a. The failure of any party to appear for a conference or hearing without having obtained an extension from all the opposing parties or the tribunal at least forty-eight hours in advance of such conference or hearing shall be grounds for the tribunal to enter a decision in favor of the opposing party or parties.
b. The signing of any paper submitted to the tribunal constitutes a certificate by the signer that the signer has read the paper, and that to the best of the signer's knowledge, information and belief formed after reasonable inquiry, the paper is well grounded in fact and is warranted by existing law or a good faith argument for the extension, modification, or reversal of existing law, and that the paper is not interposed for any improper purpose, such as to harass or cause unnecessary delay or needless increase in the cost of the proceedings. If a paper is signed in violation of this section, the tribunal, upon motion or upon its own initiative, shall impose upon the person who signed the paper, a represented party, or both, an appropriate sanction, which may include an order to pay the other party or parties such sanction. The amount of any sanction shall be related to the amount of reasonable expenses, including a reasonable attorney's fee, incurred by the other party or parties because of the serving or filing of the paper.