N.U. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Coatesville VA Medical Center, Coatesville, PA (Board decision, December 17, 2020)

ECAB final decision. The Board dismissed appeal No. 21-0185 as untimely, without reviewing the underlying OWCP decision. A party may petition the Board for reconsideration within 30 days of issuance unless this decision specifies another period, under 20 C.F.R. § 501.7(a).

Plain-English summary

21-0185 was an appeal from OWCP’s May 18, 2020 decision. The appeal was filed on November 17, 2020, outside the 180-day review period. The 180th day fell on a Saturday, so the deadline moved to Monday, November 16. N.U. filed the next day without documented compelling circumstances. The Board dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction and did not reach the merits.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: ECAB 180-day filing limit, 20 C.F.R. § 501.3(e).
• Outcome: Appeal dismissed as untimely; underlying merits not reviewed.
• Key point: The Board lacked jurisdiction after the appeal deadline passed.

Full text (ECAB public release)

United States Department of Labor
Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

________
)
N.U., Appellant ) Docket No. 21-0185
) Issued: December 17, 2020
and
)
)
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS,
)
COATESVILLE VA MEDICAL CENTER,
)
Coatesville, PA, Employer
)
__________

Appearances: Case Submitted on the Record
Bonita Barbush Urban, for the appellant1
Office of Solicitor, for the Director

ORDER DISMISSING APPEAL

Before:
CHRISTOPHER J. GODFREY, Deputy Chief Judge PATRICIA H. FITZGERALD, Alternate Judge
VALERIE D. EVANS-HARRELL, Alternate Judge

On November 17, 2020 appellant, through his representative, filed an appeal from a May 18, 2020 merit decision of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP). The Clerk of the Appellate Boards assigned Docket No. 21-0185.

The Board has duly considered the matter and notes that the Board has jurisdiction to review final adverse decisions of OWCP issued under the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act.2 For final adverse decisions of OWCP issued on or after November 19, 2008, the Board’s review authority is limited to appeals which are filed within 180 days from the date of issuance of OWCP’s decision.3

1
In all cases in which a representative has been authorized in a matter before the Board, no claim for a fee for legal or other service performed on appeal before the Board is valid unless approved by the Board. 20 C.F.R. § 501.9(e). No contract for a stipulated fee or on a contingent fee basis will be approved by the Board. Id. An attorney or representative’s collection of a fee without the Board’s approval may constitute a misdemeanor, subject to fine or imprisonment for up to one year or both. Id.; see also 18 U.S.C. § 292. Demands for payment of fees to a representative, prior to approval by the Board, may be reported to appropriate authorities for investigation. 2 5 U.S.C. § 8149; 20 C.F.R. §§ 501.2(c) and 501.3(a) (2009).
3
Id. at § 501.3(e).
 The 180th day following the May 18, 2020 decision was November 14, 2020. As November 14, 2020 was a Saturday, appellant had until Monday, November 16, 2020 to file an appeal.4 However, as appellant did not file an appeal with the Board until November 17, 2020, more than 180 days after the May 18, 2020 OWCP decision, the Board finds that the appeal docketed as No. 21-0185 is untimely filed. The Board is without jurisdiction to review the appeal. Appellant has not offered a reason to explain the failure to timely file an appeal with supporting documentation sufficient to establish compelling circumstances.

The Board’s decisions and orders are “final upon the expiration of 30 days from the date of their issuance.”5

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT the appeal docketed as No. 21-0185 is dismissed.

Issued: December 17, 2020
Washington, DC

Christopher J. Godfrey, Deputy Chief Judge Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

Patricia H. Fitzgerald, Alternate Judge
Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

Valerie D. Evans-Harrell, Alternate Judge Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

4
20 C.F.R. § 501.3(f)(2).
5
Id. at § 501.6(d).

2