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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J.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Brooklyn Processing & Distribution Center, Brooklyn, NY
Board upholds refusal to add shoulder tears to accepted claim (ECAB 20-1162)
The Board affirmed OWCP’s refusal to expand J.L.’s accepted postal workplace injury to include right shoulder SLAP and labral tears. J.L.’s doctors diagnosed shoulder conditions, but their opinions did not explain how the accepted July 2017 incident caused the tears. Diagnostic studies alone did…
Premier Roofing LLC, d/b/a Premier Roofing Co.
Roofing violations affirmed on summary judgment
Premier Roofing served as the general contractor for residential roofing work at the Summerfield Villas in Colorado. An OSHA compliance officer observed about 20 subcontractor employees working on roofs more than six feet above the ground without fall protection, and Premier's own employees also…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, John J. Pershing VA Medical Center, Poplar Bluff, Missouri and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2338
Pershing VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 2338 (FLRA 0-AR-5644): Authority leaves selection grievance for hearing
AFGE Local 2338 filed two grievances concerning an employee's non-selection for a voluntary-services position. Before the merits hearing, the parties asked the arbitrator to determine which grievance was before him, and he selected the earlier grievance. The VA filed an immediate exception, arguing…
A.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Killeen Post Office, Killeen, TX
Board upholds suspension after missed medical examination (ECAB 21-0688)
OWCP scheduled A.H. for a second opinion examination about continuing disability, treatment, and work capacity. She did not attend and did not show good cause within the notice period, although she expressed concern that the examination might affect her benefits. The Board held that OWCP properly…
R.D. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection, John F. Kennedy International Airport, Jamaica, NY
Board declines to add orthopedic conditions to accepted claim (ECAB 21-0507)
R.D. sought to expand an accepted injury claim to include additional back, knee, ankle, foot, and Achilles conditions after a workplace fall. OWCP had already accepted several sprains and strains. The Board found that the remaining medical reports either offered no causal opinion or gave a…
L.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Chicago, IL
Board sends neck injury claim back for medical review (ECAB 21-0155)
L.T. reported that a postal container door struck her head at work. Her physician diagnosed cervical disc protrusions with radiculopathy and distinguished that condition from injuries in an earlier claim. OWCP denied the claim without reviewing whether the diagnosed condition was caused by the…
R.G. and Department of Agriculture, APHIS Plant Protection & Quarantine Service, Tampa, FL
Board orders merits review of lumbar injury claim (ECAB 21-0120)
R.G. sought reconsideration of a denied lumbar injury claim. A new report from Dr. Allen explained a proposed mechanism connecting his lumbar disc condition to climbing into a work vehicle. The Board held that the report was new and relevant evidence sufficient to reopen the claim. It set aside…
C.M. and Department of the Navy, Naval Installations Command, San Diego, CA
Board orders opinion on shoulder injury following elbow injury (ECAB 20-1384)
C.M. sought to add a right shoulder condition to an accepted right elbow injury claim. His physician said he overused his shoulder to protect the injured elbow. OWCP’s second opinion addressed whether the original accident directly injured the shoulder, but did not address whether the elbow injury…
M.A. and Department of the Navy, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Honolulu, HI
Board orders combined review of knee injury files (ECAB 20-0632)
M.A. asked OWCP to reconsider its denial of a right knee injury claim. She described a new right knee injury and greater use of that leg after accepted injuries involving both knees. OWCP rejected her reconsideration request, but the Board lacked the earlier claim files needed to evaluate the…
R.T. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Weslaco, TX
Board accepts tick bite but rejects additional conditions (ECAB 21-0831)
R.T., a border patrol agent, reported a tick bite at work and sought compensation for resulting conditions. The Board found that a visible tick bite on his right wrist was established by the record and could be accepted without a detailed medical report. It found the evidence insufficient to…
M.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Ludlam Branch, Miami, FL
Board reverses termination of postal worker’s knee benefits (ECAB 21-0111)
OWCP terminated M.G.’s wage-loss compensation and medical benefits for a right knee injury. The Board found that OWCP’s physician had not accounted for her accepted left knee injury, so his opinion did not create a true conflict with her treating doctor’s opinion. A physician later labeled…
C.M. and Department of the Army, Installation Management Command, Fort Carson, CO
Board upholds termination after accepted injuries resolve (ECAB 20-1647)
OWCP ended C.M.’s wage-loss compensation and medical benefits after finding that her accepted conditions no longer caused disability or residuals. The Board gave special weight to an impartial specialist’s reasoned opinion resolving a conflict between two physicians. He attributed her remaining…
K.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fort Worth, TX
Board orders new suitability review after hip claim expands (ECAB 19-1917)
K.P.’s benefits had been terminated after he refused a job offer, and an earlier Board decision upheld that action. OWCP later accepted an additional work-related aggravation of bilateral hip osteoarthritis. A new medical report questioned whether the offered position fit his restrictions in light…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Fayetteville Carrier Annex Post Office, Fayetteville, GA
Board reverses benefits termination after worker left modified job (ECAB 19-1297)
OWCP terminated D.C.’s wage-loss compensation and schedule award entitlement after she accepted a modified postal position, returned to work, and later stopped. The offered modified rural carrier role still required duties and movements her examining physician had barred. The Board held that OWCP…
Administrator, Wage and Hour Div., USDOL v. Frank's Nursery LLC
Administrator, Wage and Hour Division v. Frank's Nursery LLC (DOL ARB 2020-0015 and 2020-0016): H-2A reconsideration denied
The Board previously found that Frank's Nursery failed to disclose a drug-screen policy, omitted its federal employer identification number from pay statements, failed to meet worker-housing standards, and made impermissible Social Security and Medicare deductions. Frank's Nursery sought…
J.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Tracy Post Office, Tracy, CA
Board orders oral hearing after missing mailing proof (ECAB 21-0452)
J.F. requested an oral hearing about an OWCP decision. OWCP rejected the request as late, but the record lacked a postmark or other proof of its mailing date. The Board deemed the hearing request timely in the absence of that evidence. It reversed OWCP’s denial and ordered a hearing, leaving…
D.V. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital, Hines, IL
Board orders second opinion on renewed knee disability (ECAB 21-0383)
D.V. claimed a recurrence of total disability from an accepted knee injury. His doctors linked continuing work limits and later quadriceps reconstruction to the accepted condition, although their reports did not fully prove his claim. The Board found that the reports raised an uncontradicted…
T.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cheyenne, WY
Board orders fresh shoulder impairment comparison (ECAB 20-1547)
T.W. sought an additional schedule award for right shoulder impairment. OWCP compared a current 19 percent right arm rating with an earlier 23 percent award and denied additional benefits. The Board held that a lower current percentage does not alone establish that the new impairment duplicates the…
C.S. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Secret Service, Washington, DC
Board reverses unsuitable work penalty after incomplete medical history (ECAB 20-1475)
OWCP terminated C.S.’s wage-loss and schedule award benefits after he declined an offered security specialist job. The Board found that OWCP’s statement of accepted facts omitted several diagnosed conditions when it sought a medical opinion on his work capacity. Because suitability requires…
L.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Newark, NJ
Board upholds termination but reopens later disability question (ECAB 20-1204)
The Board upheld OWCP’s initial termination of L.S.’s wage-loss compensation and medical benefits effective August 6, 2019. A second opinion supported that her accepted conditions had resolved at that time. On a later claim for continuing disability, however, the physician selected to resolve a…
A.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Mount Pleasant Post Office, Mount Pleasant, SC
Board orders combined review of right hip claims (ECAB 20-0904)
A.J. sought disability compensation after a right hip injury at work. She later filed another claim involving the same hip. OWCP decided the current claim without combining the related claim files. The Board set aside OWCP’s decision and ordered the files combined so the disability question could…
E.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Morgan Processing & Distribution Center, New York, NY
Board orders causation review of diagnosed wrist fracture (ECAB 20-0563)
E.F. reported a fall at work and claimed a right wrist injury. OWCP accepted the incident but denied the injury claim. The Board found that a medical note and discharge instructions together established a diagnosed right wrist fracture. It set aside OWCP’s denial and remanded for a decision on…
L.O. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Fayetteville VA Medical Center, Fayetteville, AR
Board orders medical review after patient pulls nurse upright (ECAB 20-0280)
L.O., a VA nurse, said a patient pulled her up from a crouch and she immediately felt back pain. OWCP found that she had not proved the workplace incident. The Board accepted her consistent account, supported by coworker statements and the employer’s acknowledgment that she was on duty. It set…
Bankruptcy Estate of Donald M. Graff v. BNSF Railway Co.
FRSA complaint denial affirmed
Donald Graff, a BNSF foreman, made workplace safety reports and was later suspended and terminated after an investigation into battery-plant tampering and insubordination. The ALJ found that Graff engaged in protected activity and suffered adverse actions but did not prove that the protected…
Childs v. DimensionalMechanics, Inc.
H-1B decision and damages affirmed
Russell Childs alleged multiple H-1B violations during and after his three months as a software development engineer for DimensionalMechanics. The ALJ found an unauthorized wage deduction and unequal 401(k) treatment, awarded $1,359.12, and rejected Childs's other claims. The Board affirmed the…
N.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Trenton Processing & Distribution Center, Trenton, NJ
Board orders clarification of lung impairment opinion (ECAB 21-0653)
N.W. sought a schedule award for permanent lung impairment after an accepted anthrax inhalation injury. OWCP’s second opinion physician gave inconsistent explanations for her restrictive lung disease, attributing it at different points to scoliosis alone and to scoliosis plus anthrax. The Board…
T.J. and U.S. Postal Service, North Metro Facility, Duluth, GA
Board requires reasons for late reconsideration denial (ECAB 21-0586)
T.J. requested reconsideration more than a year after OWCP’s last merits decision. The Board agreed that the request was untimely. OWCP, however, had rejected it without explaining whether her new evidence showed clear error in the prior denial. The Board affirmed the timeliness ruling, set aside…
J.D. and Department of Labor, Mine Safety & Health Administration, Anchorage, AK
Board upholds end of knee injury benefits (ECAB 21-0289)
OWCP terminated J.D.’s wage-loss compensation and medical benefits after finding that an accepted knee injury no longer caused disability or residuals. The Board credited a reasoned second opinion that reviewed his medical history and current condition. It held that OWCP met its burden to terminate…
E.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Ybor Processing & Distribution Center, Tampa, FL
Board orders related shoulder claim files combined (ECAB 21-0259)
E.R. sought reconsideration after OWCP denied a postal workplace injury claim. She also had an earlier accepted claim involving her shoulders. The Board found that the current and earlier files should be combined because proper review depended on their shared medical history. It set aside OWCP’s…
C.Y. and Social Security Administration, Atlanta Region, Atlanta, GA
Board requires reasons for emotional condition denial (ECAB 21-0179)
C.Y. claimed anxiety from public-facing Social Security work and her dealings with management. OWCP denied the claim without adequately addressing the employment factors she identified. The Board held that OWCP had not supplied findings and reasons sufficient to explain the denial. It set aside the…
C.S. and U.S. Postal Service, East Chicago Post Office, East Chicago, IN
Board dismisses appeal docketed by mistake (ECAB 21-0032)
The Clerk assigned an appeal docket number even though no person adversely affected by a final OWCP decision, or an authorized representative, had applied for review. The Board found that there was no valid appeal before it. It dismissed the inadvertently opened docket without reaching any…
J.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Aiken, SC
Board upholds overpayment recovery from postal worker (ECAB 21-0010)
J.T. received FECA wage-loss compensation while also receiving Social Security retirement benefits without the required offset. The Board upheld OWCP’s $6,525.40 overpayment finding and found that she was without fault. It nonetheless upheld denial of waiver and recovery through $200 deductions…
C.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Dayton Processing & Distribution Center, Dayton, OH
Board reverses unsupported overpayment finding (ECAB 20-1137)
OWCP found that C.B. had received a $7,096.35 overpayment by drawing both FECA compensation and federal retirement benefits for the same period. The record showed FECA payments and a later retirement election, but did not establish that she actually received retirement payments for those dates. The…
B.M., claiming as widow of H.M., and Department of the Navy, Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, MD
Board orders impartial opinion on worker’s death (ECAB 20-0741)
B.M. sought survivor benefits after her husband died, arguing that his accepted workplace heart attack contributed to his death. His treating physicians connected later heart failure to that attack, while OWCP’s medical adviser disagreed. The Board found a medical conflict on whether the death was…
C.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, John J. Pershing VA Medical Center, Poplar Bluff, MO
Board rejects claim after cardiac arrest at work (ECAB 20-0058)
C.G. suffered cardiac arrest and fell while on duty at a VA medical center. She attributed her condition to workplace stress, but neither she nor her physician identified a specific work factor that caused or contributed to it. The Board held that being at work when the event occurred did not…
United States Department of Labor, Office of Workers' Compensation and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2513, National Council of Field Labor Locals
DOL Workers' Compensation and AFGE Local 2513 (FLRA 0-AR-5654): Authority remands supplemental fee request
An arbitrator reduced a DOL employee's ten-day suspension to a written reprimand and later awarded the union seventy-five percent of its requested attorney fees. The Authority upheld the initial fee award because the arbitrator explained why the agency should have known the suspension was excessive…
Wulf Cattle Depot
In re Wulf Cattle Depot (EAB NPDES Appeal 21-01): appeal dismissed as moot
Wulf Cattle Depot appealed an NPDES permit for its concentrated animal feeding operation in South Dakota. EPA Region 8 later withdrew the entire permit while the parties and the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe pursued discussions and dispute resolution. The Region said it would use mediation results to…
Jackie Hatfield v. Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs
Hatfield v. Director, OWCP (BRB 21-0106 BLA): claim returned for complete medical evaluation
Jackie Hatfield sought black lung benefits after working at least seventeen years in underground coal mining. The administrative law judge denied the claim because the medical evidence did not establish total respiratory disability. The Board upheld the judge's finding that the examining doctor's…
James David Hill, Jr. v. Island Creek Coal Company
Hill v. Island Creek Coal (BRB 21-0030 and 21-0031 BLA): benefit denials remanded for disability findings
James David Hill, Jr. pursued his late father's miner claim and his late mother's survivor claim on behalf of their estates. The administrative law judge denied both claims after finding that the miner was not totally disabled by a respiratory or pulmonary impairment. The Board held that the judge…
James E. Patterson v. Consolidation Coal Company
Patterson v. Consolidation Coal (BRB 20-0383 BLA): denial of benefit modification affirmed
James Patterson received black lung benefits after an administrative law judge found that thirty years of underground coal mine work and total respiratory disability invoked the statutory presumption that his disability was due to pneumoconiosis. Consolidation Coal sought to modify the award…
Kermit F. Bentley v. Kentucky Elkhorn Coal Incorporated and American Business & Mercantile Insurance, Incorporated
Bentley v. Kentucky Elkhorn Coal (BRB 19-0252R BLA): reconsideration denied
Kentucky Elkhorn Coal and its insurer asked the full Benefits Review Board to reconsider a July 2020 decision affirming black lung benefits for Kermit Bentley. Bentley and the Director of the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs supported the earlier decision. After reviewing the employer's…
Jerome H. DeMoss v. Island Creek Coal Company
DeMoss v. Island Creek Coal (BRB 19-0107R BLA): benefit award affirmed on reconsideration
Island Creek Coal asked the Benefits Review Board to reconsider its earlier affirmance of black lung benefits for Jerome DeMoss. The employer challenged the findings that his chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was legal pneumoconiosis and caused his total respiratory disability. The Board…
Feldman v. Risk Placement Services, Inc.
SOX complaint dismissal affirmed
Michael Feldman owned an insurance brokerage that sold policies through Risk Placement Services. He alleged that RPS ended the brokerage's contract because he complained that RPS steered customers it perceived as members of ethnic groups toward more expensive insurance. The ALJ granted summary…
A.S. and Social Security Administration, Detroit, MI
Board dismisses late appeal from OWCP decision (ECAB 21-1305)
The Board received the appeal on August 24, 2021, more than 180 days after the March 12, 2010 OWCP decision. Its rules limit review of final adverse OWCP decisions to appeals filed within that period. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances to excuse the delay. It dismissed the…
C.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Naples, FL
Board dismisses late appeal from OWCP decision (ECAB 21-1302)
The Board received the appeal on August 24, 2021, more than 180 days after the January 22, 2021 OWCP decision. Its rules limit review of final adverse OWCP decisions to appeals filed within that period. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances to excuse the delay. It dismissed the…
B.C. and Department of the Army, U.S. Military Academy, West Point, NY
Board dismisses late appeal from OWCP decision (ECAB 21-1246)
The Board received the appeal on August 16, 2021, more than 180 days after the January 28, 2021 OWCP decision. Its rules limit review of final adverse OWCP decisions to appeals filed within that period. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances to excuse the delay. It dismissed the…
C.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Mariana Post Office, Mariana, AR
Board dismisses late appeal from OWCP decision (ECAB 21-1223)
The Board received the appeal on August 10, 2021, more than 180 days after the August 13, 2020 OWCP decision. Its rules limit review of final adverse OWCP decisions to appeals filed within that period. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances to excuse the delay. It dismissed the…
T.H. and Social Security Administration, Baltimore, MD
Board orders proper review of quick disability recurrence (ECAB 21-0751)
T.H. stopped work again less than 90 days after returning from an accepted injury. OWCP treated her recurrence claim as though it arose after a longer return-to-work period and asked for evidence of a change in medical condition. The Board held that the shorter-period rule instead focuses on her…
O.K. and Department of the Air Force, Air National Guard, Honolulu, HI
Board upholds rejection of late disability reconsideration (ECAB 21-0708)
O.K. sought reconsideration of a denied disability claim more than one year after the last merits decision. The evidence he submitted did not demonstrate clear error in that decision. The Board held that OWCP properly applied the late-request standard. It affirmed the refusal to reconsider.
C.R. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Logistics Base, Barstow, CA
Board upholds suspension and late hearing denial (ECAB 21-0672)
OWCP suspended C.R.’s wage-loss compensation because he did not complete a requested Form CA-1032. It also denied his request for a prerecoupment hearing after the 30-day period expired. The Board found both actions proper on the record. It affirmed the suspension and the hearing denial.
D.M. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Fort Loudoun Dam Hydro Plant, Lenoir City, TN
Board requires clear-error findings on late hearing loss request (ECAB 21-0261)
D.M. sought reconsideration of a hearing loss claim more than a year after OWCP’s merits decision. The Board agreed that his request was untimely. OWCP had not adequately explained whether his submitted evidence demonstrated clear error in the earlier decision. The Board affirmed the timeliness…
D.K. and Department of Homeland Security, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Philadelphia, PA
Board rejects eye claim without causal medical opinion (ECAB 21-0214)
D.K. developed a left eye hemorrhage while traveling for work. His physicians diagnosed eye conditions but did not explain how the accepted work incident caused them. The Board held that neither physician offered an opinion on whether the accepted work incident caused the diagnosed eye conditions…
G.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chelsea, MA
Board orders clarification of hip arthritis opinion (ECAB 21-0170)
G.T. claimed left hip osteoarthritis from his postal work. OWCP’s second opinion physician said workplace wear and tear contributed to arthritis but also concluded that the work had no causal role. The Board found that explanation contradictory and inadequate to resolve the claim. It set aside…
D.D. and Department of Homeland Security, Immigration & Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, El Centro, CA
Board confirms overpayment but questions its amount (ECAB 20-1172)
D.D. received wage-loss compensation after returning to work. The Board agreed that this created an overpayment because he had earnings during the paid period. The record did not establish the exact return-to-work date needed to calculate the amount. The Board affirmed the existence of an…
Secretary of Labor v. United Taconite, LLC
Four late-contested citations reopened
United Taconite's proposed assessment became final after an employee failed to deliver it to the safety director before the 30-day contest deadline. The company mailed a contest for four citations two days after the deadline, and the Secretary did not oppose reopening or allege bad faith. The…
L.D. and U.S. Postal Service, General Mail Facility, Cleveland, OH
Board confirms overpayment but remands amount (ECAB 21-0447)
L.D. received FECA wage-loss compensation while also receiving Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service. The Board held that this created an overpayment. It found the record insufficient to support OWCP’s calculation of the amount. It affirmed the existence of an…
American Refining Group, Inc.
In re American Refining Group, Inc. (EAB CAA Appeal 21-03C): gasoline benzene settlement approved
American Refining Group operated a petroleum refinery in Bradford, Pennsylvania. The Consent Agreement states that the refinery produced 43,236,309 gallons of gasoline blendstock with an average benzene concentration of 1.36 volume percent during the July 1, 2016 through December 31, 2017 averaging…
Diane M. Jefferson v. Marine Terminals Corporation (East) dba Ports America, Incorporated
Jefferson v. Marine Terminals (BRB 21-0234): refusal of physical therapy reconsidered
Diane Jefferson received Longshore Act benefits after an ankle injury and later sought care for back pain linked to her altered gait. Her employer suspended benefits after she declined physical therapy appointments at a facility the employer arranged. An administrative law judge found her refusal…
Ruth L. Coker (widow of James L. Coker) v. Big Laurel Mining Corporation and American International South Insurance Company
Coker v. Big Laurel Mining (BRB 20-0568 BLA): operator dispute returned to judge
Ruth Coker sought black lung survivor benefits after her husband's death. The district director designated Big Laurel Mining and its insurer as the parties liable for benefits, but they disputed that designation and the claim's merits. The administrative law judge sent the case back to the district…
Thomas P. Bandy v. Consolidation Coal Company
Bandy v. Consolidation Coal (BRB 20-0561 BLA): black lung award affirmed
Thomas Bandy received black lung benefits after an administrative law judge found that his coal mine employment and total respiratory disability invoked the statutory presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis. Consolidation Coal disputed the finding of total disability, particularly the…
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.