CHAPTER 323
FORMERLY
HOUSE BILL NO. 199
AS AMENDED BY HOUSE AMENDMENT NO. 1
AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 33, TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE, RELATING TO THE BOARD OF VETERINARY MEDICINE.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend Chapter 33, Title 24, Section 3315 of the Delaware Code by striking said section in its entirety and substituting in lieu thereof the following:
"§3315. Hearing procedures
(a) Upon the receipt of a complaint against a practitioner, the Board shall determine what action, if any, it shall take. If the Board decides not to take any further action, and the complainant is known to the Board, the Board shall forward by letter to the complainant its reasons for not taking further action. Where the Board has determined to take further action, the matter shall be heard by the Board within 3 months from the date on which the complaint was received unless circumstances surrounding the complaint warrant a lengthier investigation. The Board shall fix the time and place for a full hearing of the matter, and shall cause a copy of the complaint, together with a notice of the time and place fixed for the hearing, to be personally delivered or served upon the practitioner at least 30 days before the date fixed for the hearing. In cases where the practitioner cannot be located or where personal service cannot be effected, substitute service will be effected in the same manner as with civil litigation.
(b) All hearings shall be informal without use of the rules of evidence. If the Board finds, by a majority vote of all members, that the complaint has merit, the Board shall take such action permitted under this chapter as it deems necessary. The Board's decision shall be In writing and shall include its reasons or such a decision. A copy of the decision shall be mailed immediately to the complainant, and to the practitioner. The Board's decision shall become effective on the 30th day after the date it is mailed or served on the practitioner, unless there is an appeal to the Superior Court within that Hine.
(c) Where either the complainant or the practitioner is in disagreement with the action of the Board, either person may appeal the Board's decision to the Superior Court within 30 days of service, or of the postmarked date of the copy of the Board's decision. Upon such appeal, the Court shall hear the evidence de novo, and the filing of an appeal shall act as a stay of the Board's decision, pending final determination of the appeal."
Approved June 27, 1986.