[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 10, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2005]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 10CFR2.323]

[Page 56-57]
 
                            TITLE 10--ENERGY
 
                CHAPTER I--NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
 
PART 2_RULES OF PRACTICE FOR DOMESTIC LICENSING PROCEEDINGS AND 
ISSUANCE OF ORDERS--Table of Contents
 
Subpart C_Rules of General Applicability: Hearing Requests, Petitions to 
 
Sec. 2.323  Motions.

    (a) Presentation and disposition. All motions must be addressed to 
the Commission or other designated presiding officer. A motion must be 
made no later than ten (10) days after the occurrence or circumstance 
from which the motion arises. All written motions must be filed with the 
Secretary and served on all parties to the proceeding.
    (b) Form and content. Unless made orally on-the-record during a 
hearing, or the presiding officer directs otherwise, or under the 
provisions of subpart N of this part, a motion must be in writing, state 
with particularity the grounds and the relief sought, be accompanied by 
any affidavits or other evidence relied on, and, as appropriate, a 
proposed form of order. A motion must be rejected if it does not include 
a certification by the attorney or representative of the moving party 
that the movant has made a sincere effort

[[Page 57]]

to contact other parties in the proceeding and resolve the issue(s) 
raised in the motion, and that the movant's efforts to resolve the 
issue(s) have been unsuccessful.
    (c) Answers to motions. Within ten (10) days after service of a 
written motion, or other period as determined by the Secretary, the 
Assistant Secretary, or the presiding officer, a party may file an 
answer in support of or in opposition to the motion, accompanied by 
affidavits or other evidence. The moving party has no right to reply, 
except as permitted by the Secretary, the Assistant Secretary, or the 
presiding officer. Permission may be granted only in compelling 
circumstances, such as where the moving party demonstrates that it could 
not reasonably have anticipated the arguments to which it seeks leave to 
reply.
    (d) Accuracy in filing. All parties are obligated, in their filings 
before the presiding officer and the Commission, to ensure that their 
arguments and assertions are supported by appropriate and accurate 
references to legal authority and factual basis, including, as 
appropriate, citations to the record. Failure to do so may result in 
appropriate sanctions, including striking a matter from the record or, 
in extreme circumstances, dismissal of the party.
    (e) Motions for reconsideration. Motions for reconsideration may not 
be filed except upon leave of the presiding officer or the Commission, 
upon a showing of compelling circumstances, such as the existence of a 
clear and material error in a decision, which could not have reasonably 
been anticipated, that renders the decision invalid. A motion must be 
filed within ten (10) days of the action for which reconsideration is 
requested. The motion and any responses to the motion are limited to ten 
(10) pages.
    (f) Referral and certifications to the Commission. (1) If, in the 
judgment of the presiding officer, prompt decision is necessary to 
prevent detriment to the public interest or unusual delay or expense, or 
if the presiding officer determines that the decision or ruling involves 
a novel issue that merits Commission review at the earliest opportunity, 
the presiding officer may refer the ruling promptly to the Commission. 
The presiding officer must notify the parties of the referral either by 
announcement on-the-record or by written notice if the hearing is not in 
session.
    (2) A party may petition the presiding officer to certify an issue 
to the Commission for early review. The presiding officer shall apply 
the alternative standards of Sec. 2.341(f) in ruling on the petition 
for certification. No motion for reconsideration of the presiding 
officer's ruling on a petition for certification will be entertained.
    (g) Effect of filing a motion, petition, or certification of 
question to the Commission. Unless otherwise ordered, neither the filing 
of a motion, the filing of a petition for certification, nor the 
certification of a question to the Commission stays the proceeding or 
extends the time for the performance of any act.
    (h) Motions to compel discovery. Parties may file answers to motions 
to compel discovery in accordance with paragraph (c) of this section. 
The presiding officer, in his or her discretion, may order that the 
answer be given orally during a telephone conference or other prehearing 
conference, rather than in writing. If responses are given over the 
telephone, the presiding officer shall issue a written order on the 
motion summarizing the views presented by the parties. This does not 
preclude the presiding officer from issuing a prior oral ruling on the 
matter effective at the time of the ruling, if the terms of the ruling 
are incorporated in the subsequent written order.