Cape Town - Suspended Lions coach John Mitchell may have to wait a month or even longer to hear the outcome of his disciplinary hearing at the Golden Lions Rugby Union (GLRU).

The hearing started on Tuesday, but could drag on because the GLRU handles each complaint laid by the players and workers at the union, on merit.

Most of the players are also on holiday after the Lions finished their Super Rugby season with a 37-20 loss to the Bulls at Loftus over the weekend. Some of the players will be used to testify as witnesses.

GLRU president, Kevin de Klerk, told Beeld the hearing could take "up to a month" to finish.

This means that current caretaker coach Johan Ackermann will in all likelihood coach the team in the Currie Cup, which starts on August 11 for the Lions. They can't search for a new coach because Mitchell is formally still employed in the position.

Mitchell was earlier suspended after a group of players presented a 'list of grievances' to De Klerk complaining about the manner in which Mitchell treated his players.

De Klerk later said the suspension of Mitchell wasn't only based purely on players' complaints. "It is inaccurate to say it is a player-driven thing and I would like us to move away from that," De Klerk said last month.

"It was inclusive of a number of processes and it wasn't necessarily the players on their own, and that is the way the position stands."