Dorman v. Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board, K17A-02-004 NEP

Claimant Quixote Dorman was initially found eligible for unemployment benefits by a Department of Labor claims deputy on August 17, 2016; employer Peninsula Roofing appealed.
A referee reversed the claims deputy after a hearing which Dorman did not attend; Dorman appealed to the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board (UIAB).
The UIAB remanded for a second referee hearing; the referee again reversed the claims deputy. Dorman appealed and a UIAB hearing was scheduled for December 28, 2016, with notice mailed to his residence.
Dorman faxed a postponement request on December 27, claiming late notice and lack of time to prepare; the request was denied. Dorman did not appear at the December 28 hearing, and his appeal was dismissed.
Dorman moved for rehearing, asserting he could not find the hearing location and that postponement was warranted; the UIAB denied rehearing on January 11, 2017. He appealed that denial to the Superior Court.
The Superior Court reviewed whether the UIAB abused its discretion in denying rehearing and whether Dorman demonstrated excusable neglect or entitlement to a late postponement request.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the UIAB abused its discretion by denying rehearing	Dorman argued he did not attend due to inability to find the hearing location and late notice; therefore rehearing was warranted	UIAB argued Dorman had proper notice and failed to show excusable neglect	Denial was not an abuse of discretion; Dorman did not show excusable neglect
Whether Dorman’s failure to appear was excusable neglect	Dorman contended mistakes about the office location and allegedly late receipt of notice excused his absence	UIAB noted notice showed time/location and instructed arrival 15 minutes early; prior case law rejects "got lost" as excusable neglect	Court held his reasons were not excusable neglect; more than negligence is required
Whether the UIAB erred in denying postponement requested one day before the hearing	Dorman claimed he received notice too late to arrange discovery/subpoenas and needed postponement	UIAB relied on rule requiring postponement requests at least six days before hearing absent unanticipated emergency; no emergency pled	Denial proper: request untimely and no emergency alleged
Whether the Board’s decision lacked substantial evidence or legal error	Dorman argued the outcome was unreasonable/capricious	UIAB maintained record supported its discretionary determinations	Court found the decision supported by the record and free of legal error; appeal denied

Unemployment Ins. Appeal Bd. v. Duncan, 337 A.2d 308 (Del. 1975) (standards for judicial review of UIAB decisions)
Thompson v. Christiana Care Health System, 25 A.3d 778 (Del. 2011) (judicial review confined to record; substantial evidence standard)