A court's duty to give an unrepresented litigant a fair hearing does not extend to investigating whether additional material exists to support that person's case, as doing so would conflict with the court's role as an impartial adjudicator. The burdens of time and costs placed on the opposing party by the circumstance that one party is unrepresented are a relevant consideration in case management decisions. Where an unrepresented litigant is given every opportunity to nominate an available hearing date but merely asserts blanket unavailability without supporting evidence, the court may proceed to fix a hearing date and, if the litigant does not appear, hear the matter ex parte without denial of natural justice.
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