Administrator, Wage and Hour Div., USDOL v. L'uomo Creatives, LLC (agency decision, September 27, 2024)

Plain-English summary

An administrative judge entered a default judgment against L'uomo Creatives and Vince Akins in a Service Contract Act case. Nearly three years later, the respondents uploaded a copy of that public decision to the Board's filing system, but the document did not identify challenged findings, legal conclusions, or an order as a petition for review must. The Board gave them fourteen days to file a proper petition and stayed the matter in the meantime. They filed nothing further, so the Board lifted the stay and administratively closed the matter without reviewing the default judgment.

Decision snapshot

• Cited authorities: 41 U.S.C. § 6701; 29 C.F.R. § 6.20
• Outcome: Stay lifted and matter administratively closed for failure to file a petition for review.
• Key point: Uploading the underlying decision does not initiate Board review when the filing does not identify the challenged findings, conclusions, or order.

Full text (DOL official public release)

U.S. Department of Labor         Administrative Review Board
                                 200 Constitution Ave. NW
                                 Washington, DC 20210-0001


IN THE MATTER OF:


ADMINISTRATOR, WAGE AND                ARB CASE NO. 2024-0062
HOUR DIVISION, UNITED
STATES DEPARTMENT OF                   ALJ CASE NO. 2021-SCA-00005
LABOR,                                 CHIEF ALJ STEPHEN R. HENLEY

           PROSECUTING PARTY, DATE: September 27, 2024

      v.

L’UOMO CREATIVES, LLC,

                and

VINCE AKINS,

      RESPONDENTS.

Before HARTHILL, Chief Administrative Appeals Judge, and WARREN,
Administrative Appeals Judge


                  ORDER OF ADMINISTRATIVE CLOSURE

PER CURIAM:

       This proceeding arises under the McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act of
1965, (SCA), 41 U.S.C. §§ 6701-6707, and the implementing regulations at 29 C.F.R.
Parts 4 and 6. On November 15, 2021, a United States Department of Labor
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) issued a Decision and Order of Default Judgment
(D. & O.) entering default judgment against Respondents.

       On September 4, 2024, Respondents filed a document that appeared to be a
copy of the publicly available D. & O. with the Administrative Review Board (ARB
or Board) using the Board’s Electronic Filing and Service (EFS) System, and the
                                              2


case was administratively assigned ARB Case Number 2024-0062.1 The document
did not “refer to the specific findings of fact, conclusions of law, or order at issue,” as
required to constitute a petition for review under SCA’s implementing regulations.2
In response, on September 12, 2024, the Board issued an Order directing
Respondents to file a petition for review on or before September 26, 2024.3 The
Order also advised Respondents that the Board was staying the matter pending
disposition of the Board’s order.4

        Respondents did not file a petition for review as ordered and, to date, the
Board has received no filed response or any other communication from
Respondents. Thus, no petition for review of the ALJ’s D. & O. has been filed. Given
Respondents’ failure to respond to, and comply with, the Order, the stay is hereby
lifted and the Board orders that this matter be administratively closed.5

       SO ORDERED.



                                           ____________________________________
                                           SUSAN HARTHILL
                                           Chief Administrative Appeals Judge



                                           ____________________________________
                                           IVEY S. WARREN
                                           Administrative Appeals Judge




1      The Secretary of Labor has delegated authority to the ARB to consider petitions for
review under the SCA. Secretary’s Order No. 01-2020 (Delegation of Authority and
Assignment of Responsibility to the Administrative Review Board), 85 Fed. Reg. 13186
(Mar. 6, 2020).
2      29 C.F.R. § 6.20.
3     Order at 2 (ordering that a petition for review be filed within 14 days of the Board’s
September 12, 2024 Order).
4      Id.
5       See Kovarik v. Groundwater & Env’t Servs., Inc., ARB No. 2024-0024, ALJ No. 2023-
PSI-00004, slip op. at 2 (ARB Feb. 16, 2024) (Notice of Administrative Closure)
(administratively closing case because the complainant’s filing did not constitute a petition
for review).