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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Gary P. Sawyers v. Eastern Associated Coal LLC
Sawyers v. Eastern Associated Coal (BRB 20-0143 BLA): Benefits and carrier liability affirmed
Gary Sawyers received black lung benefits on a subsequent claim after at least twenty-six years of underground coal mine work. Eastern Associated Coal and its carrier, Peabody Energy, argued that Patriot Coal's later self-insurance and bankruptcy shifted liability away from Peabody. The Board…
Laverne Rehbein v. Heritage Coal Company, LLC
Rehbein v. Heritage Coal (BRB 20-0011R): Reconsideration denied and attorney fee awarded
Laverne Rehbein pursued a black lung benefits claim on behalf of Carlyn Rehbein. Heritage Coal and its carrier sought reconsideration of the Board's earlier decision affirming benefits. The panel did not vote to change that decision, so it denied reconsideration and also declined a request to…
M.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Kansas City, MO
Board upholds denial of carrier's right arm occupational claim (ECAB 22-1119)
A postal letter carrier reported finger and elbow problems that he attributed to repeated mail delivery motions. OWCP accepted his work factors but denied the medical claim. The Board found that his physician diagnosed elbow tendinitis without explaining how the work caused it, and the remaining…
S.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Seattle Processing & Distribution Center, Tukwila, WA
Board upholds denial of postal clerk's shoulder claim (ECAB 22-1082)
A mail processing clerk developed left shoulder pain while reaching overhead to move mail into trays. OWCP accepted the event but denied her claim for a shoulder condition. The Board found that her doctors described the work and diagnoses without sufficiently explaining how the June 2021 incident…
J.L. and Department of the Navy, Facilities Maintenance Services, Quantico, VA
Board orders impartial review of Navy worker's lung claim (ECAB 22-0964)
A Navy maintenance worker attributed a pulmonary condition to workplace dust, including silica from cutting insulation panels. OWCP's referral doctor found no work related pulmonary disease, while his treating doctor connected biopsy findings and breathing problems to occupational exposure. The…
P.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Corona-Elmhurst Station Post Office, Corona, NY
Board upholds benefit termination but orders review of later disability (ECAB 22-0905)
A postal worker received wage loss and medical benefits for accepted right hand and wrist conditions. The Board upheld OWCP's July 2021 termination because its referral physician found the accepted conditions resolved. A later treating report described objective findings and continued disability…
T.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, North Houston, TX
Board upholds refusal to reconsider postal operator's back claim (ECAB 22-0729)
A postal tractor trailer operator sought to reopen a claim arising from a fall on a vehicle step. The Board could review only OWCP's November 2021 refusal to reconsider, because the last merits decision was outside its appeal period. It found that the request offered no new relevant legal argument…
J.O. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, Pine Valley, CA
Board orders further review of Border Patrol agent's knee injury (ECAB 22-0562)
A Border Patrol agent claimed a right knee injury during physical training. His physician diagnosed patellar chondromalacia and a muscle strain, and explained how the lifting forces could cause injury. The Board found that this opinion supported further medical development, though it did not yet…
G.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Chicago International Service Center, Chicago, IL
Board upholds denial of postal worker's extended disability claim (ECAB 22-0445)
A postal worker with an accepted right shoulder injury sought wage loss for January 2017 through February 2021. Her physician documented shoulder treatment and later restrictions but did not explain disability over the claimed period due to the accepted injury. The Board held that the reports did…
N.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Newark, NJ
Board orders review of medical records received on decision day (ECAB 21-0997)
A postal truck operator claimed a lower back injury after slipping on ice at work. OWCP denied the claim on April 14, 2021, saying that it had no supporting evidence. Medical reports reached OWCP that same day but were not addressed in the decision. The Board set aside the denial and directed OWCP…
Lexie Lynn Madon v. Harlan Cumberland Coal Company
Madon v. Harlan Cumberland Coal (BRB 22-0064 BLA): Survivor award on modification affirmed
Lexie Madon sought survivor benefits after her husband, a coal miner, died from lung cancer. A prior judge had denied her claim, but on modification a new judge found that the employer had not rebutted the presumption that pneumoconiosis contributed to his death. Harlan Cumberland Coal argued that…
Sandra G. Adkins v. Eastern Coal Corporation
Adkins v. Eastern Coal (BRB 21-0585 BLA): Survivor award upheld, payment period remanded
Sandra Adkins sought survivor benefits after her husband's death, asking a judge to correct an earlier denial. The new judge credited 16.99 years of qualifying coal mine work and found that the employer had not rebutted the presumption that pneumoconiosis contributed to his death. The Board upheld…
Peter Chimento v. Port Newark Container Terminal, Incorporated
Chimento v. Port Newark Container Terminal (BRB 21-0576): Further benefits denial affirmed
Peter Chimento worked at a container terminal when a block of ice fell from a crane and struck him. The employer accepted his neck and back injuries and paid temporary disability benefits, but disputed other conditions and further disability. The judge found that his shoulder, hip, knee, and foot…
Henry W. Peters v. ASARCO, Incorporated
Peters v. ASARCO (BRB 21-0282 BLA): Black lung benefits affirmed
Henry Peters received black lung benefits after twenty-nine years of qualifying coal mine work. ASARCO disputed payment liability and argued that Peters was not totally disabled. The Board held ASARCO to its prehearing stipulation that it was the responsible operator. It also upheld the judge's…
Richard E. McLain v. Old Ben Coal Company
McLain v. Old Ben Coal Company (BRB 21-0274 BLA): Black lung benefits affirmed
Richard McLain worked in underground coal mining for 18.75 years and received an award of black lung benefits. Old Ben Coal Company and its surety, Safeco, challenged both the benefits award and their payment liability. The Board upheld the finding that pulmonary tests and medical opinions…
Chester S. White v. Heritage Coal Company, LLC
White v. Heritage Coal Company (BRB 20-0168 BLA): Black lung benefits affirmed
Chester White received black lung benefits after sixteen years of underground coal mine employment. Heritage Coal Company and Peabody Energy challenged Peabody's payment liability and the finding that the statutory presumption had not been rebutted. The Board held Peabody remained liable as…
Wanda C. Carter v. Eastern Associated Coal LLC
Carter v. Eastern Associated Coal (BRB 20-0144 BLA): Survivor's benefits affirmed
Wanda Carter sought survivor's benefits after the death of her husband, Harold, who had worked underground for Eastern Associated Coal. The judge found he had complicated pneumoconiosis from coal mine work, which triggered an irrebuttable presumption that his death was due to the disease. Eastern…
Sherry Johnson, for Ida Adams, v. Peabody Coal Company
Johnson v. Peabody Coal Company (BRB 20-0075 BLA): Survivor's benefits affirmed
Sherry Johnson pursued her late mother Ida Adams's survivor claim after the death of miner Cliniton Adams. The judge found at least 29 years of underground coal mine work and credited the miner's treating doctor in finding a totally disabling respiratory impairment. A two-member Board majority…
L.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Wittensville Post Office, Wittensville, KY
Board reverses end of postal worker's thumb injury wage loss (ECAB 22-0963)
A postal sales associate sustained a partial right thumb amputation at work. OWCP ended her wage loss payments based on earnings from a temporary limited duty assignment it said she could have accepted. The Board found that OWCP's own referral doctor raised possible additional conditions, including…
C.Y. and U.S. Postal Service, Fresh Meadows Post Office, Fresh Meadows, NY
Board rejects postal carrier's recurrence of total disability (ECAB 22-0474)
A postal carrier returned to limited duty after a vehicle collision and later claimed total disability beginning October 29, 2020. His doctor repeatedly listed diagnoses and found him unable to work. The Board found that those reports did not explain how the accepted collision injury caused the…
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3320
HUD and AFGE Local 3320 (FLRA 0-AR-5784): Authority upholds alternative discipline remedy
HUD gave an employee a reprimand for failing to follow instructions and inattention to duty, then later imposed a five-day suspension for another failure to follow instructions. An arbitrator upheld the reprimand but found the suspension inconsistent with the agreement's corrective purpose and…
National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 298 and United States Department of the Treasury, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Southern District
NTEU Chapter 298 and Comptroller of the Currency (FLRA 0-AR-5781): Authority upholds backpay cutoff
An Office of the Comptroller of the Currency bank examiner requested a hardship transfer from New Orleans to Houston because travel created childcare difficulties. An arbitrator found that the agency unlawfully retaliated for her earlier equal-employment-opportunity activity by denying the transfer…
T.W. and Social Security Administration, Office of the General Counsel, San Francisco, CA
Board denies SSA attorney's occupational condition claim (ECAB 22-1078)
A Social Security Administration attorney claimed neck and right arm conditions related to her work. OWCP accepted the identified work factors. The Board found that her physicians diagnosed conditions and described symptoms without offering an opinion that linked them to those factors. It affirmed…
M.W. and Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, Tracy Depot, Tracy, CA
Board upholds $5,055.63 federal benefits overpayment (ECAB 22-0791)
A Defense Logistics Agency worker received FECA wage loss payments and Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service at the same time. The Board upheld OWCP's calculation of a $5,055.63 overpayment. Although he was without fault, he did not supply the financial records needed…
J.A. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Imperial, CA
Board denies border mechanic's disability claim (ECAB 22-0692)
A Customs and Border Protection mechanic with an accepted right shoulder injury sought compensation for disability from March 29 through April 27, 2021. His doctor held him off work pending surgery but did not adequately explain how the accepted injury caused disability during that period. The…
J.E. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, San Diego, CA
Board rejects border officer's short disability claim (ECAB 22-0683)
A customs and border protection officer with an accepted elbow injury sought wage loss from June 7 through July 2, 2021. Her doctor kept her off work but did not provide objective findings or a reasoned explanation connecting that period of disability to the accepted injury. The Board affirmed…
C.J. and Department of the Air Force, Headquarters, Robins Air Force Base, GA
Board upholds denial of Air Force worker's stress claim (ECAB 22-0600)
An Air Force employee attributed stress symptoms to performance reviews, leave and promotion decisions, criticism, and alleged harassment. The Board found no proof of employer error or abuse in the personnel actions and no corroboration of the alleged harassment. It held that she had not…
R.B. and Department of the Air Force, Air Combat Command, Nellis Air Force Base, NV
Board upholds denial of Air Force worker's arm condition claim (ECAB 22-0561)
An Air Force program coordinator claimed right arm and hand conditions from repetitive duties. A physician recorded her belief that work caused symptoms without giving a causal opinion; another linked diagnoses to repetition without explaining how. The Board found the medical evidence insufficient…
C.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Meredith, NH
Board rejects added nerve and shoulder conditions in postal claim (ECAB 22-0462)
A postal associate was hit in the face and right arm by a falling box while moving a pallet. She asked OWCP to add right carpal tunnel, cubital tunnel, and rotator cuff conditions to her accepted claim. The Board found that her doctor's reports attributed the conditions to the blow but did not…
T.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Greensboro Network Distribution Center, Greensboro, NC
Board recognizes visible knee injuries but rejects additional sprains (ECAB 21-0977)
A postal mail handler was struck behind both knees by a pallet at work. The Board found that visible abrasions, mild swelling, and contusions were established by the record and directed OWCP to pay related medical expenses and decide any disability. It found that additional knee sprains or strains…
M.B. and Department of the Army, Edgewood Chemical Biological Center, Edgewood, MD
Board rejects Army engineer's offsite lunch injury claim (ECAB 20-1072)
An Army engineer fell at a restaurant before a workplace safety meeting. She said attendance at the restaurant gathering was required for the meeting. The Board found that the lunch was voluntary, off premises, and separate from the mandatory safety meeting held later at work. It affirmed OWCP's…
Furlong-Newberry v. Exotic Metals Forming Company, LLC
Retaliation claim denied, blanket sealing order vacated
Hannah Furlong-Newberry, a senior project manager at an aircraft-parts manufacturer, alleged that the company fired her for reports protected by the Toxic Substances Control Act. The Board upheld the finding that her paint-related report did not motivate the termination and that the company acted…
K.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Oklahoma City, OK
Board sends postal clerk's emotional condition claim back (ECAB 22-1000)
A postal processing clerk attributed an emotional condition to confrontations with a coworker. The Board found that physical contact between the two on May 31, 2019 established a compensable work factor. It found insufficient corroboration for the alleged harassment on February 27, 2020. The Board…
P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Annapolis, MD
Board declines to reopen postal carrier's shoulder claim (ECAB 22-0983)
A postal carrier asked OWCP to reconsider its denial of wage loss benefits for her accepted shoulder condition. She submitted a personal statement, physician assistant reports, and laboratory results. The Board found that these materials did not provide relevant new medical evidence from a…
E.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fenton, MO
Board rejects late requests to revisit postal worker's claim (ECAB 21-0093)
A postal rural carrier sought to reopen older decisions about wage loss following an accepted ankle injury. The Board found that her two 2018 reconsideration requests came more than a year after the relevant merit decisions. Repeated reports and additional tests did not show clear evidence that…
Haskell Addington v. XMV, Inc. and Debra Vaughan
Part 90 discrimination complaint dismissed on undisputed timeline
XMV miner Haskell Addington had complicated pneumoconiosis and later applied for Part 90 status. He alleged that XMV and human resources manager Debra Vaughan discriminated, retaliated, and interfered by cutting his pay and hours, assigning dusty work, withholding information about Part 90…
LG Energy Solution Michigan, Inc.
In re LG Energy Solution Michigan, Inc. (EAB TSCA 22-05C): chemical-import settlement approved
LG Energy Solution Michigan, Inc. voluntarily disclosed potential TSCA noncompliance involving a confidential chemical substance. The company had submitted a low-volume exemption and later a Premanufacture Notice using a CASRN that EPA determined did not identify the imported chemical, and EPA…
The Askins Development Group, LLC
In re The Askins Development Group, LLC (EAB TSCA 22-(03)): EAB declined sua sponte review
The Presiding Officer issued an Initial Decision and Default Order on September 26, 2022. Neither party appealed. The Environmental Appeals Board declined to review the case on its own initiative under 40 C.F.R. §§ 22.27(c)(4) and 22.30(b). The EAB stated that the Initial Decision and Default Order…
A.P. and U.S. Postal Service, River Rouge Station, River Rouge, MI
Board orders new medical review of postal worker's back claim (ECAB 22-1092)
A postal worker sought to add right L5 radiculopathy to her accepted back injury claim. OWCP obtained an impartial examination to resolve conflicting medical opinions. The Board found that the examiner rejected an already accepted permanent aggravation of lumbar disc disease and therefore did not…
S.D. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Salisbury VA Medical Center, Salisbury, NC
Board denies VA worker's ankle injury claim (ECAB 22-1057)
A VA employee claimed a right ankle injury after a May 9, 2022 work incident. The submitted ankle sprain diagnosis and work status note came from providers who were not physicians under FECA. The Board found that she had not established a diagnosed condition causally related to the accepted…
T.P. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility, Bremerton, WA
Board rejects late request to revisit Navy hearing loss claim (ECAB 22-0863)
A Navy worker asked OWCP to reconsider a hearing loss decision more than one year after the last merit decision. His new hearing aid evaluation and brain scan did not address whether workplace noise caused his condition. The Board found that he had not shown clear evidence of error and affirmed the…
M.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Hartford, CT
Board rejects postal worker's injury claim and late review request (ECAB 22-0850)
A postal worker claimed a condition following a January 3, 2022 workplace incident. Her doctor's notes did not address causation, and the other reports lacked a qualified physician's identified opinion. The Board affirmed denial of the medical claim. It also upheld OWCP's refusal of written record…
L.H. and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Arlington, VA
Board rejects FDIC worker's workplace fall claim (ECAB 22-0449)
An FDIC employee lost consciousness and fell at work, injuring her right ankle. The Board found that medical evidence tied the collapse to personal health conditions and medication, making the fall idiopathic. It found insufficient evidence that a workplace object or special condition contributed…
D.A. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, NC
Board denies Navy worker's carpal tunnel claim (ECAB 22-0048)
A Navy employee claimed bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome caused by his work. His doctors diagnosed the condition and wrist osteoarthritis but did not offer an opinion connecting them to the accepted employment factors. The Board affirmed OWCP's denial for lack of medical causation evidence.
V.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Indianapolis, IN
Board rejects postal worker's back claim and reconsideration (ECAB 22-0010)
A postal carrier claimed a low back injury while delivering his route. He did not respond to OWCP's request for a detailed account of the work factors involved. The Board affirmed the denial because the claimed work factors were not sufficiently established. It also upheld OWCP's refusal to…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1738 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 1738 (FLRA 0-AR-5812): Authority upholds emergency shift change
During the COVID-19 emergency, the Fayetteville VA Medical Center moved certain healthcare employees from mixed eight- and twelve-hour schedules to standardized twelve-hour shifts. The arbitrator found that the agency had properly terminated the local agreement that previously defined shifts and…
Marvin Siver, for the Estate of Ruth Siver, v. Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corporation
Siver v. Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical (BRB 21-0426): Death benefits claim dismissed
David Siver's widow, Ruth, filed a Longshore death benefits claim after his death from illnesses that included asbestos related disease. Their son Marvin signed settlements with third parties on behalf of David's estate and heirs while holding Ruth's power of attorney. The settlements were for less…
Marvin Siver on behalf of the Estate of Ruth Siver v. Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corporation and Kaiser Steel Resources, Incorporated
Siver v. Kaiser Aluminum (BRB 21-0426): survivor claim dismissal affirmed
Ruth Siver sought death benefits after her husband David, a former marine electrician, died following alleged workplace asbestos exposure. Her family had also pursued third-party asbestos lawsuits, and her son Marvin signed settlements under a power of attorney that authorized him to act for her…
G.J. and Department of the Navy, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Patuxent River, MD
Board rejects added conditions in Navy worker's fall claim (ECAB 22-1083)
A Navy employee asked OWCP to add neck, elbow, and thigh conditions to an accepted injury claim. One emergency physician described an inaccurate history of falling on a curb while traveling to work and did not explain causation. Other reports gave restrictions or diagnostic results without a causal…
J.A. and Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, Los Angeles, CA
Board denies investigator's fitness test injury claim (ECAB 22-0849)
A Homeland Security investigator claimed shoulder and knee conditions after a work fitness test. His physician suggested subluxations during the test but attributed symptoms to underlying ligament laxity and alignment issues without a reasoned link to a specific diagnosed work injury. The Board…
W.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Oakland, CA
Board upholds $58,146.99 federal benefits overpayment (ECAB 22-0745)
A postal worker received FECA wage loss payments and Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service for overlapping periods. The Board upheld a $58,146.99 overpayment, although she was without fault. Her financial information did not show that recovery would defeat FECA's…
S.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Dallas Processing & Distribution Center, Dallas, TX
Board corrects postal worker's prior arm impairment award (ECAB 22-0032)
A postal worker sought a larger schedule award for impairment of both arms. The Board found no medical evidence supporting more than 23 percent left arm impairment or 22 percent right arm impairment. It also found that OWCP had mistakenly described her prior right arm award as 35 percent. The Board…
C.Y. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Kissimmee, FL
Board upholds denial of postal worker's past physical therapy (ECAB 21-0335)
A postal worker sought authorization for physical therapy from October 12, 2015 through January 12, 2016. His doctors recommended therapy in later years, but the Board found their reports did not adequately address the need for treatment during the claimed period. It held that OWCP did not abuse…
Teddy G. Mullins v. Cumberland River Coal Company
Mullins v. Cumberland River Coal (BRB 22-0060 BLA): Black lung benefits affirmed
Teddy Mullins received black lung benefits after 29.43 years of qualifying coal mine work. Cumberland River Coal disputed whether his respiratory impairment disabled him from his usual job as a heavy equipment and load-out operator, and challenged the start date of benefits. The Board upheld the…
Perry F. Munday v. Warrior Coal, LLC
Munday v. Warrior Coal (BRB 21-0496 BLA): Black lung benefits affirmed
Perry Munday received black lung benefits after 39 years of underground coal mine work. Warrior Coal disputed whether his lung impairment prevented his usual work as a supply man, which included lifting heavy materials. The Board upheld the judge's reliance on a doctor who connected Munday's…
Shirley L. Moore v. Bullion Hollow Enterprises, Incorporated
Moore v. Bullion Hollow Enterprises (BRB 21-0410 and 21-0411 BLA): Carrier liability affirmed
Shirley Moore pursued her late husband's black lung claim and her own survivor claim. The Board had previously affirmed both benefits awards but sent the case back for a new decision about which insurer must pay. On remand, the judge named Old Republic because it insured Bullion Hollow when the…
Shirley L. Moore v. Bullion Hollow Enterprises, Incorporated
Moore v. Bullion Hollow Enterprises (BRB 21-0410 and 21-0411 BLA): Carrier liability affirmed
Shirley Moore pursued her late husband's black lung claim and her own survivor claim. The Board had previously affirmed both benefits awards but sent the case back for a new decision about which insurer must pay. On remand, the judge named Old Republic because it insured Bullion Hollow when the…
Carroll K. Runyon, Jr., for the Estate of Carroll Runyon, v. Island Creek Coal Company
Runyon v. Island Creek Coal (BRB 21-0021 BLA): Black lung benefits affirmed
Carroll Runyon's son continued his late father's black lung claim against Island Creek Coal. The miner had 14 years of coal mine work, so the 15-year statutory presumption did not apply. Following an earlier remand, the judge found that coal dust had contributed to the miner's disabling chronic…
Sharon Vancleve, for Donald R. Vancleve, v. Heritage Coal Company
Vancleve v. Heritage Coal (BRB 20-0387 BLA): Black lung benefits affirmed
Sharon Vancleve continued her late husband's black lung claim against Heritage Coal. The judge credited 20 years of qualifying surface coal mine work and found his respiratory condition prevented his usual heavy work as a dozer operator. The Board upheld that disability finding based on medical…
Shah v. Albert Fried & Company and TD Securities LLC
Oversized reconsideration motion denied with leave to refile
After the Board dismissed Sachin Shah's Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower case, he filed a 150-page reconsideration motion with about 369 pages of exhibits. The Board's briefing order required motions to comply with Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 27(d), which limits computer-produced motions to…
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.