Utah Court of Appeals: Court “Takes Issue” with Workforce Appeals Board’s Use of Unintroduced Computer Records to Overturn ALJ Decision

In Swenson v. Department of Workforce Services, the Utah Court of Appeals “[took] issue with the [Workforce Appeals] Board’s reliance on evidence that was not presented to the ALJ or given to the parties” to reverse an ALJ’s decision in an appeal of an unemployment benefits determination.  Although the Court ultimately affirmed the Workforce Appeals Board’s decision on separate grounds, it spent significant time addressing the Board’s reliance on Department of Workforce Service’s computer records introduced at the Board level but not introduced during the initial hearing.  The Court concluded its analysis by stating that “the procedure followed by the Board appears to violate its own rules and Swenson’s right to due process.”