(a) A party or person seeking to be admitted as a party may appear at a hearing or prehearing conference in person or by an attorney. A natural person may not be represented by another person who is not an attorney. An entity other than a natural person that is a party or that seeks to be admitted as a party may appear through a person with legal authority to act on behalf of the entity, such as an officer, director, or trustee, or may be represented by an attorney.
(b) An attorney representing a person or party in a proceeding must be authorized to practice law in the court of highest jurisdiction of any state of the United States or the District of Columbia. The attorney of record of any party shall be the attorney who signs the first pleading filed on behalf of the party or who files with TRS, SOAH, or the administrative law judge, as applicable, a written notice signed by the party designating the attorney as attorney of record in the case. An attorney appearing on behalf of a party may be required to show authority to act for the party. Nothing in this chapter shall be interpreted to require a party to the hearing to be represented by counsel.

Source Note: The provisions of this §43.20 adopted to be effective April 20, 1988, 13 TexReg 1672; amended to be effective March 12, 2003, 28 TexReg 2115; amended to be effective March 8, 2007, 32 TexReg 1095