Secretary of Labor v. Kaiser Steel Corporation (Commission decision, August 4, 1980)

Plain-English summary

An administrative law judge decided a penalty case against Kaiser Steel Corporation using a hearing record made before another judge who had retired. Kaiser petitioned for Commission review. The Commission found that several exhibits admitted at the hearing were missing from the record sent to it. The parties supplied copies, but the Commission could not tell whether the deciding judge had seen the exhibits. It vacated his decision and returned the case to him for whatever further proceedings or consideration he considered appropriate.

Decision snapshot

• Cited standard(s): No specific mine safety standard is identified in this order.
• Outcome: The judge's penalty decision was vacated, and the case was remanded.
• Key point: Missing exhibits left the Commission uncertain whether the judge had considered the complete hearing record.

Full text (FMSHRC public release)

CCASE:
MSHA V. KAISER STEEL
DDATE:
19800804
TTEXT:

FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006
August 4, 1980

SECRETARY OF LABOR,
MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH
ADMINISTRATION (MSHA)

v. Docket No. DENV 78-512-P

KAISER STEEL CORPORATION

ORDER

This penalty proceeding was initially tried before Administrative Law Judge Michels on June 20, 1980. After an evidentiary hearing, but before decision, Judge Michels retired from federal service. The case was then reassigned to Chief Administrative Law Judge Broderick, who, upon agreement of the parties, decided the case on the basis of the record made before Judge Michels. Judge Broderick's decision was adverse to Kaiser Steel Corporation. Kaiser then filed a petition for discretionary review with the Commission, which we granted.

At the time we considered Kaiser's petition, we discovered that the record, as transmitted to the Commission, did not contain several of the exhibits admitted into evidence at the hearing below. We so advised the parties and upon our request the Secretary and Kaiser submitted to the Commission copies of the missing exhibits. The record is now complete. Because we do not know when or how these exhibits were separated from the record, we arc not certain whether Judge Broderick had all of the exhibits before him at the time he decided the case. Therefore, we vacate the judge's decision and remand the case to the judge for whatever further proceedings or consideration he may deem appropriate in the circumstances.
Marian Pearlman Nease, Commissioner

--- Page break
~2046
Distribution

Manuel Lopez, Esq.
U.S. Department of Labor
Office of the Solicitor
4015 Wilson Boulevard
Arlington, Virginia 22203

David B. Reeves, Esq.
Kaiser Steel Corporation
300 Lakeside Drive
KB 2608
Oakland, California 94666

Chief Administrative Law Judge James A. Broderick Federal Mine Safety & Health Review Commission 1730 K Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20006

--- Page break