E-mail to the Administrative Division The Legal Section is responsible for providing the Commission with expert legal counsel, assistance, and support with regard to all aspects of the operation of the Commission. This section's responsibilities include providing a variety of legal and administrative services. For example, the Legal Section advises the Commission with regard to highly complex and controversial issues of law which routinely come before the Commission; prepares Commission Orders in response to a diversity of applications, requests, motions, and other legal pleadings filed with the Commission; manages and oversees the preparation of the Commission's calendar of hearings and other docketed matters; and represents the Commission before other judicial bodies and other federal and state governmental agencies. Attorneys within the Legal Division serve in the capacity of Hearing Examiners and perform all of the duties and responsibilities associated therewith. This section has the further responsibility of compiling and editing the Commission's annual report of major Commission Orders and Decisions.
The Court Reporter Section is responsible for recording and transcribing verbatim transcripts of all formal Commission proceedings.
The Computer Support Section provides a wide variety of personal computer based support services for all Commission personnel.
The Chief Clerk's Office is responsible for managing and maintaining the official files of the Commission relating to all formal docketed matters coming before the Commission. For example, these files include such matters as applications filed by utilities for general rate increases, testimony and exhibits of witnesses, transcripts of hearings, a variety of legal pleadings (briefs, motions, proposed orders, etc.), Commission and court orders, etc. The Chief Clerk's office is also responsible for issuing Commission Orders, maintaining the Commission's calendar of hearings, arranging for hearing rooms throughout the state, the collection of and the accounting for filing fees and various other charges for services provided to the public by personnel within the Chief's Clerk's office. The Chief Clerk's office also provides assistance and information to the staff and the public. Further, the Chief Clerk's office has certain other administrative duties and responsibilities. Comparatively speaking, the duties and responsibilities of the Commission's Chief Clerk are very similar to the ministerial duties of clerks of court within the North Carolina Court System.
