(a) Upon receipt of a request to the Department, the Department will review it and may follow up with the claimant (or authorized representative, if applicable) to resolve any gaps in the request's supporting information.

(b) The Department will then use reasonable efforts to identify an open or closed Federal criminal case involving the claimant to present the claimant's application (with supporting information, as appropriate) for a court to determine the claimant's eligibility to receive defined monetary assistance. If the Department is unable to locate such a case, it will notify the claimant (or the claimant's authorized representative, if applicable). If the Department presents the claimant's application to a court, in its sole discretion, the Department may or may not present the claim with an accompanying recommendation that the court order payment or not. If the Department determines that it will recommend against the court ordering payment, the Department will make reasonable efforts to inform the claimant (or the claimant's authorized representative, if applicable) of such recommendation prior to any presentation of the application to the court.

(c) If a court issues an order requiring payment to any claimant, the Department will process payment of defined monetary assistance to the claimant or, where appropriate, to the claimant's authorized representative, in accordance with the order in the amount specified therein, upon receipt of the order and the requisite information from the claimant following instructions on the Department's website for this program. Failure to submit all required information to the Department may result in delay of payment.

(d) If the court issues an order denying eligibility based on an application submitted by the Department, the Department will notify the claimant (or the claimant's authorized representative, if applicable). The Department may decide to seek appellate review of a ruling by a district court regarding a claimant's eligibility for defined monetary assistance. The Department will make reasonable efforts to consult with the claimant (or the claimant's authorized representative, if applicable) on the issue of appellate review.