Ezel / Agency Decisions / KENT 85-190

Karst Robbins Coal Company, Inc. (ALJ decision, June 5, 1986)

Karst Robbins Coal Company, Inc. (FMSHRC KENT 85-190): One citation vacated in $600 settlement

Decision type
ALJ decision
Docket
KENT 85-190
Decided
June 5, 1986
Presiding judge
Joseph B. Kennedy
Outcome
Settled
Precedential status
Final order, not precedent
Checked against source
2026-10-20
Official source
Read the official release (fmshrc.gov)
PDF
View Official PDF

Apply this to your situation

This order from 1986 bound only the parties to this case; it isn't precedent. Ask about your situation and see what the current MSHA standards and Commission precedent say, with citations.

Currency note: this decision dates from 1986
The MSHA standards may have been amended, penalty amounts have been adjusted, and later Commission or court decisions may have changed the analysis since then. Treat this page as historical context, not current compliance advice. Verify the current standard before relying on any specific rule, threshold, or penalty mentioned here.
Final ALJ decision, not Commission precedent
This decision became final under the 40-day rule in 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) because no later Commission review appears in the official index. It binds the parties but is not Commission precedent. The full text below is from the official FMSHRC release.
About this page: The plain-English summary and decision snapshot below were written by Ezel based on the official FMSHRC release. The full text is the agency's own release.
Read the official release (fmshrc.gov)

Plain-English summary

Karst Robbins Coal Company and the Secretary proposed a settlement of two violations after a hearing. They agreed that Citation No. 2476390 would be vacated and that the company would pay $600 on Citation No. 2476391. Judge Joseph B. Kennedy reviewed the hearing evidence and found the proposal consistent with the Mine Act's purposes. He approved the settlement, ordered payment within 30 days, and directed MSHA to vacate the first citation. The public decision does not identify the underlying safety standards.

Decision snapshot

  • Cited standards: The public decision does not identify them.
  • Outcome: Settlement approved; Citation No. 2476390 vacated and $600 due on Citation No. 2476391.
  • Key point: The judge approved the parties' split disposition after reviewing the hearing record.

Full text (FMSHRC public release)

CCASE:
SOL (MSHA) V. KARST ROBBINS COAL
DDATE:
19860605
TTEXT:
~912

Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission Office of Administrative Law Judges

SECRETARY OF LABOR,
CIVIL PENTALTY PROCEEDINGS
MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH
ADMINISTRATION (MSHA),
Docket No. KENT 85-190
PETITIONER
A.C. No. 15-10904-03534

v. No. 6 Mine

KARST ROBBINS COAL COMPANY,
INC.,
RESPONDENT

DECISION

Appearances: Charles F. Merz, Esq., Office of the Solicitor, U.S. Department of Labor, Nashville, Tennessee, for Petitioner;
Mr. Edward W. Karst, Operator, Louellen, Kentucky, for Respondent

Before: Judge Kennedy

These matters came on for a decision after hearing in Hazard, Kentucky, on May 22, 1986. At that time, the parties proposed settlement of the two violations charged as follows:

CITATION/ORDER
ACTION/PENALTY

2476390
Vacate
2476391
$600.00

Based on an independent evaluation and de novo review of the circumstances, as proffered in the parties' prehearing submissions and in the evidence adduced at the hearing, the trial judge found the settlement proposed was in accord with the purposes and policy of the Act.
~913
Accordingly, it is ORDERED that the settlement be, and hereby is, APPROVED. It is FURTHER ORDERED that the operator pay the amount of the settlement agreed upon, $600, within 30 days of the date of issuance of this order and that MSHA forthwith vacate Citation 2476390.

Joseph B. Kennedy
Administrative Law Judge

What applies to your situation today?

This order bound one employer. Ezel checks the current MSHA standards and Commission precedent against your facts, with citations.

Opens in Ezel Pro.

  • Checks the law as it stands today, not only this page
  • Cites every source it relies on, so you can verify it
  • Chat, drafting and research in one workspace