CIXE INVESTIGATIONS

What happens before we're involved

CIXE comes in after an investigation is already complete. Your institution needs clear policy and procedures already in place for how the resolution works and how findings are made, along with someone from your resolution office to serve as a liaison for report and evidence access.

Inside a hearing

A hearing follows a set structure: introductions, a review of the charges, and an outline of how the hearing will run. From there, witnesses are called in an order the hearing officer controls, and each party's advisor is given the chance to cross-examine — kept relevant and appropriate throughout. If a line of questioning turns offensive or irrelevant, it gets stopped. Once testimony concludes, both parties are notified that a decision will follow within the timeframe their policy requires. That decision is then written up — whether the policy was violated, based on a preponderance of the evidence — and sent to both parties along with their appeal options.

How impartiality actually gets protected

Every hearing officer goes through annual training covering bias, impartiality, and neutrality. Decisions have to be supported by the facts and clearly written to show that support. If either party believes the process wasn't impartial, they can appeal — and a separate, independent appeal officer reviews the case, so the person who made the original decision never reviews their own work.

Scope

A hearing officer serves a single hearing. If it's appealed, a different decision-maker steps in as the appeal officer — keeping every stage independent from the one before it.

FAQ

Q: What's the difference between a Hearing Officer and a Decision-Maker?

A: A Hearing Officer manages a live hearing with all parties present and renders a decision from it. A Decision-Maker can render a decision after reviewing the investigation report alone, without a hearing. CIXE provides both roles, depending on what your process requires.

Q: How do you ensure the process is impartial?

A: Through annual bias and neutrality training, fact-supported written decisions, and an independent appeals process — if impartiality is ever in question, a separate appeal officer reviews the case, not the original decision-maker.

Q: Do you handle appeals too?

A: A hearing officer serves a single hearing only. Appeals go to a different, independent decision-maker to keep the process fair at every stage