All applications for hearing continuances shall be made in writing and filed with the Board Office for transmission to the Hearing Committee Chair at least seven calendar days before the hearing date. A Hearing Committee Chair shall not consider any oral request for a continuance absent the most unusual emergency circumstances. The failure of a party to apprise a Hearing Committee Chair of a fact that has been in existence for some time, such as a pre-existing conflicting obligation, does not constitute an emergency and is not grounds for a continuance. A continuance of the hearing date may be granted only for good cause shown. A Hearing Committee shall not delay proceedings or submission of its report on the ground that respondent may not have personally received the petition, a notice or papers, if service was made as specified in Rule 7.2.