direct other prefiled testimony to be incorporated in the transcript as if read. A copy of all prefiled testimony with exhibits shall be provided to the court reporter during the public hearing for inclusion in the transcript of the proceeding. A copy of all prefiled testimony with exhibits shall be provided to each of the Commissioners at the hearing.
Public exhibits offered at hearing must ordinarily be typed or printed on eight and one half by eleven inch (8 1/2" x 11") white paper, except maps, charts, photographs and non-documentary exhibits may be introduced on the size or kind of paper customarily used for them. Exhibits that are trade secrets, confidential information or otherwise exempt from public review shall be placed in an envelope other than white. When practical, sheets of each exhibit shall be numbered and, if the exhibit consists of two or more sheets, the first sheet or title page shall contain a brief summary of what the exhibit purports to show and the number of pages in the exhibits. It is desirable that rate comparisons or other similar evidence be condensed into easily readable tables. At the hearing, a copy of each documentary exhibit must be furnished to each party present, to the court reporter, and to each Commissioner except for unusually bulky or voluminous exhibits that have previously been made available for the parties' inspection. Copies must be of good quality.
Exhibits offered as part of a party's direct case (except exhibits offered on redirect examination) must be timely filed. Exhibits filed pursuant to any order, statute, notice or rule requiring their filing before hearing are timely filed. Otherwise, exhibits must be distributed or made available to all parties long enough before their introduction into evidence to allow the parties a reasonable opportunity to review them and to prepare to examine their substance, except those exhibits that update exhibits previously timely filed may be filed so long as fair opportunity is afforded other parties to examine the sponsoring witnesses about the updated material.
Exhibits identified at hearing are subject to appropriate and timely objection before the close of proceedings. Exhibits to which no objection is made are automatically admitted into evidence without motion of the sponsoring party.
Except as may be expressly permitted and upon good cause shown, the Commission will not receive in evidence or consider as a part of the record any book, paper or other instrument in connection with the proceeding after the close of the testimony.
39 Miss. Code. R. 1-15-103