Federal Agency Decisions
Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB), each with a plain-English summary, the law it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Dianna Cardwell v. Albina Engine & Machine Works
Cardwell v. Albina Engine & Machine Works (BRB 24-0316): Death benefits award affirmed
Dianna Cardwell sought death benefits after her husband, a shipyard electrician, died from an asbestos related condition. Several former employers disputed which one was responsible under the Longshore Act. The judge found insufficient evidence of asbestos exposure during his work for Dillingham…
Alvaro Castiblanco Alvarez v. Blackwater Security Consulting, LLC
Castiblanco Alvarez v. Blackwater (BRB 24-0294): Benefits denial affirmed
Alvaro Castiblanco Alvarez sought benefits for alleged psychological injury and hearing loss after working as an armed security guard for Blackwater in Iraq. The judge found that he invoked the work injury presumption for both conditions, but that the employer rebutted it. After weighing the…
A.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Pleasant Ridge Post Office
Board upholds payments received after return to work (ECAB 26-0246)
A postal worker returned to work but continued receiving total-disability compensation from August 30 through September 6, 2025. The Board upheld a $1,237.32 overpayment finding without fault. It also upheld denial of waiver after reviewing the worker's reported income and expenses.
M.D. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds refusal to reopen late compensation claim (ECAB 26-0245)
A postal worker sought reconsideration after the applicable one-year period following the last merit decision. The Board found the request untimely and the submitted material insufficient to show clear evidence of error. It upheld OWCP's nonmerit denial.
Christine Maynard v. Buffalo Mining Company
Maynard v. Buffalo Mining Company (BRB 25-0090, 25-0180): Mine employment calculation remanded
Christine Maynard pursued her late husband's black lung claim and her own survivor's claim after both were denied. The judge credited the miner with less than fifteen years of coal mine work, so neither claim received the statutory presumption tied to that threshold. The Board found the calculation…
John Adkins, Jr. v. Fools Gold Energy Corporation
Adkins v. Fools Gold Energy (BRB 25-0161): Black lung award and start date affirmed
John Adkins sought black lung benefits after twenty-five years of underground coal mine work. The judge found that medical evidence established complicated pneumoconiosis, which triggered an irrebuttable presumption of total disability due to that disease, and awarded benefits. The employer…
Richard W. Naylor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Naylor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal (BRB 25-0156): Disability evidence remanded
Richard Naylor sought black lung benefits after twenty-seven years of qualifying coal mine work. A judge denied benefits because he found no totally disabling respiratory or pulmonary impairment. The Board held that the judge had not resolved conflicting arterial blood gas evidence without relying…
Roger E. Hale v. Koch Carbon Raven Division VA
Hale v. Koch Carbon Raven Division VA (BRB 25-0126): Mine employment count and benefits remanded
Roger Hale received black lung benefits after a judge credited him with 16.12 years of qualifying coal mine work and applied the fifteen-year disability presumption. The Board found that the judge wrongly counted 1.17 years with Epling Manufacturing, work Hale had not identified as coal mine…
Edgel Charles Dudleson v. Vica Coal Company
Dudleson v. Vica Coal Company (BRB 25-0096): Complicated pneumoconiosis evidence remanded
Edgel Dudleson sought black lung benefits after 20.98 years of underground coal mine work. The judge denied benefits, finding that he had not proved complicated pneumoconiosis or a totally disabling respiratory impairment. The Board left the disability finding undisturbed, but found that the judge…
Christine Maynard v. Buffalo Mining Company
Maynard v. Buffalo Mining Company (BRB 25-0090, 25-0180): Mine employment calculation remanded
Christine Maynard pursued her late husband's black lung claim and her own survivor's claim after both were denied. The judge credited the miner with less than fifteen years of coal mine work, so neither claim received the statutory presumption tied to that threshold. The Board found the calculation…
Katakuri E. Muhereza v. Constellis Group/Triple Canopy
Muhereza v. Constellis Group (BRB 24-0309): Attorney fee award affirmed
Katakuri Muhereza obtained medical benefits for a work-related psychological condition under the Defense Base Act, although the judge denied disability benefits. His lawyer sought fees for work before the judge. The judge reduced the request for limited success and awarded $92,521.41 in fees plus…
Gadbury v. Park Aerospace Corporation
Interlocutory appeal denied
Caroline Gadbury alleged that Park Aerospace Corporation and Mark Esquivel violated the Sarbanes-Oxley Act by terminating her employment. The respondents asked the ARB to immediately review an ALJ order denying their motion for summary decision. The Board held that the order was not final and that…
P.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Cardiss Collins Post Office
Board upholds refusal to reopen back claim (ECAB 26-0240)
A postal mail handler asked OWCP to reconsider a denied back claim and explained difficulty obtaining appointments and tests. The Board found that the submission did not show legal error, make a new relevant legal argument, or supply qualifying new evidence for merit review. It upheld OWCP's…
B.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Denver Post Office
Board orders explanation of prior arm award overlap (ECAB 26-0231)
A postal carrier sought a left-arm schedule award beyond a prior six percent award. OWCP's medical adviser found another six percent rating but did not explain whether the current impairment duplicated the earlier compensated impairment. The Board directed the adviser to address that overlap and…
N.L. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds health-premium overpayment and deductions (ECAB 26-0226)
A postal worker's wage-loss payments omitted health insurance premium deductions from January through June 2025. The Board upheld a $3,110.96 overpayment without fault, denial of waiver after review of her assets, and recovery through $129.62 deductions from continuing benefits every 28 days.
C.B. and U.S. Postal Service, North Texas-Coppell Post Office
Board returns disability claim after omitted medical reports (ECAB 26-0180)
A postal employee sought wage-loss benefits for periods after an accepted vehicle accident. OWCP denied the request while stating that no new evidence had been submitted, although it had received several medical reports before deciding. The Board directed OWCP to consider those reports and issue a…
A.P. and U.S. Postal Service
Board rejects disability period after accepted injury (ECAB 26-0138)
A postal worker sought compensation for disability beginning July 11, 2025 based on an accepted September 2023 injury. The Board reviewed medical records describing later hand symptoms but found that they did not establish inability to work caused by the accepted injury. It affirmed OWCP's denial.
M.N. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds refusal to reopen schedule award claim (ECAB 26-0104)
A postal worker sought reconsideration of a schedule award matter. The Board found that the submission did not meet the criteria for reopening the merits under FECA's reconsideration rules. It affirmed OWCP's nonmerit decision without changing the underlying award.
J.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Kilmer Post Office
Board orders related emotional condition claims combined (ECAB 26-0101)
A postal worker reported emotional and physical conditions attributed to workplace events. OWCP denied the claim without combining a prior file involving a similar emotional condition. The Board directed OWCP to combine the files so it could consider all relevant evidence before deciding again.
U.S. Postal Service, dba Kenton Station
Four asbestos-related violations affirmed with reduced penalties
The Postal Service operated Kenton Station in Portland, Oregon, where asbestos-containing flooring was present in work and custodial areas. OSHA alleged repeat violations for missing annual asbestos training, deficient asbestos housekeeping, an incomplete hazardous-chemical list, and the absence of…
Pleasant Valley Teardrop Trailers, LLC
In re Pleasant Valley Teardrop Trailers, LLC (EAB CAA Appeal No. 26-03C): HFC refrigerator import settlement approved
Pleasant Valley Teardrop Trailers, LLC imported 132 car refrigerators containing HFC-134a, a regulated substance with a global warming potential of 1,430. EPA alleged that the products were imported into the household refrigerator and freezer subsector after the applicable technology-transition…
James M. Carroll v. Virginia International Terminals, LLC
Carroll v. Virginia International Terminals (BRB 24-0276): Additional benefits denial affirmed
Crane operator James Carroll injured his neck when a crane stopped abruptly at Virginia International Terminals. A judge found that his neck condition reached maximum medical improvement in May 2019 and denied additional benefits based on a later date. Carroll argued that later changes in a…
J.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Indianapolis Regional Processing and Distribution Center
Board returns claim after overlooked psychiatrist report (ECAB 26-0219)
A postal custodian reported an unwanted touching by a supervisor and sought FECA coverage for an emotional condition. OWCP accepted the incident but denied medical causation after treating the reports as signed only by a social worker. The Board found that a report in the record was also signed by…
R.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Capital View Station
Board dismisses appeal from preliminary termination notice (ECAB 26-0196)
A postal worker appealed a notice proposing to terminate benefits. The Board found that a proposed termination was a preliminary step, not a final adverse OWCP decision within its jurisdiction. It dismissed the appeal without reaching the benefits issue.
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds late review and reconsideration denials (ECAB 26-0159)
A postal worker requested written-record review more than 30 days after OWCP's claim decision and later sought reconsideration outside the one-year period. The Board found the review request late and the reconsideration request insufficient to demonstrate clear evidence of error. It upheld both…
Matter of A-M-Z-F-
Credibility issues remanded after closing-argument challenge
The respondent, an Egyptian citizen and Coptic Christian, appealed the denial of asylum, withholding of removal, and Convention Against Torture protection. He argued that the Immigration Judge violated due process by not allowing his counsel to make a closing argument. The Board held that parties…
Juanita Shelton v. Garden Creek Pocahontas Company
Shelton v. Garden Creek Pocahontas (BRB 25-0130): Survivor benefits affirmed
Juanita Shelton sought survivor benefits after her husband, a coal miner, died while an appeal of his own benefit award was pending. The judge awarded her benefits automatically under the Black Lung Benefits Act and denied the employer's request to hold the claim. The Board explained that the…
Luke Halbert v. Consol of Kentucky, Incorporated
Halbert v. Consol of Kentucky (BRB 25-0120): Disability evidence returned to judge
Luke Halbert sought black lung benefits after twenty-four years of underground coal mine work. On an earlier remand, the judge again found that Halbert had not shown a totally disabling breathing impairment and denied benefits. The Board found that the judge had not adequately explained his…
P.D. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Fiscal Service
Board seeks employer details for emotional condition claim (ECAB 26-0176)
A postal worker attributed an emotional condition to reported workplace events. OWCP asked the employer for details but received an incomplete response before denying the claim. The Board found the factual record inadequate and directed OWCP to obtain a fuller employer response and reconsider the…
A.R. and U.S. Postal Service, West Sacramento Post Office
Board upholds refusal to reopen emotional condition claim (ECAB 26-0105)
A postal worker sought reconsideration of a denied emotional condition claim. The Board found that the submission did not show legal error, present a new relevant legal argument, or provide qualifying new evidence requiring merit review. It affirmed OWCP's nonmerit decision.
Michael H. Stanley v. Island Creek Coal Company
Stanley v. Island Creek Coal (BRB 25-0151): Black lung benefits affirmed
Michael Stanley received black lung benefits after twenty-five years of qualifying coal mine work and a finding of total respiratory disability. On remand, the judge again found that Island Creek Coal had not rebutted the statutory presumption tying his disability to pneumoconiosis. The employer…
Vicki Bowen on behalf of Dana Bowen v. Kelley Coal Company, Incorporated
Bowen v. Kelley Coal (BRB 25-0134): Lung disease evidence remanded
Vicki Bowen pursued her late husband's black lung claim after he died while it was pending. A judge credited Dana Bowen with 13.99 years of coal mine work and found a totally disabling respiratory impairment, but denied benefits after finding no legal pneumoconiosis. The Board found that the judge…
L.P. and Department of Veterans Affairs, G.V. Montgomery VA Medical Center
Board dismisses appeal filed beyond review period (ECAB 26-0419)
A Veterans Affairs employee filed a Board appeal on April 3, 2026 from an OWCP decision issued nearly a year earlier. The Board found that no final adverse decision had been issued within the 180-day window for appeal. It dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.
G.F. and Department of the Navy, Naval Installations Command
Board dismisses late appeal of Navy worker's claim (ECAB 26-0412)
A Navy worker filed a Board appeal on March 30, 2026 from an August 18, 2025 OWCP decision. The filing came after the 180-day Board review period. The Board found no timely final adverse decision before it and dismissed the appeal.
L.G. and Department of Defense, National Security Agency
Board dismisses appeal filed after 180 days (ECAB 26-0406)
A National Security Agency worker appealed an OWCP decision issued January 6, 2025. The appeal filed March 27, 2026 came outside the Board's 180-day period. The Board dismissed because no final adverse OWCP decision within its review period was before it.
T.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Baker Post Office
Board dismisses postal worker's late appeal (ECAB 26-0396)
A postal worker filed a Board appeal on March 23, 2026 from an OWCP decision issued February 19, 2025. The Board found the appeal outside its 180-day filing period. It dismissed the case without reviewing the underlying benefits issue.
Matter of John BOLIVAR-BOLIVAR
Matter of BOLIVAR-BOLIVAR (BIA ID 4180): termination vacated and proceedings remanded
The Department of Homeland Security charged the respondent with being present in the United States without having been admitted or paroled. Neither the respondent nor DHS appeared at the scheduled hearing, and the Immigration Judge terminated the removal proceedings because DHS had not filed…
M.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Manasota Post Office
Board dismisses appeal from nonadverse code update (ECAB 26-0319)
A postal worker appealed a May 16, 2024 OWCP action. The Board found that OWCP had only updated diagnostic codes for already accepted conditions and had made no adverse benefits determination. It dismissed for lack of a final adverse decision within its jurisdiction.
B.I. and Department of Defense
Board returns thumb claim while rejecting other expansion requests (ECAB 26-0193)
A federal employee sought to add several conditions to an accepted injury claim. The Board found the record insufficient to decide whether a right thumb condition was work related and sent that issue back for development. It upheld OWCP's denial of the other requested conditions because causation…
S.J. and U.S. Postal Service
Board rejects shoulder claim for insufficient medical explanation (ECAB 26-0123)
A postal equipment operator attributed a right shoulder condition to repeated lifting and pulling at work. Her physician diagnosed adhesive capsulitis but did not provide an adequately reasoned explanation linking the condition to the accepted work factors. The Board affirmed OWCP's denial.
L.G. and U.S. Postal Service
Board reverses termination of wage-loss and medical benefits (ECAB 26-0045)
A postal worker received wage-loss and medical benefits for an accepted injury. OWCP ended them based on a second opinion, but the Board found the evidence did not meet OWCP's burden to establish that related disability and residuals had ceased. It reversed the termination.
Matter of M-K-
Removability and waiver denial affirmed
The respondent, a native of Syria and citizen of Algeria, challenged removal charges based on a Secretary of State determination that his presence could have serious adverse foreign-policy consequences and on an omission from his Form I-485 about his involvement with the United Nations Relief and…
M.W. and Department of State, Foreign Service
Board upholds long-term life-premium overpayment (ECAB 25-0752)
A State Department employee's wage-loss payments omitted life insurance premium deductions for many years. The Board upheld a $56,045.30 overpayment for June 1999 through July 2021, although the worker was without fault. It also upheld denial of waiver after incomplete financial documentation and…
R.P. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds life-premium overpayment and deductions (ECAB 24-0613)
A postal worker's wage-loss payments omitted life insurance premium deductions from August 2019 through April 2022. The Board upheld a $4,531.22 overpayment without fault, denial of waiver after review of the worker's financial information, and recovery through $138.46 deductions every 28 days.
J.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Cardiss Collins Post Office
Board grants withdrawal of postal worker's appeal (ECAB 26-0263)
A postal worker appealed a November 2025 OWCP decision. He later asked to withdraw the appeal. The Board granted the request and dismissed the case without reaching the merits of the November 2025 decision. The order states that Board decisions and orders become final after 30 days.
S.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Booneville Post Office
Board orders fuller left shoulder impairment rating (ECAB 26-0206)
A postal rural delivery specialist sought a larger schedule award for her left arm. OWCP accepted a seven percent rating based on diagnosis, but its physician did not obtain the required three shoulder range-of-motion measurements. The Board directed OWCP to obtain a complete assessment under both…
R.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center
Board upholds refusal to reconsider late postal claim (ECAB 26-0205)
A postal worker requested reconsideration more than a year after the merit decision he challenged. His new medical report did not show clear evidence of error in OWCP's denial. The Board affirmed the refusal to reopen the claim.
A.M. and Department of the Navy, Naval Weapons Station Earle
Board rejects claimed shaving injury as work related (ECAB 26-0192)
A former Navy firefighter said he cut his left index finger while shaving. He did not sufficiently answer OWCP's questions about the incident, and the record did not show that he was carrying out work duties or an activity incidental to them. The Board upheld the denial of his claim.
P.M. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Border Patrol
Board rejects concurrent disability and schedule payments (ECAB 26-0186)
A Border Patrol employee received total disability compensation and a schedule award for permanent impairment of both legs. He sought to receive both payments at the same time. The Board held that both arose from the same accepted injury, so the payments could not run concurrently.
D.J. and Department of the Navy, Fleet Readiness Center
Board sends Parkinson's impairment rating back for review (ECAB 23-0528)
A Navy worker sought a schedule award related to Parkinson's disease. OWCP's medical adviser combined whole-person and central nervous system ratings but did not adequately answer the questions OWCP had sent him. The Board directed OWCP to obtain a supplemental opinion and decide the claim again.
Matter of Anthonia Betty NWAGWU, Beneficiary of a visa petition filed by Clovis Ndubuisi Nwagwu
Matter of Anthonia Betty NWAGWU (BIA ID 4197): visa petition revocation affirmed for marriage fraud
The Board reviewed a petitioner's appeal from the revocation of an approved visa petition filed for his spouse. The Board found substantial and probative evidence that the beneficiary's prior marriage had been entered into to evade immigration laws, including a sworn affidavit, investigative…
C.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Palo Alto VA Medical Center
Board restores timely written-record review request (ECAB 26-0174)
A Veterans Affairs employee sought to add conditions to an accepted injury claim. OWCP's September 2025 letter effectively denied the request, and she asked for written-record review within 30 days. OWCP measured timeliness against an older 2018 decision. The Board reversed and sent the case for…
T.W. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Board rejects hearing-loss claim lacking noise details (ECAB 26-0118)
An Army Corps employee attributed hearing loss to workplace noise. He did not describe the type or duration of noise exposure in enough detail and did not answer OWCP's development questionnaire. The Board held that the record failed to establish the alleged work exposure and affirmed the denial.
Matter of Gontrand Raphael GERMAIN
Cancellation grant vacated after criminal history review
The Board reviewed DHS's appeal from an Immigration Judge's discretionary grant of cancellation of removal to a Haitian lawful permanent resident. The respondent had long residence, lawful permanent resident status, family ties, and community involvement, but his record included assault and battery…
Bernard Ntege v. SOC, LLC
Ntege v. SOC (BRB 24-0291): Psychological injury benefits denial affirmed
Bernard Ntege sought benefits for an alleged psychological condition after working as an armed security guard in Iraq. The judge found that Ntege invoked the work injury presumption, but that the employer rebutted it with a psychologist's opinion. After weighing the evidence, the judge found that…
A.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Tampa Post Office
Board upholds $9,537.28 compensation overpayment (ECAB 26-0202)
A postal worker kept receiving total-disability compensation after returning to regular work. The Board upheld a $9,537.28 overpayment. It found her without fault for the first portion but denied waiver; for the later portion, it found she should have recognized the erroneous payments and was at…
L.H. and U.S. Postal Service, South Suburban Processing & Distribution Center
Board rejects claim for lack of medical causation (ECAB 26-0201)
A postal worker reported a June 2025 work incident and submitted records describing neck and nerve conditions. Her medical providers did not explain how the accepted incident caused those diagnoses, and physical therapy notes could not supply the required physician opinion. The Board affirmed the…
S.G. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Border Patrol Academy
Board reverses termination of injury benefits (ECAB 26-0185)
A Border Patrol Academy employee received benefits for an accepted injury. OWCP ended them based on a second-opinion physician's reports. The physician did not adequately address all accepted shoulder and carpal tunnel conditions, so the Board found that OWCP had not proved the disability and…
Secretary of Labor v. Material Sand & Stone Corporation
Unserved default order held nonfinal
Material Sand & Stone asked to reopen a default after it sent its answer to the Secretary's representative instead of filing it with the Commission. The company said it never received the Commission's order to show cause and later pursued the matter after delinquency and collection notices arrived…
Matter of Juan Carlos PELAGIO MENDOZA
Matter of PELAGIO MENDOZA (BIA ID 4179): cancellation grant vacated and removal ordered
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's grant of cancellation of removal to a Mexican respondent with three United States citizen children. The Board held that the record did not establish exceptional and extremely unusual hardship because the evidence about a child's…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission, Board and Authority decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, the Authority at FLRA, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Review Board at Labor, and the Environmental Appeals Board at EPA). These are citable as precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by the agency's Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order that binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent: under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j) at OSHRC, and after the 40-day window of 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) at FMSHRC.
- Why finality matters: Every page here says which kind of decision you are reading, so you know whether it is precedent you can cite or a final order that only shows how one judge ruled on one set of facts.
- Where they come from: Every page links the official public release from the deciding agency, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.