Witnesses at an OATH Hearing: Your Rights as a TLC Driver

You have the right to bring your own witnesses and to question TLC's witnesses at an OATH hearing (48 RCNY §6-11). In TLC cases there's an extra protection. When a case depends on whether a complaining witness (often a passenger) is believable, TLC must produce that witness. If TLC doesn't make adequate efforts, the summons is dismissed (48 RCNY §5-02).

This page explains both sides: your witnesses, and TLC's.

Your witnesses

TLC tells drivers to bring any witnesses who could support the defense (TLC). A good witness is someone who saw or heard what happened. Think of a passenger in the car, another driver, a dispatcher who handled the call, or a mechanic who fixed the part in question. A friend who only heard the story from you later is much weaker.

How it works:

• Everyone is sworn. Every witness is sworn or affirmed to tell the truth (§6-11).
• Witnesses may be asked to wait outside. The hearing officer can exclude witnesses from the room except while they testify, so they don't hear each other (§6-11). Don't rehearse their story with them. Just ask them to say what they saw.
• TLC can question them. Each party can cross-examine the other side's witnesses (§6-11).
• In person: OATH says witnesses may enter the hearing room with you (OATH).
• By phone: OATH's phone-hearing pages don't describe how a witness joins. Before the hearing, ask the Clerk's Office (844-OATH-NYC) how your witness should take part. Make sure they're free at the hearing time and will answer their phone.

When a witness won't come

If someone has important evidence but won't come voluntarily, you can ask the hearing officer for help. On a party's request, a hearing officer may issue a subpoena or adjourn the hearing. They will do so if they find it would produce necessary and material evidence (48 RCNY §6-13). Be ready to explain what the witness will say and why it matters. This is a good point to involve a lawyer or registered representative.

TLC's witnesses

The complaining witness (usually a passenger)

Many passenger complaint cases come down to one question: who does the hearing officer believe? For those cases, New York City law gives TLC drivers a specific right. Under Admin. Code §19-506.1, as written into OATH's TLC rule (48 RCNY §5-02):

1. TLC must produce the complaining witness, in person or by remote means, when that witness's credibility is relevant.
2. If TLC can't, it must give the hearing officer a statement of its efforts to produce the witness. If the hearing officer finds those efforts inadequate, the summons is dismissed.
3. If you earlier asked for an adjournment to get the complaining witness's testimony, and the witness still doesn't appear, that counts as TLC failing to produce the witness. It may be grounds for dismissal.

This right does not mean every passenger case is dismissed when the passenger is absent. The hearing officer judges whether credibility is relevant and whether TLC's efforts were enough.

What a passenger witness experiences

TLC publishes a guide for passengers who complain. It shows the other side of the process (TLC: Consumer complainant hearing guide):

• A TLC prosecutor from the Consumer Complaint Unit contacts the passenger before the hearing.
• The passenger appears by telephone. On the hearing day, the prosecutor may call them from 5 minutes before to 60 minutes after the scheduled time.
• The passenger is sworn in and testifies. Then the driver, their attorney, or representative may ask questions, and so may the hearing officer.
• TLC's guide says hearings usually last 30 to 45 minutes once testimony begins. It also says the hearing is not a place for private deals between the passenger and the driver.

Use this to prepare. Write down, in advance, the specific points in the complaint you dispute and the short, calm questions you would ask. For example, about times, where the passenger was sitting, or what was said. Our guides on passenger complaint summonses and responding to a passenger complaint cover these cases in depth.

The inspector or police officer

Many summonses are written by a TLC inspector, Port Authority Police, or NYPD. If the summons was sworn, it's prima facie evidence without the officer present (48 RCNY §6-12). See the evidence guide. If your defense needs the officer's live testimony, OATH's rule allows a hearing officer, on either party's request, to adjourn so the inspector can testify. They do this when that testimony is likely necessary for a fair hearing (48 RCNY §6-15). If the inspector then fails to appear on the new date, the case generally won't be adjourned again for that inspector. The exceptions are your consent or extraordinary circumstances, and there is a cap of two such adjournments.

Find out who TLC will call

You can make a written request, received at least five business days before the hearing, for TLC's witness list and documents (48 RCNY §6-07). Knowing whether TLC plans to call a passenger or an inspector shapes how you prepare. See the preparation plan.

Tips for questioning a witness

• Ask short, one-fact questions. "Where were you sitting?" works better than a long speech.
• Stay calm and polite. The hearing officer controls the hearing and can remove anyone who disrupts it (48 RCNY §6-13).
• Don't argue with the witness. Save your argument for your closing.
• Use an interpreter if you need one. It's free. See interpreters at OATH.

This page is general information, not legal advice. Cases that depend on questioning witnesses are a good reason to get an attorney or OATH-registered representative.