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.

60,101 decisions and counting · Latest decision October 28, 2026
60,101 decisions

No decisions match these filters

Try fewer or different words, check the spelling, or clear the filters to browse everything.

COMM

Charles E. McDaniel v. Mingo Logan Coal Company

McDaniel v. Mingo Logan Coal (BRB 25-0321): Attorney fees and expenses affirmed

Charles McDaniel obtained black lung benefits after pursuing a modification request. His counsel then requested fees for work before the district director, and the claims examiner awarded $8,185 in fees and $2,130.52 in expenses. Mingo Logan Coal challenged an attorney's hourly rate, quarter-hour…

April 3, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

D.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Headland Post Office

Board upholds five percent left-arm award (ECAB 26-0199)

A postal worker sought more than the five percent permanent impairment award already paid for her left arm. OWCP's medical adviser applied the impairment guides to the examination and supported a five percent rating. The Board found no medical evidence for a greater award and affirmed.

April 3, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

K.H. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons

Board orders timely reconsideration request reviewed (ECAB 26-0191)

A Bureau of Prisons worker requested reconsideration of a May 31, 2024 merit decision. OWCP treated the request received June 2, 2025 as late and required clear evidence of error. Because the anniversary fell on a weekend, the Board found the Monday request timely and directed OWCP to apply the…

April 3, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

E.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Martin Olav Sabo Post Office

Board requires related back injury files combined (ECAB 26-0175)

A postal worker had multiple injury claims involving her back. OWCP decided the current claim without administratively combining two earlier files containing relevant evidence. The Board could not review the complete record and directed OWCP to combine the three files before deciding again.

April 3, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

R.F. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation

Board upholds hearing rating but revisits award payrate (ECAB 26-0151)

An FBI employee sought a larger hearing-loss schedule award and challenged the payrate used to calculate it. The Board found no medical proof of more than 26 percent right-ear loss. It found conflicting employer information about additional pay that OWCP had not resolved, so it returned the payrate…

April 3, 2026 ·ECAB
Mixed result
COMM

J.O. and Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency

Board rejects back claim lacking medical causation (ECAB 26-0086)

A Defense Commissary Agency meatcutter reported lower-back pain while lifting meat boxes at work. The incident was accepted, but his medical records did not adequately explain how it caused a diagnosed lumbar condition. The Board held that a checked causation box without rationale and reports…

April 3, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 4012

Social Security Administration and AFGE Local 4012 (FLRA 0-AR-6040): Authority dismisses moot reprimand exceptions

An arbitrator found that the Social Security Administration had just cause to reprimand an employee but still directed the agency to remove the reprimand from the employee's personnel file. The agency challenged that remedy. While its exceptions were pending, the reprimand reached its stated…

April 3, 2026 ·FLRA
Procedural
COMM

Matter of Agustin VALENZUELA GALLARDO

Matter of VALENZUELA GALLARDO (BIA ID 4178): obstruction-of-justice conviction affirmed as aggravated felony

The respondent, a Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident, challenged his removability based on a California conviction for accessory to a felony. The Board held that an offense relating to obstruction of justice under the Immigration and Nationality Act requires an affirmative and…

April 2, 2026 ·BIA
Affirmed
COMM

W.H. and U.S. Postal Service, New Jersey International Bulk Mail & Distribution Center

Board upholds $30,262.18 insurance-premium overpayment (ECAB 24-0657)

A postal worker's wage-loss benefits did not have the required life insurance premium deductions for many years. The Board upheld a $30,262.18 overpayment, although she was without fault. It affirmed denial of waiver and recovery through $400 deductions every 28 days from continuing benefits.

April 2, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

T.P. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service

Board upholds $34,081.14 life-premium overpayment (ECAB 24-0333)

An IRS employee's wage-loss payments lacked required life insurance premium deductions over several years. The Board upheld a $34,081.14 overpayment for which she was without fault. It also upheld denial of waiver and recovery through $1,551.52 deductions every 28 days from continuing compensation.

April 2, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

J.M. and Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau

Board rejects remaining wage-loss periods for lack of medical proof (ECAB 26-0190)

A former Census Bureau worker sought wage-loss benefits for two periods in 2024 after an accepted foot injury. Her physicians described foot conditions but did not explain disability from work during those specific periods due to the accepted injury. The Board affirmed denial of the remaining…

April 1, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

D.T. and Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management

Board rejects firefighter's tonsillitis claim (ECAB 26-0189)

A wildland firefighter attributed tonsillitis to smoke and other conditions while working a fire. His physician described a likely connection but the Board found that wording speculative and insufficient to establish medical causation. It affirmed OWCP's denial.

April 1, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

A.P. and Department of Agriculture, Rural Development

Board upholds $1,267.73 dual-benefit overpayment (ECAB 25-0730)

A Rural Development employee received FECA wage-loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits without the required federal-service offset. The Board upheld a $1,267.73 overpayment for which she was without fault. It affirmed denial of waiver and recovery through $110 deductions every 28…

April 1, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

C.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Union City Post Office

Board reverses termination of attendant services (ECAB 23-1139)

A postal carrier received attendant services after an accepted back injury. His treating physician said he still needed daily help, while OWCP's referral physicians disagreed. The Board found a medical opinion conflict that OWCP had not resolved through an impartial examination, so it reversed the…

April 1, 2026 ·ECAB
Vacated
COMM

Norman Lee Williamson v. Argus Energy, LLC

Williamson v. Argus Energy (BRB 25-0173): Earlier black lung payment date affirmed

Norman Williamson had been awarded black lung benefits beginning May 2022, the date of an x-ray showing complicated pneumoconiosis. He asked the judge to reconsider the start date, and she changed it to August 2020, when he sought modification of the earlier denial. The employer argued that…

March 31, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

Gregory M. Smiley v. Eighty-Four Mining Company

Smiley v. Eighty-Four Mining (BRB 25-0116): Black lung benefits affirmed

Gregory Smiley received black lung benefits after twenty-three years of underground coal mine work and a finding of total respiratory disability. The employer challenged the disability finding and argued it had rebutted the fifteen-year presumption connecting the condition to coal dust. The Board…

March 31, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

Jelani A. Garrett v. DynCorp International

Garrett v. DynCorp (BRB 24-0244): Alternate work finding affirmed

Jelani Garrett sought Defense Base Act benefits for several conditions after working for DynCorp in Afghanistan. In an earlier appeal, the Board sent the case back for the judge to assess suitable alternate jobs using both Garrett's work-related shoulder restrictions and pre-existing spine…

March 31, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

Semir Safur v. Fluor Conops, Limited

Safur v. Fluor Conops (BRB 26-0023): Late appeal dismissed

Semir Safur appealed the denial of a claim under the Longshore Act more than a year after the administrative law judge's order was filed. The district director had served Safur's lawyer by certified mail when the order was filed. Safur said the lawyer had not explained the denial or the appeal…

March 30, 2026 ·BRB
Procedural
COMM

Sherry L. Sutherland v. J & E Coal Company, Incorporated

Sutherland v. J & E Coal Company (BRB 25-0146): Medical opinion findings returned to the judge

Sherry Sutherland sought black lung benefits after 5.2 years of coal mine work. The judge found that she had a totally disabling respiratory impairment but denied benefits after finding that she had not established pneumoconiosis caused by coal mine dust. The Board had already returned the case…

March 30, 2026 ·BRB
Remanded
COMM

Bennie O. Coleman v. Enterprise Coal Company

Coleman v. Enterprise Coal (BRB 25-0145): Presumption rebuttal remanded

Bennie Coleman sought black lung benefits after 22.8 years of qualifying coal mine work. The judge found a totally disabling respiratory impairment, applying the fifteen-year presumption, but denied benefits after finding the employer had disproved pneumoconiosis. The Board held that the judge had…

March 30, 2026 ·BRB
Remanded
COMM

Leroy Bowman v. U.S. Steel Mining Company

Bowman v. U.S. Steel Mining (BRB 25-0144): Benefits denial reversed

Leroy Bowman sought black lung benefits after at least twenty-nine years of underground coal mine work. The judge found total respiratory disability but denied benefits after finding the employer had rebutted the fifteen-year presumption. The Board held that the employer had not disproved clinical…

March 30, 2026 ·BRB
Vacated
COMM

Edwin G. Taylor v. Wampler Brothers Coal Company, Incorporated

Taylor v. Wampler Brothers Coal (BRB 25-0138): Black lung benefits affirmed

Edwin Taylor received black lung benefits after the judge credited him with 15.22 years of underground coal mine work and found a totally disabling respiratory impairment. The employer challenged the pulmonary function studies and argued that the newest, nonqualifying result should control over two…

March 30, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

Robert P. Fuller v. Clas Coal Company, Incorporated

Fuller v. Clas Coal (BRB 25-0121): Employer liability and benefits affirmed

Robert Fuller was awarded black lung benefits after the judge found complicated pneumoconiosis arising from twenty-nine years of coal mine work. Clas Coal appealed only its designation as the employer liable for the award. The judge used Fuller's 2019 earnings and an industry average daily wage to…

March 30, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

Steven V. Bias v. Mingo Logan Coal Company

Bias v. Mingo Logan Coal (BRB 25-0101): Black lung benefits affirmed

Steven Bias received black lung benefits after more than forty-two years of underground coal mine work and a finding of total respiratory disability. Mingo Logan Coal challenged the judge's authority to decide the case and the medical findings supporting the award. The Board rejected the…

March 30, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

T.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Bedford Park Post Office

Board dismisses late appeal of postal worker's claim (ECAB 26-0367)

A postal worker appealed an OWCP decision on March 5, 2026. The filing came more than 180 days after the April 2025 decision, and the Board found no documented compelling circumstances for the delay. It dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction.

March 30, 2026 ·ECAB
Procedural
COMM

D.B. and Department of the Air Force, Hill Air Force Base

Board revives hearing-loss claim as timely filed (ECAB 26-0203)

A retired Air Force electronics mechanic filed a hearing-loss claim years after his last workplace noise exposure. Although the three-year filing period had passed, employer hearing-conservation tests documented worsening loss while he worked. The Board found that the employer had timely actual…

March 30, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

S.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Bozeman Post Office

Board grants withdrawal of postal worker's appeal (ECAB 26-0195)

A postal worker appealed a June 2025 OWCP decision. He later requested withdrawal so OWCP could finish considering his claim. The Board granted the request and dismissed the appeal without reaching the merits. Its order states that Board decisions and orders become final after 30 days.

March 30, 2026 ·ECAB
Procedural
COMM

B.G. and U.S. Postal Service, North Texas Processing & Distribution Center

Board upholds refusal to reopen hearing-loss claim (ECAB 26-0170)

A postal mail handler asked OWCP to reconsider a hearing-loss claim. The request did not identify legal error, present a new relevant legal argument, or provide pertinent new evidence requiring merit review. The Board affirmed OWCP's decision not to reopen the claim.

March 30, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

C.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital

Board orders related injury files combined (ECAB 26-0165)

A Veterans Affairs medical supply worker reported knee and back symptoms after an elevator abruptly fell. OWCP decided his new claim while related prior injury files remained separate, despite its hearing representative's direction to combine them. The Board returned the case so OWCP could consider…

March 30, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

A.A. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Lompoc

Board keeps five percent knee award but corrects improvement date (ECAB 26-0161)

A federal correctional officer sought a larger award for right-leg impairment after a knee injury. The Board found no support for more than the five percent permanent impairment already awarded. It changed the maximum medical improvement date to April 25, 2025 and otherwise affirmed the award.

March 30, 2026 ·ECAB
Modified
COMM

K.W. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Butner

Board sends disputed left-leg impairment rating for impartial exam (ECAB 26-0157)

A correctional officer sought more than an 18 percent left-leg impairment award. His physician and OWCP's medical adviser disagreed over whether his knee condition qualified for an additional rating. The Board found a medical opinion conflict and directed OWCP to obtain an impartial examination…

March 30, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

R.A. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Border Patrol

Board awards two percent left-ear impairment (ECAB 26-0134)

A Border Patrol agent sought a hearing-loss schedule award after years of workplace noise exposure. The Board found his binaural loss too small for an award but his left-ear monaural loss rounded to two percent. It reversed the denial and returned the case for payment based on that rating.

March 30, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

Matter of Elmer Omar LOPEZ-ORELLANA

Matter of LOPEZ-ORELLANA (BIA ID 4177): termination vacated and proceedings remanded

The respondent's original notice to appear did not state the date or time of the initial removal hearing, and he did not attend two scheduled master calendar hearings. The Immigration Judge terminated the proceedings because the notice was noncompliant. The Board held that the respondent had…

March 27, 2026 ·BIA
Remanded
COMM

Mujib L. Muhsin v. General Dynamics Corporation

Muhsin v. General Dynamics (BRB 24-0312): Work-related knee condition sent back for benefit findings

Mujib Muhsin injured both knees when a transformer frame struck his legs while he worked for General Dynamics. The employer paid temporary benefits but disputed whether his later knee problems remained tied to the accident. The Board rejected the employer's claim that Muhsin appealed too late…

March 27, 2026 ·BRB
Remanded
COMM

Domebo v. Okmulgee Ready Mix Co.

STAA retaliation dismissal affirmed

Austin Domebo, a concrete delivery driver, alleged that Okmulgee Ready Mix fired him for reporting an air-brake defect and a blown tire. The Board accepted that his safety reports were protected activity but held that substantial evidence supported the Chief ALJ’s finding that those reports did not…

March 27, 2026 ·DOL ARB
Affirmed
COMM

M.O. and Department of Veterans Affairs, San Francisco VA Medical Center

Board reverses rescission of accepted head injury claim (ECAB 26-0164)

A Veterans Affairs nurse fainted while weighing a patient and sustained head injuries. OWCP initially accepted a scalp laceration, scalp contusion, and left subdural hematoma, then rescinded that acceptance. The Board held that OWCP had not met its burden to undo the accepted claim. It reversed the…

March 27, 2026 ·ECAB
Vacated
COMM

American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Local 1653 and United States Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center

AFSCME Local 1653 and FAA Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center (FLRA 0-NG-3749): Authority dismisses trash-policy petition

AFSCME Local 1653 proposed eight measures after the Federal Aviation Administration replaced desk-side trash pickup with centralized receptacles. The union consented to dismissal of four proposals as bargaining-obligation disputes, and the Authority found a fifth proposal also presented only that…

March 27, 2026 ·FLRA
Mixed result
COMM

Matter of Ricardo MERCADO-MARTINEZ

Matter of MERCADO-MARTINEZ (BIA ID 4176): termination vacated and proceedings remanded

The Immigration Judge terminated the respondent's removal proceedings after finding that the Department of Homeland Security had not proved his alienage with a Form I-213 and related written admissions. The Board held that a Form I-213 is presumptively reliable and that an Immigration Judge who…

March 26, 2026 ·BIA
Remanded
COMM

Raymond D. Bryant v. Cravat Coal Company

Bryant v. Cravat Coal (BRB 25-0125): Black lung benefits and start date affirmed

Raymond Bryant sought black lung benefits after 19.03 years of qualifying coal mine work. The judge found a totally disabling respiratory impairment, applied the fifteen-year presumption, and awarded benefits. Cravat Coal challenged the additional medical evaluation, the disability finding, and the…

March 26, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

A.A. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Border Patrol

Board finds diagnosed hearing condition and returns claim (ECAB 26-0162)

A Border Patrol agent claimed hearing loss and tinnitus from workplace noise. OWCP denied the claim for lack of a diagnosed condition. The Board found medical evidence documenting hearing loss and tinnitus, reversed that threshold finding, and returned the case for OWCP to decide whether the…

March 26, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

M.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Parkside Station Post Office

Board orders further review of postal worker's hip condition (ECAB 26-0158)

A postal worker attributed right-hip damage to repeated work movements. Her physician explained how bending, twisting, and getting out of a work vehicle could contribute to the condition. The Board found that evidence warranted further medical development and directed OWCP to obtain a reasoned…

March 26, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

A.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Jesse Brown VA Medical Center

Board orders related right-knee claims combined (ECAB 26-0140)

A Veterans Affairs food service worker claimed a right-knee injury while turning a lunch cart. He also had other right-knee injury claims, but OWCP decided the current claim without combining the related files. The Board directed OWCP to join the files so it could review all relevant evidence…

March 26, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

Y.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Dominick V. Daniels Processing & Distribution Center

Board reverses benefits suspension after form was returned (ECAB 26-0135)

A postal worker received a request to return a financial disclosure form. She completed and returned it the next day, but OWCP suspended her benefits as though she had not responded. The Board found that the record showed timely receipt and reversed the suspension.

March 26, 2026 ·ECAB
Vacated
COMM

M.D. and Department of Commerce, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

Board orders new medical review of hip claim (ECAB 26-0128)

A patent examiner attributed right-hip conditions to prolonged sitting at work. OWCP's second-opinion physician first linked avascular necrosis to sitting, then reversed his view without adequately explaining the change. The Board found the opinion unresolved and directed OWCP to obtain a new…

March 26, 2026 ·ECAB
Remanded
COMM

Social Security Administration, Office of Hearing Operations, Baltimore, Maryland and Association of Administrative Law Judges, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers

Social Security Administration and Association of Administrative Law Judges (FLRA 0-AR-6012): Authority narrows PII-access remedy

The Social Security Administration ended a practice that allowed union representatives who were also agency administrative law judges to access claimant files containing personally identifiable information for representational work. An arbitrator found the termination unlawful and ordered…

March 26, 2026 ·FLRA
Modified
COMM

Patricia Stapleton (widow of Jerry L. Stapleton) v. McMurphy Mining Incorporated

Stapleton v. McMurphy Mining (BRB 25-0068): Survivor benefits denial affirmed

Patricia Stapleton sought survivor benefits after the death of her husband, coal miner Jerry Stapleton. The judge found that his eleven years and one month of coal mine work fell short of the fifteen years required for one presumption, and that the evidence did not establish complicated…

March 25, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

DeTie v. TransWood, Inc.

Denial of STAA complaint affirmed

Dale DeTie, a fuel-delivery driver, alleged that TransWood and manager Mark Miller fired him for reporting overweight loads and refusing an unsafe assignment. The Board agreed that earlier safety complaints were protected, but it upheld the finding that DeTie did not refuse the April 24 load…

March 25, 2026 ·DOL ARB
Affirmed
COMM

P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Clifton East End Post Office

Board upholds suspension for missing disclosure form (ECAB 26-0194)

A postal worker was asked to complete a financial disclosure form about employment and earnings. OWCP mailed the request to her address of record and warned that benefits could be suspended after 30 days. The Board found no completed form returned in time and affirmed the suspension.

March 25, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

J.C. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Board rejects hearing claim after unreliable tests (ECAB 26-0179)

A Border Patrol agent attributed hearing loss and tinnitus to workplace noise. The specialist's testing found discrepancies that made the hearing results unreliable and did not establish a valid diagnosis. The Board held that the medical record was insufficient to establish the claimed auditory…

March 25, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

T.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Livermore Annex Post Office

Board denies intermittent wage-loss periods (ECAB 26-0177)

A postal carrier sought wage-loss benefits for scattered days in 2022 after an accepted fall at work. Her work-status notes did not adequately link disability on the claimed dates to the accepted injury. The Board found the medical record insufficient and affirmed the denial.

March 25, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

B.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Riverdale Post Office

Board upholds refusal to reconsider decades-old claim (ECAB 26-0117)

A postal worker requested reconsideration of a merit decision issued in 1985. Both requests arrived decades beyond the one-year filing period and did not demonstrate clear evidence of error. The Board affirmed OWCP's refusals to reopen the claim.

March 25, 2026 ·ECAB
Procedural
COMM

J.K. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation

Board upholds refusal to reopen FBI worker's claim (ECAB 26-0115)

An FBI special agent sought reconsideration of a claim arising from an on-duty motor vehicle accident. Her submission did not identify a new legal argument, show a legal error, or provide pertinent new evidence requiring merit review. The Board affirmed OWCP's decision not to reopen the merits.

March 25, 2026 ·ECAB
Affirmed
COMM

Thomas Leon Jones v. Central Appalachian Coal Company

Jones v. Central Appalachian Coal (BRB 25-0020): Black lung benefits award affirmed

Thomas Jones sought black lung benefits on a subsequent claim after fourteen years of underground coal mine work. The judge found that he had legal pneumoconiosis in the form of disabling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease caused in part by coal dust, and awarded benefits without the…

March 24, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

N.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Loiza Street Post Office

Board reverses termination over disputed suitable work offer (ECAB 26-0110)

A postal carrier's benefits were ended after she refused a job offer OWCP considered suitable. OWCP sought clarification from a physician about conflicting work restrictions and whether she could perform the offered job, but decided before receiving the report. The Board found the termination…

March 24, 2026 ·ECAB
Vacated
COMM

K.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Denver Processing & Distribution Center

Board recognizes recurrence of postal worker's disability (ECAB 26-0044)

A postal worker's modified assignment required four hours of rewrap work, though her physician restricted gripping and squeezing to three hours per shift. The Board found the assignment incompatible with her accepted medical restrictions. It held that she established the claimed recurrence of…

March 24, 2026 ·ECAB
Vacated
COMM

Charles E. McDaniel v. Mingo Logan Coal Company

McDaniel v. Mingo Logan Coal (BRB 25-0133): Benefits award on modification affirmed

Charles McDaniel pursued a black lung claim after 32.14 years of qualifying coal mine work. A judge initially denied benefits but later granted modification after finding complicated pneumoconiosis, which triggers an irrebuttable presumption of total disability due to the disease. Mingo Logan Coal…

March 23, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

Curtis D. Keller v. Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs

Keller v. Director, OWCP (BRB 25-0127): Attorney fee reduction affirmed

Curtis Keller's lawyer sought $4,600 in fees and $2,000 in costs for work on a black lung claim. The judge reduced the requested hourly rate from $400 to $275 and disallowed three time entries totaling 0.75 hour, awarding $2,956.25 in fees and all $2,000 in costs. The lawyer appealed, arguing that…

March 23, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

Michael Lance Lee v. Redhawk Mining, LLC

Lee v. Redhawk Mining (BRB 25-0119): Black lung benefits award affirmed

Michael Lee sought black lung benefits on a subsequent claim after nineteen years of underground coal mine work. The judge found that Lee had a totally disabling respiratory impairment and applied the fifteen-year presumption. Redhawk Mining challenged the disability finding and argued that it had…

March 23, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed
COMM

Wanda S. McKnight (widow of Delmer R. McKnight) v. Highland Enterprises, LLC

McKnight v. Highland Enterprises (BRB 25-0108): Survivor claim returned for disability findings

Wanda McKnight sought survivor benefits after the death of her husband, Delmer, who had 29.8 years of qualifying coal mine work. The judge found that the evidence did not establish a totally disabling respiratory impairment and denied benefits without applying the fifteen-year presumption. The…

March 23, 2026 ·BRB
Remanded
COMM

Ludim Castaneda Pino v. Constellis Group/Triple Canopy, Incorporated and SOC, LLC

Castaneda Pino v. Triple Canopy and SOC (BRB 24-0337): Psychological injury denial affirmed

Ludim Castaneda Pino sought Defense Base Act benefits for a psychological condition that he attributed to his security work in Iraq for Triple Canopy and SOC. Medical experts disagreed on whether he had a work-related condition. The judge denied benefits after crediting an employer expert who found…

March 23, 2026 ·BRB
Affirmed

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.