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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B.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Carol Stream Post Office
Board reverses B.P.’s compensation termination after incomplete suitability review (ECAB 21-0614)
B.P., a postal automation clerk, received compensation for accepted hip conditions after years of repetitive work. The Postal Service offered her a modified mail-processing job; OWCP found it suitable and ended her wage-loss compensation and entitlement to a schedule award after she did not take…
T.B. and Department of Energy, Bonneville Power Administration
Board upholds T.B.’s 12 percent left arm schedule award (ECAB 21-0563)
T.B., an electrician for the Bonneville Power Administration, injured his left shoulder when he slipped while leaving a truck at work. OWCP accepted the shoulder injury and awarded a schedule award for 12 percent permanent impairment of his left upper extremity. His physician calculated 13 percent…
L.N. and Department of the Navy, Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling
Board sends L.N.’s request to expand an injury claim back for medical review (ECAB 20-1619)
L.N. injured her head and neck at work in 2012, and OWCP accepted a concussion, cervical sprain, and later postconcussion syndrome. She asked OWCP to accept traumatic brain injury, vertigo, sleep disturbance, and depressive disorder as additional conditions. OWCP denied that request after obtaining…
Chris Mezo, on behalf of Robbie J. Mezo, v. Kerr McGee Coal Corporation/American Coal Company
Mezo v. Kerr McGee Coal (BRB 21-0200 BLA): fee award vacated for missing reasons
After an administrative law judge awarded benefits on Robbie Mezo's claim, claimant's counsel requested $18,720 for work before the judge. The employer did not object. The judge reduced the requested hourly rate from $300 to $275 and awarded only $3,946.25, without identifying the time entries she…
Cathy L. Gamblin, on behalf of and surviving spouse of Darold N. Gamblin, v. Island Creek Kentucky Mining
Gamblin v. Island Creek Kentucky Mining (BRB 21-0022 and 21-0023 BLA): miner and survivor awards affirmed
After an earlier remand, an administrative law judge awarded benefits on Darold Gamblin's miner claim and Cathy Gamblin's survivor claim. Island Creek Kentucky Mining challenged the judge's finding that it had failed to rebut the 15-year presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis. The Board…
Michael H. Clark v. Bresee Trucking Company, Incorporated
Clark v. Bresee Trucking (BRB 21-0020 BLA): black lung benefit award affirmed
An administrative law judge awarded benefits to Michael Clark after finding at least 15 years of underground coal mine work and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. Bresee Trucking challenged the finding of total disability and the judge's separate finding of complicated pneumoconiosis. The…
Tom Horn v. Harnish Group, Incorporated
Horn v. Harnish Group (BRB 21-0004): employer relief issue remanded
Tom Horn worked as a marine mechanic and received compensation after a cumulative back injury. Harnish Group sought Section 8(f) relief, which can limit an employer's continuing liability when a qualifying earlier disability contributes to the current disability. An administrative law judge denied…
Terrill W. Hamlin v. Old Ben Coal Company and St. Paul's Travelers Aetna Casualty & Surety Company
Hamlin v. Old Ben Coal Company (BRB 20-0547 BLA): reconsideration denied
Old Ben Coal Company and its carrier asked the Board to reconsider an earlier decision affirming an administrative law judge's black lung benefits award to Terrill Hamlin. The Director opposed reconsideration, and the claimant did not respond. After reviewing the request, no Board panel member…
Terrill W. Hamlin v. Old Ben Coal Company and St. Paul's Travelers Aetna Casualty & Surety Company
Hamlin v. Old Ben Coal (BRB 20-0547 BLA): black lung benefit award affirmed
An administrative law judge awarded black lung benefits after finding that Terrill Hamlin had legal pneumoconiosis and a totally disabling respiratory impairment caused by the disease. Old Ben Coal and Travelers challenged the judge's authority, Old Ben's liability, the disputed surety bond, and…
Sue Cree, widow of and on behalf of Richard L. Cree, v. Central Cambria Drilling Company
Cree v. Central Cambria Drilling (BRB 20-0536 and 20-0537 BLA): miner award affirmed, survivor order conflicts
Sue Cree pursued Richard Cree's pending miner claim and her own survivor claim after his death. The Board upheld the miner's award because Central Cambria Drilling did not rebut the 15-year presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis. The Board's discussion says Sue Cree met the requirements…
Paul Edward Fields v. Shamrock Coal Company, Incorporated
Fields v. Shamrock Coal (BRB 20-0531 BLA): benefit award on modification affirmed
Paul Fields sought modification after an administrative law judge denied his subsequent black lung claim. A second judge credited him with 15.13 years of underground coal mine work and found a totally disabling respiratory impairment, triggering the 15-year presumption of disability due to…
Noel L. Holcomb v. Cedar Coal Company
Holcomb v. Cedar Coal (BRB 20-0517 BLA): benefit award affirmed without 15-year presumption
An administrative law judge found that Noel Holcomb had 14 years of qualifying coal mine work, short of the 15 years needed for a statutory presumption. The judge nevertheless awarded benefits on his subsequent claim after finding that medical evidence proved pneumoconiosis and a totally disabling…
Donald L. Throgmorton, II v. Webster County Coal Corporation
Throgmorton v. Webster County Coal (BRB 20-0506 and 20-0507 BLA): fee awards remanded
After Donald Throgmorton received black lung benefits, his lawyer sought fees for work before the district director and the administrative law judge. The director awarded $2,402.50 and the judge awarded $8,593.06, both below the requested amounts. Counsel appealed reductions to hourly rates and the…
Barbara Shepherd, on behalf of and widow of Damon G. Derossett, v. National Mines Corporation and Old Republic Insurance Company
Shepherd v. National Mines Corporation (BRB 20-0495 and 20-0498 BLA): reconsideration denied
Barbara Shepherd pursued black lung benefits on behalf of and as the widow of Damon Derossett. The Board had previously affirmed an administrative law judge's benefits award in the consolidated claims. National Mines Corporation and its carrier asked the Board to reconsider that decision. After…
Barbara Shepherd, on behalf of and widow of Damon G. Derossett, v. National Mines Corporation and Old Republic Insurance Company
Shepherd v. National Mines Corporation (BRB 20-0495 and 20-0498 BLA): reconsideration denied
Barbara Shepherd pursued black lung benefits on behalf of and as the widow of Damon Derossett. The Board had previously affirmed an administrative law judge's benefits award in the consolidated claims. National Mines Corporation and its carrier asked the Board to reconsider that decision. After…
Barbara Shepherd, on behalf of and widow of Damon G. Derossett, v. National Mines Corporation
Shepherd v. National Mines (BRB 20-0495 and 20-0498 BLA): miner and survivor awards affirmed
An administrative law judge awarded benefits on Damon Derossett's later miner claim after finding at least 18 years of qualifying mine work and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. That evidence triggered the 15-year presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis. National Mines challenged…
William A. Sutton v. Warrior Coal, Limited Liability Company
Sutton v. Warrior Coal (BRB 20-0492 BLA): paralegal fees returned for review
After William Sutton won black lung benefits, his lawyer sought $18,899.23 in fees and expenses for work before an administrative law judge. The judge awarded $16,949.23, reducing paralegal rates and disallowing some billed time. The Board found that the judge had overlooked evidence supporting the…
Marvin Thacker v. Husky Coal Company, Incorporated
Thacker v. Husky Coal (BRB 20-0482 BLA): benefit award affirmed after reconsideration
An administrative law judge found that Marvin Thacker had more than 15 years of underground coal mine work and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. Husky Coal argued that his work as a mine superintendent was largely administrative and that the judge had overstated its physical demands. The…
Cheryl A. Light, widow of Mark A. Light, v. Powell Mountain Coal Company, Incorporated
Light v. Powell Mountain Coal (BRB 20-0465 BLA): survivor benefit denial affirmed
Cheryl Light sought survivor benefits after her husband Mark Light died. The administrative law judge found that he had simple coal workers' pneumoconiosis but that the evidence did not show the disease caused or hastened his death. He had 11.6 years of coal mine work, so the 15-year presumption…
Mary E. Gilliam, widow of and on behalf of Paul Gilliam, v. Reedy Coal Company, Incorporated
Gilliam v. Reedy Coal (BRB 20-0438 and 20-0439 BLA): miner and survivor awards affirmed
An administrative law judge awarded benefits after finding Paul Gilliam had at least 21 years of underground coal mine work and was totally disabled by a respiratory impairment at death. Those findings invoked the 15-year presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis. Reedy Coal challenged the…
Clara S. Toler, survivor of Arvis R. Toler, v. Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs
Toler v. Director, OWCP (BRB 20-0320 BLA): November 1998 benefit start date affirmed
Clara Toler pursued her late husband's successful black lung claim and sought an earlier benefit start date. An administrative law judge granted modification and set the date at November 1998, just after the earlier claim denial became final. The Black Lung Disability Trust Fund, which was liable…
Nilia Fauber, on behalf of and widow of James H. Fauber, v. Eastern Associated Coal Company
Fauber v. Eastern Associated Coal (BRB 20-0165 and 20-0166 BLA): reconsideration denied
Eastern Associated Coal and its carrier asked the Board to reconsider its May 2021 decision in James and Nilia Fauber's black lung claims. The reconsideration order does not describe what the May 2021 order decided. Neither the claimant nor the Director opposed the motion. No member of the Board…
C.R. and Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review
Board upholds denial of C.R.’s increased wrist schedule award (ECAB 21-1084)
C.R., a legal clerk and technician, had accepted work-related conditions affecting both wrists and hands and sought an increased schedule award. OWCP denied the request because it found she had not reached maximum medical improvement, the point at which a permanent impairment rating can be made. A…
F.K. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration
Board orders merit review of F.K.’s stress injury claim (ECAB 21-0998)
F.K., an air traffic controller, reported stress and anxiety after witnessing two aircraft nearly collide at work. OWCP had denied her claim and later refused to reopen it on reconsideration. With her reconsideration request, F.K. supplied an amended psychologist’s report linking a diagnosed acute…
Quick Roofing LLC
Late contest dismissed and citation affirmed
OSHA issued Quick Roofing one citation containing two serious items and proposed penalties totaling $4,681. The citation was delivered by certified mail to the business address provided during the inspection, but the company filed its notice of contest 83 days late. Quick Roofing argued that it had…
B.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Medical Center
Board upholds denial of B.W.’s shoulder injury claim (ECAB 21-0709)
B.W., a nurse at a VA medical center, reported right shoulder pain after pulling a sheet while changing a patient. OWCP accepted that the work incident occurred but denied her claim because the medical evidence did not show that it caused or aggravated a diagnosed shoulder condition. The Board…
M.O. and U.S. Postal Service, Edgemoor Post Office
Board upholds refusal to reopen M.O.’s shoulder claim (ECAB 21-0459)
M.O., a postal clerk, fell over a box at work and sustained a left hip contusion that OWCP accepted. She sought to add left shoulder conditions to the claim, but OWCP denied that request. When asking OWCP to reconsider, she resubmitted a physician’s report and repeated an earlier argument that the…
A.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center
Board orders more medical review of A.G.’s left knee claim (ECAB 21-0315)
A.G., a postal maintenance mechanic, sought to add left knee osteoarthritis to his accepted compensation claim. OWCP had accepted a permanent aggravation of his right knee osteoarthritis but denied the left knee condition based on an impartial medical examiner’s report. The Board found that the…
Knock Out Homes Incorporated
Default set aside for Rule 60 hearing
Knock Out Homes timely contested three citations but did not file an answer or respond to a show-cause order and default motion, so the judge entered default and dismissed the contest. Two weeks after that decision became final, the self-represented company submitted a letter describing…
W.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Board upholds limits on W.N.’s accepted injury claim (ECAB 21-0123)
W.N., a postal letter carrier, was injured in a motor vehicle accident while working. OWCP accepted several shoulder and knee conditions but declined to add the claimed right radial tunnel syndrome and cervical spine conditions. After her treating physician and OWCP’s referral physician disagreed…
C.P. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection
Board dismisses C.P.’s late appeal (ECAB 22-0291)
C.P. sought Board review of an OWCP decision issued April 21, 2020. The 180-day period for an appeal ended October 18, 2020, but C.P. filed on December 8, 2021. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances to excuse the late filing. It dismissed the appeal without reaching the underlying…
D.K. and Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service
Board dismisses D.K.’s late appeal (ECAB 22-0285)
D.K. sought Board review of an OWCP decision issued February 16, 2021. The 180-day period for an appeal ended August 15, 2021, but D.K. filed on December 15, 2021. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances to excuse the late filing. It dismissed the appeal without reaching the…
A.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Bakersfield Post Office
Board dismisses A.S.’s late appeal (ECAB 22-0255)
A.S. sought Board review of an OWCP decision issued January 8, 2021. The 180-day period for an appeal ended July 7, 2021, but A.S. filed on December 1, 2021. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances to excuse the late filing. It dismissed the appeal without reaching the underlying…
R.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Medical Center
Board dismisses R.R.’s late appeal (ECAB 22-0230)
R.R. sought Board review of an OWCP decision issued April 13, 2021. The 180-day period for an appeal ended October 10, 2021, but R.R. filed on November 24, 2021. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances to excuse the late filing. It dismissed the appeal without reaching the underlying…
B.R. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration
Board upholds denial of B.R.’s shoulder claim (ECAB 21-1109)
B.R., a transportation security specialist, reported hurting his left shoulder while clearing lodged baggage at work in September 2018. He later sought compensation after his shoulder pain worsened and an MRI showed tendon damage. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but found that the medical…
N.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Board confirms N.A.’s work incident and remands injury claim (ECAB 21-0773)
N.A., a postal employee, said she tripped over straps after leaving a work vehicle and injured both knees and her left hand. OWCP denied the claim because it found the account of the incident insufficient. The Board found her account consistent with the employer’s injury form, its same-day…
J.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Board upholds denial of J.L.’s wrist injury claim (ECAB 21-0719)
J.L., a rural postal carrier, reported feeling a snap in her right wrist while turning the steering wheel of her delivery vehicle. OWCP accepted that the December 2019 work incident occurred but denied her claim because the medical evidence did not identify a diagnosed wrist condition caused by it…
W.G. and Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Engraving & Printing
Board orders independent rating for W.G.’s leg impairment (ECAB 21-0675)
W.G., an electrician, had received a schedule award for 13 percent impairment of his left leg and 4 percent of his right leg after an accepted fall from a ladder. He later sought an additional award, supported by a physician’s higher impairment ratings. OWCP’s district medical adviser found no…
S.E. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Board upholds denial of S.E.’s ankle injury claim (ECAB 21-0666)
S.E., a postal distributor, reported hurting her right ankle while cleaning an area for maintenance at work. OWCP accepted that the August 2020 incident occurred but denied her injury claim. A podiatric surgeon’s report mentioned an ankle injury but diagnosed only foot pain, which the Board treated…
C.W. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Air Marshal Service
Board upholds denial of C.W.’s additional knee and back conditions (ECAB 21-0017)
C.W., a federal air marshal, injured his left knee while kneeling at a work firing range. OWCP accepted left knee conditions and later paid benefits, but he sought to add right knee osteoarthritis and lumbar degenerative disease as consequences of the accepted injury. His treating physician and an…
M.M. and Department of the Air Force, Tinker Air Force Base
Board upholds refusal to reopen M.M.’s joint disease claim (ECAB 21-1125)
M.M., a former Air Force patternmaker and sheet metal worker, claimed that decades of manual work contributed to arthritis and other joint conditions. OWCP denied the claim, and he later asked it to reconsider. He repeated his account of demanding work and referred to a surgeon’s supporting…
D.B. and Department of the Air Force, Barksdale Air Force Base
Board returns D.B.’s shoulder claim for review of medical records (ECAB 21-0984)
D.B., an Air Force housing management specialist, reported injuring his shoulder and clavicle while loading a bookcase into a vehicle at work. OWCP denied his claim on the ground that he had not supplied a physician’s diagnosis. The record, however, included two reports from an occupational…
M.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Palm Bay West Post Office
Board orders explanation of M.G.’s reconsideration denial (ECAB 21-0893)
M.G., a rural postal carrier, sought compensation for neck, back, and shoulder conditions after a motor vehicle accident while working. OWCP denied the injury claim, and her representative asked it to reconsider more than one year after the merit decision. The Board agreed that the request was…
S.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center
Board upholds refusal to reopen S.A.’s shoulder injury claim (ECAB 21-0813)
S.A., a postal mail processing clerk, reported a left shoulder injury after lifting a heavy sack at work. OWCP denied her claim because the medical evidence did not establish that the work incident caused a diagnosed condition. She requested reconsideration and submitted medical records and…
A.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Newark
Board upholds denial of A.A.’s fall injury claim (ECAB 21-0802)
A.A., a postal carrier, slipped on ice while delivering a package and reported injuries to her ankle, head, and left side. OWCP accepted that the fall occurred but denied compensation because it found the medical evidence insufficient to connect a diagnosed condition to the incident. The Board…
M.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center
Board upholds M.W.’s injury denial and abandoned hearing finding (ECAB 21-0793)
M.W., a VA electrician, reported right shoulder pain after lifting a roll of cable at work. OWCP accepted the incident but denied his injury claim, and he later missed a scheduled telephone hearing. The Board found that his physician assessed shoulder pain, which was a symptom rather than a medical…
M.T. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Jesse Brown VA Medical Center
Board upholds denial of M.T.’s wage loss claim (ECAB 21-0783)
M.T., a VA housekeeping supervisor, had an accepted right ankle sprain and had returned to modified work after an earlier period of wage loss. She sought wage loss compensation for June 29 through August 14, 2020. The Board found that doctors’ work excuse notes did not explain that the accepted…
C.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Brookline Post Office
Board upholds C.H.’s 31 percent right leg impairment award (ECAB 20-0831)
C.H., a postal letter carrier, received a schedule award for 31 percent permanent impairment of his right lower extremity after a work related hip condition and replacement surgery. His treating surgeon had estimated 37 percent, while another physician estimated 31 percent. OWCP sent the…
D.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Silver Spring
Board orders review of D.B.’s second reconsideration issue (ECAB 21-0713)
D.B., a postal letter carrier with an accepted right ankle injury, sought wage loss compensation for several periods. Her reconsideration request challenged an OWCP denial covering December 28, 2018 and also described a claim for disability later in 2019. The Board agreed that reconsideration of…
A.C. and U.S. Government
Board dismisses A.C.’s appeal without an identified OWCP decision (ECAB 21-0385)
A.C. filed an appeal from a purported OWCP decision. The Board explained that it may review final adverse OWCP decisions, and its rules require an appeal to include the OWCP case file number and decision date. A.C. did not provide a valid case file number, leaving the Board without an identified…
R.C. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection
Board orders review of R.C.’s wage loss before a light duty offer (ECAB 20-0269)
R.C., a border patrol agent with accepted knee, shoulder, and elbow injuries, claimed wage loss for February 14 through 28, 2019. His employer offered a temporary light duty assignment starting February 22, but he declined it because he said pain medication made dispatch work unsafe. The Board…
F.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Detroit
Board returns F.D.’s finger sprain claim for causation review (ECAB 21-1045)
F.D., a postal carrier, fell on ice at work and reported hurting her right index finger. OWCP denied the claim because it said the medical evidence did not establish a diagnosis beyond pain or an unspecified finger injury. The Board found that an orthopedic hand surgeon had diagnosed a right index…
S.L. and Department of the Air Force, Air Force Materiel Command, Robins Air Force Base
Board upholds recovery of S.L.’s duplicate schedule award payment (ECAB 21-0902)
S.L., an Air Force production management specialist, had a schedule award for 11 percent permanent impairment of her left arm. After paying the final portion of that award, OWCP sent another $3,990.02 payment covering an overlapping period. The Board confirmed the award had ended on March 12, 2021…
M.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, NY Harbor Healthcare System
Board upholds denial of M.H.’s rib injury claim (ECAB 21-0891)
M.H., a VA nurse, reported hurting her left ribs when a chair moved at work. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied the injury claim for lack of medical evidence connecting it to a rib condition. The Board found that an x-ray alone gave no causation opinion, a doctor’s checked work…
K.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Cleveland Post Office
Board finds K.P.’s stair incident occurred and returns injury claim (ECAB 21-0828)
K.P., a postal city carrier assistant, said she twisted her left ankle while descending steps on her route. OWCP denied her claim after her supervisor questioned the timing and circumstances of the report. The Board found K.P.’s account consistent with her claim form, later explanation, prompt…
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Deltona Post Office
Board upholds refusal to reopen C.C.’s disability claim (ECAB 21-0820)
C.C., a postal letter carrier, had an accepted neck sprain after a vehicle collision and later sought compensation for disability beginning in January 2018. OWCP denied that disability claim, and he asked it to reconsider. His new physician report described cervical surgery and current findings but…
J.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Hudson
Board upholds denial of J.P.’s schedule award claim (ECAB 21-0801)
J.P., a postal letter carrier, had accepted injuries from a work vehicle accident and later applied for a schedule award. OWCP asked her to supply a physician’s permanent impairment evaluation using the applicable edition of the impairment guides, but she provided no medical evidence supporting a…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Pekin Post Office
Board reverses termination of D.C.’s wage loss and medical benefits (ECAB 21-0780)
D.C., a postal distribution clerk, had an accepted back injury that included permanent aggravation of a degenerative disc condition. OWCP later ended her wage loss and medical benefits based on a second opinion physician’s report. That physician treated the disc aggravation as temporary or doubtful…
T.H. and Department of the Army, Arkansas National Guard, Camp Robinson
Board orders clarification of T.H.’s leg condition evaluation (ECAB 21-0207)
T.H., an Army National Guard painter, had accepted lumbar conditions after lifting sandbags and later asked OWCP to add right leg conditions. His treating surgeon and an OWCP examiner disagreed, so OWCP obtained an impartial orthopedic examination and denied expansion of the claim. The Board found…
Christopher T. Cohenour v. Maxxim Shared Services, LLC
Cohenour v. Maxxim Shared Services (BRB 21-0045 BLA): disability finding remanded
An administrative law judge awarded black lung benefits after finding Christopher Cohenour had 25 years of underground coal mine work and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. Maxxim Shared Services challenged the disability finding. The Board upheld the judge's decision to treat three…
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.