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Van Harken v. City of Chicago

Appellate Court of Illinois · Civil Procedure

Civil ProcedureAdministrative lawConstitutional lawDue processSeparation of powersJudicial reviewadministrative hearing officersparking violations

Facts

Chicago adopted an ordinance creating an administrative system for adjudicating parking violations, using attorney hearing officers appointed by the City and paid hourly as independent contractors. A parking ticket serves as prima facie evidence of a violation, the issuing officer need not appear, and the recipient may contest by mail or in person, present evidence, and seek subpoenas through the hearing officer. If found liable, the recipient may obtain judicial review in circuit court under the Administrative Review Law. Plaintiffs each received parking tickets and fines, but instead of seeking judicial review, they brought a facial constitutional challenge to the ordinance.

Issue

Does Chicago's ordinance establishing administrative adjudication of parking violations violate the Illinois Constitution by (1) impermissibly delegating judicial power in violation of separation of powers, or (2) denying procedural due process because hearing officers allegedly function as both prosecutor and judge?

Rule

A municipal administrative adjudication scheme does not violate the separation of powers clause so long as the agency's quasi-judicial determinations are subject to judicial review, leaving ultimate judicial power in the courts. For procedural due process, an administrative proceeding need not mirror a judicial trial; it is sufficient if the procedure is suitable to the determination being made and conforms to fundamental fairness, including an opportunity to be heard, the right to cross-examine adverse witnesses, and impartiality in ruling on the evidence. A facial constitutional challenge to an ordinance may be brought without exhausting administrative remedies.

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One of 10 multiple-choice questions for this case. Pick an answer to see why.

The City of Milwaukee adopts an ordinance creating an administrative process for code-citation hearings before attorney hearing officers. After receiving citations, Elena Ruiz and Devon Pike skip the administrative hearing and file suit in Wisconsin circuit court alleging the ordinance is facially unconstitutional because it denies due process in every case.

The city moves to dismiss because Elena and Devon failed to exhaust available administrative remedies. How should the court rule under the doctrine of the majority opinion?

Explanation. The majority recognized the general exhaustion rule but applied an exception for facial constitutional attacks on a statute or ordinance. Because Elena and Devon challenge the ordinance on its face rather than merely disputing an individual citation, they may proceed directly to court without first completing the administrative process. (Derived from Van Harken v. City of Chicago (n.d.).)