J.M. and Social Security Administration, Baltimore, MD (Board decision, June 25, 2021)

ECAB final decision. The Board dismissed the appeal as untimely. 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). FECA compensation decisions are generally not subject to court review under 5 U.S.C. § 8128(b).

Plain-English summary

J.M. appealed a December 11, 2017 OWCP nonmerit decision on May 20, 2021. The filing came well after the 180 day deadline for Board review. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances that would excuse the delay. It dismissed the appeal without deciding the merits.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: 20 C.F.R. § 501.3(e).
• Outcome: Appeal dismissed as untimely.
• Key point: The Board lacked jurisdiction over an appeal filed years after the deadline.

Full text (ECAB public release)

United States Department of Labor
Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

________
)
J.M., Appellant
)
)
and ) Docket No. 21-0888
) Issued: June 25, 2021
SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION,
)
Baltimore, MD, Employer
)
__________ )

Appearances: Case Submitted on the Record
James D. Muirhead, Esq., for the appellant1
Office of Solicitor, for the Director

ORDER DISMISSING APPEAL

Before:
ALEC J. KOROMILAS, Chief Judge
PATRICIA H. FITZGERALD, Alternate Judge
VALERIE D. EVANS-HARRELL, Alternate Judge

On May 20, 2021 appellant, through counsel, filed an appeal from a December 11, 2017 nonmerit decision of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP). The Clerk of the Appellate Boards assigned Docket No. 21-0888.

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 December 11, 2017 decision was June 9, 2018. As appellant did not file an application for review with the Board until May 20, 2021, more than 180 days after the December 11, 2017 OWCP decision, the Board finds that the appeal docketed as No. 21-0888 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.”4

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT the appeal docketed as No. 21-0888 is dismissed.

Issued: June 25, 2021
Washington, DC

Alec J. Koromilas, 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
Id. at § 501.6(d).

2