APPEAL TO COURT

(A) THIRTY-DAY DEADLINE FOR APPEAL

Any interested party, within thirty days after written notice of the final decision of the unemployment compensation review commission was sent to all interested parties, may appeal the decision of the commission to the court of common pleas.

(B) WHERE TO FILE THE APPEAL

An appellant shall file the appeal with the court of common pleas of the county where the appellant, if an employee, is a resident or was last employed or, if an employer, is a resident or has a principal place of business in this state. If an appellant is not a resident of or last employed in a county in this state or does not have a principal place of business in this state, then an appellant shall file the appeal with the court of common pleas of Franklin county.

(C) PERFECTING THE APPEAL

The timely filing of the notice of appeal shall be the only act required to perfect the appeal and vest jurisdiction in the court. The notice of appeal shall identify the decision appealed from.

(D) INTERESTED PARTIES

The commission shall provide on its final decision the names and addresses of all interested parties. The appellant shall name all interested parties as appellees in the notice of appeal. The director of job and family services is always an interested party and shall be named as an appellee in the notice of appeal.

(E) SERVICE OF THE NOTICE OF APPEAL

Upon filing the notice of appeal with the clerk of the court, the clerk shall serve a copy of the notice of appeal upon all appellees, including the director.

(F) DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION

(1) Except as specified in division (F)(2) of this section, the commission, within forty-five days after a notice of appeal is filed or within an extended period ordered by the court, shall file with the clerk a certified transcript of the record of the proceedings at issue before the commission. The commission also shall provide a copy of the transcript to the appellant's attorney or to the appellant, if the appellant is not represented by counsel, and to any appellee who requests a copy.

(2) If the commission cannot file the certified transcript of the record of proceedings within forty-five days after a notice of appeal is filed, or within an extended period ordered by the court, then the court shall remand the matter to the commission for additional proceedings in order to complete the record on appeal. The additional proceedings may include a new hearing before the commission or a designated hearing officer.

(G) COURT BRIEFING SCHEDULES

The court shall provide for the filing of briefs by the parties, whether by local rule, scheduling order, or otherwise.

(H) REVIEW BY THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS

The court shall hear the appeal on the certified record provided by the commission. If the court finds that the decision of the commission was unlawful, unreasonable, or against the manifest weight of the evidence, it shall reverse, vacate, or modify the decision, or remand the matter to the commission. Otherwise, the court shall affirm the decision of the commission.

(I) FAILURE TO FILE APPEAL WITHIN THIRTY DAYS

If an appeal is filed after the thirty-day appeal period, the court of common pleas shall conduct a hearing to determine whether the appeal was timely filed under division (D)(9) of section 4141.281 of the Revised Code. At the hearing, additional evidence may be introduced and oral arguments may be presented regarding the timeliness of the filing of the appeal.

If the court of common pleas determines that the appeal was filed within the time allowed, the court shall after that make its decision on the merits of the appeal. The determination on timeliness by the court of common pleas may be appealed to the court of appeals as in civil cases, and such appeal shall be consolidated with any appeal from the decision by the court of common pleas on the merits of the appeal.

Effective Date: 10-31-2001; 09-05-2005 .