D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Boston Processing and Distribution Center (Board decision, July 1, 2025)

ECAB final decision. The Board dismissed docket 25-0586 for lack of a timely appealable OWCP decision and dismissed reconsideration in docket 22-1272 as untimely. A party may petition the Board for reconsideration within 30 days of issuance unless this order 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

A Boston postal employee tried to appeal an old OWCP decision and a January 2025 Board decision. The old OWCP decision fell outside the 180-day appeal period, and the Board decision was not an OWCP decision subject to a new appeal. The Board also treated the submission as a possible reconsideration petition but found it exceeded the 30-day period. It dismissed both matters without reviewing the claim merits.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Federal Employees' Compensation Act, 5 U.S.C. § 8101 et seq.; 20 C.F.R. §§ 501.2(c), 501.3.
• Outcome: Appeal and Board reconsideration petition dismissed as untimely.
• Key point: Neither filing met the Board's applicable review deadline.

Full text (ECAB public release)

United States Department of Labor
Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

________
)
D.C., Appellant
)
)
and ) Docket Nos. 25-0586 & 22-1272
)
Issued: July 1, 2025
U.S. POSTAL SERVICE, PROCESSING & )
DISTRIBUTION CENTER, Boston, MA, )
Employer
)
__________ )

Appearances: Case Submitted on the Record
Richard Heavey, Esq., for the appellant1
Office of Solicitor, for the Director

ORDER DISMISSING APPEAL IN DOCKET NO. 25-0586 AND DISMISSING PETITION FOR RECONSIDERATION IN DOCKET NO. 22-1272

Before:
ALEC J. KOROMILAS, Chief Judge
PATRICIA H. FITZGERALD, Deputy Chief Judge JANICE B. ASKIN, Judge

On May 29, 2025 appellant, through counsel, sought an appeal from a purported January 15, 2025 decision and a March 24, 2022 decision of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP). The Clerk of the Appellate Boards assigned the appeal Docket No. 25-0586.

The Board has duly considered this matter and notes that its jurisdiction is limited to the review of final adverse decisions of OWCP issued within 180 days of the date appellant filed his appeal.2 The January 15, 2025 decision, however, was a Board decision assigned Docket No. 22-

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 20 C.F.R. § 501.3(e) provides in pertinent part: “Any notice of appeal must be filed within 180 days from the date of issuance of a decision of the OWCP.” 1272,3 and the March 24, 2022 OWCP decision was issued more than 180 days of the filing of this appeal. As there is no final adverse decision issued by OWCP within 180 days of the filing of this appeal over which the Board may properly exercise jurisdiction,4 the Board finds that the appeal docketed as No. 25-0586 must be dismissed.

To the extent that appellant’s May 29, 2025 appeal constitutes a petition for reconsideration of the Board’s January 15, 2025 decision under Docket No. 22-1272, the Board notes that its decision became final upon the expiration of 30 days from the date of issuance. 5 As appellant did not file her disagreement with the Board’s January 15, 2025 decision until May 29, 2025, this submission may not be deemed as a timely petition for reconsideration as it was filed in excess of 30 days from the date of issuance. 6 Thus, the petition for reconsideration of the January 15, 2025 Board decision in Docket No. 22-1272 must be dismissed as untimely filed. Accordingly,

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT the appeal docketed as No. 25-0586 is dismissed.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED THAT the petition for reconsideration in Docket No. 22- 1272 is dismissed as untimely filed. 7

Issued: July 1, 2025
Washington, DC

Alec J. Koromilas, Chief Judge
Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

Patricia H. Fitzgerald, Deputy Chief Judge Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

Janice B. Askin, Judge
Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board

3
Docket No. 22-1272 (issued January 15, 2025).
4
Supra note 2.
5
20 C.F.R. § 501.6(d).
6
See id. at § 501.7(a).
7
The Board’s decisions and orders are “final upon the expiration of 30 days from the date of their issuance.” Supra note 7.

2