Does SOAH conduct arbitrations?
Yes. The Legislature authorized SOAH to conduct arbitrations if requested by one of the parties in certain nursing home enforcement cases pursuant to TEX. HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE, Chapter 242. In addition, SOAH has provided arbitration-type hearings in situations where a dispute has arisen, there is no right to a contested case under the APA, but the parties want to have a neutral third-party make a final determination on the issues in dispute. Pursuant to agreements between the Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse and certain contract providers, SOAH conducted a number of arbitrations to determine the final amount of costs that were appropriately disallowed under the relevant contracts. Because arbitrations are analogous to non-jury trials and administrative contested case hearings — but with different rules of procedure and evidence — all ALJs at SOAH are available to conduct arbitrations. Additional training about the more informal and streamlined nature of the process of arb
