(a) Matters included. Unless specifically excluded by subsection (b), this part governs review by the Commission, pursuant to sections 17(h), (i) and (o) of the Commodity Exchange Act (“Act”), as amended, of any disciplinary action, membership denial action, registration action or member responsibility action taken by the National Futures Association or any registered futures association. Unless specifically indicated, references in this part to the National Futures Association shall also include any other registered futures association.

(b) Matters excluded. The Commission will not review under these rules the following decisions by the National Futures Association:

(1) A decision in a disciplinary action if the party aggrieved by the decision knowingly failed to pursue the right to appeal an adverse decision to the Appeals Committee of the National Futures Association and there are no extraordinary circumstances that otherwise warrant Commission consideration of the aggrieved party's appeal;

(2) A decision in an arbitration action brought pursuant to section 17(b)(10) of the Act or any rule of the National Futures Association;

(3) Suspension of a member based solely on that member's failure to pay National Futures Association dues;

(4) A decision to disqualify any member for service on the National Futures Association Board of Directors, Business Conduct Committees, Hearing Committee or arbitration panels pursuant to the standards for service adopted by the National Futures Association to implement Commission rule 1.63;

(5) Suspension of a member or a person associated with a member based solely on that person's failure to pay an arbitration award or a settlement agreement resulting from an arbitration action brought pursuant to section 17(b)(10) of the Act or rules and regulations of the National Futures Association, or a settlement agreement resulting from a mediation proceeding sponsored by the National Futures Association, unless there are extraordinary circumstances that involve something more than the ministerial application of a predetermined sanction, or raise a colorable claim that the National Futures Assocaition has acted arbitrarily.

(c) Appeals from excluded decisions. If the General Counsel, or any employee under the General Counsel's supervision as the General Counsel may designate, determines that a notice of appeal submitted to the Commission is from a decision that is excluded from review under this part, the notice of appeal may be stricken and ordered to be returned to the aggrieved party who submitted it.

(d) Applicability of these part 171 rules. Unless otherwise ordered, these rules will apply in their entirety to all appeals and matters relating thereto filed on or after October 31, 1990. Any part 171 proceeding commenced prior to October 31, 1990 continues to be governed by the procedures established in former subpart F of part 3 of the Commission's regulations, if applicable, or by the procedures established for that proceeding by Commission order. Parties to any proceeding pending on October 31, 1990 may, within 30 days after October 31, 1990 by written stipulation executed by all parties, and filed with the Proceedings Clerk before the Commission's final decision is rendered, elect to have the matter governed by the provisions of these part 171 rules.

For purposes of this part:

(a) Commission decisional employee includes any member of the Commission staff who participates in, or may be reasonably expected to participate in, the decisionmaking process in any proceeding under this part. It does not include Commissioners or members of their personal staff.

(b) Disciplinary action includes any proceeding brought by the National Futures Association to enforce its rules that may result in expulsion, suspension, censure, bar from association with a member, fine in excess of $100 or any comparable sanction being imposed on a member or a person associated with a member.

(c) Ex parte communication shall include any communication, whether written or oral, which is both (1) not preceded by reasonable notice to all parties to a proceeding, and (2) not made on the public record. It shall not include requests made to the Commission's Opinions Section or Office of Proceedings for status reports or for an interpretation of these rules.

(d) Final Decision means the decision that terminates the proceeding before the National Futures Association on the action that is the subject of the notice of appeal filed with the Commission.

(e) To mail means to place in the United States mail (or to deliver to an overnight delivery service of established reliability) a properly addressed and post-paid document. Unless otherwise provided, documents filed and served by mail must be sent by no less expeditious means than first class United States mail.

(f) Member includes any person admitted to membership by the National Futures Association.

(g) Member Responsibility Action includes any action in which, based on a finding by the National Futures Association that there is reason to believe that summary action is necessary to protect the commodity futures markets, customers or other members of the association, a member or person associated with a member may be summarily suspended from membership or association with a member, required to restrict operations or otherwise directed to take remedial action.

(h) Membership denial action includes any proceeding brought by the National Futures Association to (1) determine whether an applicant should be admitted to membership or be permitted to be associated with a member, (2) determine whether an applicant should be admitted to membership or be permitted to be associated with a member on a conditional basis, or (3) determine whether to revoke or restrict the membership or association status of any person who is a member or is associated with a member.

(i) Party includes any person who has been the subject of a disciplinary action, membership denial action, or registration action by the National Futures Association; the National Futures Association itself; any person granted permission to participate as a party pursuant to § 171.27 of these rules; and any Division of the Commission that files a Notice of Appearance pursuant to § 171.28 of these rules.

(j) Person associated with a member includes any person permitted to register as an associate of a member by the National Futures Association.

(k) Record of the proceeding shall include the order appealed from, the findings or report on which the order is based, the pleadings, evidence and proceedings before the National Futures Association decisonmaker and a copy of any rule of the National Futures Association that is material to the order.

(l) Registration action includes any proceeding brought by the National Futures Association, pursuant to authority delegated by the Commission, to grant, condition, deny, suspend, restrict, or revoke the registration of any person.

(m) Rule of the National Futures Association includes any article of incorporation, bylaw, rule, regulation, resolution or written interpretation of stated policy of the National Futures Association.

The principal office of the Commission is located at Three Lafayette Centre, 1155 21st Street, NW., Washington, DC 20581. It is open each day, except Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays, from 8:15 a.m. until 4:45 p.m., eastern standard time or eastern daylight savings time, whichever is currently in effect in Washington, DC.

(a) In general. In computing any period of time prescribed by these rules or allowed by the Commission, the day of the act, event, or default from which the designated period of time begins to run is not to be included. The last day of the period so computed is to be included unless it is a Saturday, a Sunday, or a legal holiday. In the latter circumstances, the period runs until the end of the next day which is not a Saturday, a Sunday, or a legal holiday. Intermediate Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays shall be included in the computation unless the period of time prescribed or allowed is less than seven (7) days.

(b) Date of service of orders. In computing any period of time involving the date of service of an order, the date of service shall be the date the order is mailed or hand delivered by the Proceedings Clerk, which, unless otherwise indicated, shall be the date stamped on the order by the Proceedings Clerk.

(a) In general. Except as otherwise provided by these rules, for good cause shown, on its own motion or the motion of a party, the Commission may at any time extend or shorten the time prescribed by the rules for filing any document. In any instance in which a specific time period is not prescribed in this part for an action to be taken concerning any matter, the Commission may establish a time for that action.

(b) Filing of motion. Absent extraordinary circumstances, when the time period that has been prescribed for an action to be taken concerning any matter exceeds seven days, requests for extension of that time period shall be filed at least five days prior to the expiration of the time period provided and shall include an explanation of the facts and circumstances that justify the extension.

(a) Prohibition of ex parte communications. (1) No party to a proceeding before the Commission under these rules and no person outside the Commission who has a direct or indirect interest (pecuniary or otherwise) in the outcome of the proceeding or might be aggrieved by the outcome of the proceeding shall make or knowingly cause to be made an ex parte communication relevant to the merits of the proceeding subject to these rules to a Commissioner, member of the personal staff of a Commissioner or Commission decisional employee.

(2) No Commissioner, member of the personal staff of a Commissioner or Commission decisional employee shall make or knowingly cause to be made to a party to a proceeding subject to these rules or to any person outside the Commission who has a direct or indirect interest (pecuniary or otherwise) in the outcome of the proceeding or might be aggrieved by the outcome of the proceeding, an ex parte communication relevant to the merits of the proceeding subject to these rules.

(b) Procedure for handling. Any Commissioner, member of a Commissioner's personal staff or Commission decisional employee who receives, or who makes or knowingly causes to be made, an ex parte communication prohibited by paragraph (a) of this section shall:

(1) Place on the public record of the proceeding:

(i) All such written communications;

(ii) Memoranda stating the substance of all such oral communications; and

(iii) All written responses, and memoranda stating the substance of all oral responses, to the materials described in paragraphs (b)(1)(i) and (b)(1)(ii) of this section; and

(2) Promptly give written notice of such communications and responses thereto to all parties to the proceedings to which the communication or responses relate.

(c) Sanctions. (1) Upon receipt of an ex parte communication knowingly made or knowingly caused to be made by a party in violation of the prohibition contained in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the Commission may, to the extent consistent with the interests of justice and the policies of the Act, require the party to show cause why his claim or interest in the proceeding should not be dismissed, denied, disregarded, or otherwise adversely affected on account of such violation.

(2) Any Commissioner, member of a Commissioner's personal staff or Commission decisional employee who knowingly makes or knowingly causes to be made, or who knowingly solicits or knowingly causes the solicitation of, an ex parte communication which violates the prohibitions contained in paragraph (a)(2) of this section may be deemed to have engaged in conduct of the type proscribed by 17 CFR 140.735-3(b)(3).

(d) Applicability of prohibitions and sanctions against ex parte communications. (1)(i) The prohibitions of this section shall begin to apply at the time that a copy of a notice of appeal has been filed with the Proceedings Clerk in accordance with § 171.23 or § 171.44 of this part; or a petition for stay or for an emergency effective date has been filed in accordance with § 171.22, § 171.41 or § 171.43 of this part. The prohibitions of this section shall remain in effect until a final order has been entered in the proceeding which is no longer subject to review by the Commission or to review by any court.

(ii) The Commission may, by specific order entered in a particular proceeding, determine that these prohibitions shall commence from some date prior, or shall continue until a date subsequent, to the times specified in paragraph (d)(1)(i) of this section.

(2) The sanctions in paragraph (c)(1) of this section shall not apply to a person making a prohibited communication (or causing it to be made) absent evidence that the person acted with actual or constructive knowledge that the person receiving the communication was a Commissioner, member of the personal staff of a Commissioner or a Commission decisional employee.

(a) How to file. Any document that is required by this part to be filed with the Proceedings Clerk shall be filed by delivering it in person or by first-class mail or a more expeditious form of United States mail, or by overnight or similar commercial delivery service to: Proceedings Clerk, Office of Proceedings, Three Lafayette Centre, 1155 21st Street NW., Washington, DC 20581; or faxing the document to (202) 418-5532 or emailing it to [email protected]. To be timely filed under this part, a document must be delivered or mailed to the Proceedings Clerk within the time prescribed for filing.

(b) Proof of filing. Proof of filing shall be made by attaching to the document for filing an affidavit of filing executed by any person 18 years of age or older or a proof of filing executed by an attorney-at-law qualified for practice before the Commission. The proof of filing shall certify that the attached document was delivered by hand to the Proceedings Clerk or deposited in the United States mail, with first-class postage prepaid (or delivered to an overnight delivery service of established reliability), addressed to the Proceedings Clerk, Office of Proceedings, Three Lafayette Centre, 1155 21st Street, NW., Washington, DC 20581, on the date specified in the affidavit.

(c) Formalities of filing—(1) Number of copies. Unless otherwise provided, any person filing a document with the Proceedings Clerk shall provide two conformed copies in addition to the original.

(2) Title page. All documents filed with the Proceedings Clerk shall include, at the head thereof, or on a title page, the name of the Commission, the title of the proceeding, the docket number (if one has been assigned by the Proceedings Clerk), the subject of the particular document and the name of the person on whose behalf the document is being filed.

(3) Paper, spacing, type. All documents filed with the Proceedings Clerk shall be typewritten, must be on one grade of good white paper no less than 8 or more than 8 1/2 inches wide and no less than 10 1/2 or more than 11 1/2 inches long, and must be bound on the top only. They must be double-spaced, except for long quotations (3 or more lines) and footnotes which should be single-spaced.

(4) Signature—(i) By whom. All documents filed with the Proceedings Clerk shall be signed personally in ink:

(A) By the person or persons on whose behalf they are tendered for filing;

(B) By a general partner, officer or director of a partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity; or

(C) By an attorney-at-law having authority with respect thereto. The Proceedings Clerk may require appropriate evidence of the authority of a person subscribing a document on behalf of another person.

(ii) Effect. The signature on any document of any person acting either for himself or as attorney or agent for another constitutes certification by him that:

(A) He has read the document subscribed and knows the contents thereof;

(B) If executed in any representative capacity, it was done with full power and authority to do so;

(C) To the best of his knowledge, information, and belief, every statement contained in the document is true and not misleading; and

(D) The document is not being interposed for delay.

(a) General requirements. Unless otherwise provided, all documents filed with the Proceedings Clerk must be served upon all parties on the same day.

(b) Manner of service. Service may be made by personal delivery (effective upon receipt), mail (effective upon deposit), facsimile (effective upon receipt) or electronic mail (effective upon receipt). When service is effected by mail, the time within which the person served may respond thereto shall be increased by five days. Parties who consent to accepting service of documents by electronic means in the underlying NFA action also consent to accepting service by the same means in proceedings under this part 171.

(c) Proof of service. Proof of service shall be made by filing with the Proceedings Clerk, at the same time as the relevant document is filed, an affidavit of service executed by a person 18 years of age or older or a certificate of service executed by an attorney qualified to practice before the Commission. The proof of service shall state that service has been made and identify the person served, the date of service and the manner of service.

(d) Designation of person to receive service. The first document filed in a proceeding by or on behalf of any party must state on the first page the name, postal address and telephone number of the person authorized to receive service for the party of all documents filed in the proceeding. Thereafter, service of documents shall be made upon the person authorized unless service on a different authorized person or on the party himself is authorized by the Commission, or unless pursuant to § 171.8 the person authorized is changed by the party upon due notice to all other parties. Parties shall file and serve notification of any changes in the information provided pursuant to this subparagraph as soon as practicable after the change occurs.

(e) Service of orders and decisions. A copy of all notices, rulings, opinions and orders of the Commission shall be served on each of the parties by the Proceedings Clerk. Service will be deemed complete upon deposit in the mail.

(a) In general. An application for a form of relief not otherwise specifically provided for in this part shall be made by a written motion, filed with the Proceedings Clerk. The motion shall state the relief sought, basis for the relief and the authority relied upon.

(b) Answers to motions. Unless otherwise provided, a party may file a written response to a motion within five days after service of the motion.

(c) Motions for procedural orders. Motions for procedural orders, including motions for extensions of time, may be acted on at any time, without awaiting a response thereto. Any party adversely affected by such action may request reconsideration, vacation or modification of the action.

(d) Dilatory motions. Frivolous or repetitive motions dealing with the same subject matter shall not be permitted.

In the event a party fails to fulfill his obligations under these Rules, the Commission may impose appropriate sanctions including dismissal of the appeal or summary reversal of the decision under appeal. Sanctions may be imposed on the motion of a party or on the Commission's own motion.

At any time before the Commission has reached a final determination in a proceeding, the parties may request dismissal of the appeal based on a settlement agreement. If, in its view, the settlement is consistent with the public interest, the Commission will dismiss the proceeding.

(a) Practice—(1) By non-attorneys. An individual may appear pro se (on his own behalf); a general partner may represent the partnership; a bona fide officer of a corporation, trust or association may represent the corporation, trust or association.

(2) By attorneys. An attorney-at-law who is admitted to practice before the highest court in any State or territory, or of the District of Columbia, who has not been suspended or disbarred from appearance and practice before the Commission in accordance with the provisions of part 14 of this chapter may represent parties as an attorney in proceedings before the Commission.

(b) Debarment of counsel or representative during the course of a proceeding. Whenever, while a proceeding is pending before the Commission, the Commission finds that a person acting as counsel or representative for any party to the proceeding is guilty of contemptuous conduct, the Commission may order that such person be precluded from further acting as counsel or representative in a proceeding subject to these rules. The Commission may suspend the proceedings for a reasonable time for the purpose of enabling the party to obtain other counsel or representative.

(c) Withdrawal from representation. Withdrawal from representation of a party will be only by leave of the Commission. Such leave to withdraw may be subject to conditions including submission of an affidavit averring that the party represented has actual knowledge of the withdrawal and providing the name and address of a successor counsel (or representative) or a statement that the represented party has determined to proceed pro se. If the party proceeds pro se, the statement shall include the address where the party can thereafter be served.

To prevent undue hardship on any party or for other good cause shown, the Commission may waive any rule in this part in a particular case and may order proceedings in accordance with its direction. Such an order shall be based upon a determination that no party will be prejudiced thereby and that the ends of justice will be served. Reasonable notice will be given to all parties of any action taken pursuant to this paragraph.