What are the consequences of a litigant's failure to attend judicial hearings after being duly notified?

If the litigant is personally served or their agent is served and fails to attend, the proceedings are deemed to be heard in their presence (حضورية). Furthermore, if a litigant fails to appear for interrogation without a valid excuse, or refuses to answer, the court may draw such inferences as it deems appropriate from that. It may also accept proof by witness testimony and circumstantial evidence, even in cases where this would not ordinarily be permissible.