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.
No decisions match these filters
Try fewer or different words, check the spelling, or clear the filters to browse everything.
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Brooklyn, NY
Board upholds refusal to reopen occupational disease claim (ECAB 20-1480)
C.C., a postal letter carrier, had an accepted claim involving aggravation of carpal tunnel syndrome and hand osteoarthritis. She requested reconsideration after OWCP ended benefits. The Board found that her arguments repeated earlier points and that a corrected medical report was substantially…
L.R. and U.S. Postal Service, McLean Main Post Office, McLean, VA
Board dismisses appeal from void award decisions (ECAB 20-1447)
L.R., a postal employee, appealed an OWCP decision about benefit termination and whether additional conditions should be accepted. While that appeal was pending, OWCP issued decisions denying an increased schedule award. The Board held that OWCP lacked authority to decide the related award issue…
K.W. and Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Education, Circle of Nations Wahpeton Indian School, Wahpeton, ND
Board upholds $12,527.93 overpayment recovery (ECAB 20-1169)
K.W. received FECA wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits partly attributable to federal service during the same period. The Board upheld OWCP's finding of a $12,527.93 overpayment, although she was not at fault. It found that she had not submitted the requested financial…
R.L. and Department of Agriculture, Farm Service Agency, St. Louis, MO
Board orders corrected arm impairment assessment (ECAB 20-1069)
R.L. had already received schedule awards for six percent impairment of her right arm and three percent of her left arm. She sought a larger award. Her examiner based a higher right arm rating on a 2016 wrist MRI, but OWCP's medical adviser did not review that scan when giving a lower rating. The…
L.P. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport, Milwaukee, WI
Board directs proper review of wage capacity request (ECAB 20-0154)
L.P., a transportation security employee, asked OWCP to change an earlier loss of wage earning capacity determination. OWCP treated her submission as an ordinary reconsideration request and denied it under that standard. The Board found that she had actually asked for modification of the wage…
A.R. and Department of Agriculture, Food Safety & Inspection Service, Minneapolis, MN
Board orders more medical review of claimed disability (ECAB 20-0057)
A.R., a federal food inspector, had an accepted right knee injury from a workplace fall. She sought compensation for time away from work between November 2017 and March 2018. OWCP denied the claimed disability period. The Board found that two physicians' reports were not conclusive but supported…
J.L. and Department of the Navy, Naval Submarine Base New London, Groton, CT
Board reverses termination of back injury benefits (ECAB 19-1901)
J.L., a Navy employee, received benefits for an accepted low back injury. OWCP terminated his wage loss and medical benefits based on an examining physician's view that work related residuals had ended. The Board found that the physician did not adequately discuss all accepted conditions or explain…
L.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Liberty Lake, WA
Board upholds $44,107.20 overpayment and recovery (ECAB 19-1880)
L.S., a postal employee, received FECA wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits partly attributable to federal service during the same period. The Board upheld the $44,107.20 overpayment, while recognizing that he was not at fault. It also upheld OWCP's denial of waiver after…
P.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Charlotte, NC
Board upholds denial of back occupational disease claim (ECAB 19-1787)
P.R., a postal letter carrier, attributed back and leg symptoms to repetitive bending, lifting, and carrying mail. OWCP denied his occupational disease claim. The Board found that he submitted no medical evidence establishing a diagnosis connected to the accepted work factors. It also found that…
Thibeaux v. Edward Jones Investments
Untimely SOX complaint dismissed
Edward Jones Investments employed Joseph Thibeaux until he resigned in September 2012 and rejected his application for rehire in July 2013. Thibeaux filed the complaint at issue with OSHA in August 2017, long after the 180-day deadline for either alleged adverse action. The ALJ credited his…
Twyman v. TaxMasters, Inc.
Dormant SOX appeal dismissed
Mark Twyman's SOX case was pending before the Board when TaxMasters sought bankruptcy protection in 2012, triggering an automatic stay. The Board later required quarterly bankruptcy status updates, but the last report it received was dated August 2019. In February 2021, it ordered the parties to…
G.B. and Department of the Army, Defense Commissary Agency, Fort Sill, OK
Board dismisses duplicate appeal docket (ECAB 20-1534)
G.B. filed two appeals from the same June 17, 2019 OWCP decision. The Board had already dismissed the first docket, No. 20-0783, as untimely. The Clerk had inadvertently opened a second docket for the same decision. The Board dismissed that duplicate docket without reviewing the underlying claim.
J.R. and Department of the Navy, Naval Supply Station, Oakland, CA
Board dismisses duplicate appeal while original proceeds (ECAB 20-1205)
J.R. appealed an OWCP merit decision in May 2020, and the Clerk assigned docket No. 20-1224. Counsel then submitted a second appeal from the same decision. The Clerk inadvertently created another docket, No. 20-1205. The Board dismissed the duplicate docket and stated that the original appeal would…
T.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Seminole Processing & Distribution Center, Orlando, FL
Board remands leg award issue but upholds medication denial (ECAB 20-1200)
T.R., a postal employee, sought a schedule award for permanent leg impairment and continued authorization for opioid medication. The Board found a medical opinion conflict concerning the impairment rating and directed OWCP to obtain an impartial evaluation. It separately found that his doctor had…
E.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Worthington Post Office, Worthington, PA
Board upholds denial of shoulder occupational disease claim (ECAB 20-1191)
E.G., a rural postal carrier, attributed a right shoulder condition to his regular work activities. OWCP denied the claim. The Board found that the medical evidence did not provide a reasoned opinion connecting the diagnosed condition to the accepted work factors. It affirmed the denial because the…
C.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Baraboo Post Office, Baraboo, WI
Board reverses benefit termination and remands shoulder claim expansion (ECAB 20-0608)
C.H., a postal employee, asked OWCP to add aggravation of preexisting left shoulder arthritis to her accepted claim. OWCP denied that request and terminated wage loss and medical benefits effective June 6, 2019. The Board found that OWCP had not fully developed whether the additional shoulder…
B.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, W.G. (Bill) Hefner Veterans Medical Center, Salisbury, NC
Board upholds denial of hand nerve occupational disease claim (ECAB 20-0283)
B.W., a VA housekeeping aide, attributed hand and arm nerve conditions to his work activities. OWCP denied his occupational disease claim. The Board found that the medical evidence did not adequately explain how the accepted employment factors caused the diagnosed conditions. It affirmed the denial…
K.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Craft Station, Fayetteville, AR
Board upholds $8,176.16 overpayment recovery (ECAB 19-1920)
K.H., a postal employee, received FECA wage loss compensation while also receiving Social Security retirement benefits partly attributable to federal service. The Board upheld OWCP's $8,176.16 overpayment finding, although he was not at fault. It also upheld the denial of waiver after considering…
F.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Brockton, MA
Board upholds refusal to reopen hip and knee claim (ECAB 19-1861)
F.P., a postal letter carrier, attributed hip and knee osteoarthritis to his work duties. OWCP previously denied the claim. He requested reconsideration, but OWCP refused to reopen it for a merits review. The Board found that his submission did not meet the regulatory requirements for reopening. It…
L.V. and Department of Veterans Affairs, James A. Haley VA Medical Center, Tampa, FL
Board upholds denial of renewed disability claim (ECAB 19-1725)
L.V., a VA registered nurse, had accepted employment related conditions and later claimed a recurrence of total disability beginning June 6, 2016. OWCP denied the claimed period of disability. The Board found that the medical evidence did not adequately establish that his inability to work was…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3369 and Social Security Administration
AFGE Local 3369 and Social Security Administration (FLRA 0-AR-5587): Authority upholds official-time suspension
The Social Security Administration suspended a union official for two days after repeated failures to follow contract rules for requesting and documenting official time. An arbitrator found that the Agency had provided the required notice, that the employee understood the rules and possible…
Secretary of Labor obo Roger Cook v. Rockwell Mining, LLC
Fire boss temporarily reinstated
Roger Cook, a fire boss at Rockwell Mining's Eagle #3 Mine, locked and tagged out a pump cable after finding that its ground-monitor protection had been bypassed. He then discussed the condition with an MSHA inspector in front of mine management. Rockwell suspended Cook the next day and terminated…
R.O. and Department of the Army, Military Traffic Management Company Oakland Army Base, Oakland, CA
Board upholds suspension for missing earnings disclosure (ECAB 20-1165)
R.O., an Army employee with an accepted compensation claim, was asked to complete an OWCP form reporting work activity and earnings. OWCP suspended her wage loss benefits when the requested form was not returned. The Board found that OWCP had properly requested the information and applied the…
M.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tupelo, MS
Board upholds denial of postal employee emotional condition claim (ECAB 20-1160)
M.B., a postal city carrier, attributed anxiety and other symptoms to conditions at work. OWCP denied the emotional condition claim. The Board reviewed his allegations about workload, supervision, and harassment but found no established compensable employment factor. Without such a factor, it did…
H.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Chicago Metro Logistics & Distribution Center, Elk Grove Village, IL
Board upholds $81,325.72 overpayment and recovery (ECAB 20-1136)
H.W., a postal employee, received FECA wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits partly attributable to federal service at the same time. The Board upheld OWCP's $81,325.72 overpayment finding, although he was not at fault. It found no basis for waiving recovery under the…
D.P. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, O’Hare International Airport, Chicago, IL
Board orders related ankle claims combined (ECAB 20-0403)
D.P., a TSA officer, had an accepted left ankle injury and sought to change treating physicians after further surgery was recommended. OWCP denied the request and later denied modification. The Board found that an earlier claim also concerned his left foot and ankle, but its file had not been…
J.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Fairfield Post Office, Fairfield, AL
Board recognizes workplace threat and remands emotional claim (ECAB 20-0390)
J.T., a postal supervisor, claimed stress related conditions after a confrontation with a coworker. OWCP denied the claim and later treated his hearing request as abandoned. The Board found that his account, a witness statement, and a police report established a threat of physical harm at work…
P.L. and U.S. Postal Service, North Carrier Annex, Long Beach, CA
Board remands insurance premium overpayment but upholds retirement offset (ECAB 19-1883)
P.L., a postal employee, had two separate overpayment findings: undeducted postretirement life insurance premiums and a Social Security retirement offset. The Board agreed that missed insurance premium deductions created an overpayment, but OWCP had not established the $2,318.48 amount. It upheld…
B.T. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn, NY
Board upholds termination of wage loss and medical benefits (ECAB 19-1505)
B.T., a federal prison employee, had an accepted work injury and received wage loss and medical benefits. OWCP terminated those benefits effective June 29, 2018. The Board found that OWCP's medical evidence adequately supported an end to work related residuals and disability. It also found that…
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Network Distribution Center, Dallas, TX
Board divides fault finding for $6,390.34 overpayment (ECAB 19-1268)
C.C., a postal employee, continued receiving wage loss compensation after returning to full duty on March 21, 2018. The Board upheld OWCP's $6,390.34 overpayment finding for payments through May 26. It found that she was not at fault for the first deposit after returning to work because there was…
Matter of Margaret VUCETIC
New York aggravated unlicensed operation is moral turpitude
The Board reviewed DHS's appeal after an Immigration Judge terminated removal proceedings against a Canadian lawful permanent resident. The respondent had two convictions under New York law for aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle while under the influence, with knowledge or reason to…
Annie Christie v. Bath Iron Works Corporation
Christie v. Bath Iron Works (BRB 20-0337): stepchild death benefits awarded in part
Everett Christie died after a work injury, and his widow Annie sought Longshore Act death benefits for her daughter. An administrative law judge denied the daughter's claim because the marriage had lasted less than a year. The Board ruled that the statute's one-year requirement applies to a child…
Benjamin W. Thompson v. Reddinger Coal Company, Incorporated
Thompson v. Reddinger Coal (BRB 20-0230): surface miner's benefits award affirmed
Benjamin Thompson worked for more than nineteen years at surface coal mines, often operating a bulldozer in dusty conditions. A judge found his work regularly exposed him to coal mine dust, making it comparable to underground mining for the fifteen-year presumption, and found a totally disabling…
Charles L. Dickens v. Pine Ridge Coal Company
Dickens v. Pine Ridge Coal (BRB 20-0108): benefits and carrier liability affirmed
Charles Dickens received Black Lung benefits after a judge found at least fifteen years of underground coal mine work and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. His widow pursued the claim after his death. Pine Ridge Coal and Peabody Energy argued that payment responsibility should shift away…
Fred Huff v. Whitaker Coal Corporation
Huff v. Whitaker Coal (BRB 20-0087): benefits and dependent child increase affirmed
Fred Huff received Black Lung benefits after a judge found seventeen years of underground coal mine work and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. The judge later increased the award for a dependent child. Whitaker Coal challenged the disability finding and argued that it had rebutted the…
Austine Salmons v. Edd Potter Coal Company
Salmons v. Edd Potter Coal (BRB 20-0081): Black Lung benefits award affirmed
Austine Salmons received Black Lung benefits after a judge, on remand, found a totally disabling respiratory impairment and applied the fifteen-year presumption. Edd Potter Coal challenged the judge's appointment, its own payment responsibility, and the medical findings. The Board held that the…
Dallas W. McCoy v. Eastern Associated Coal, LLC
McCoy v. Eastern Associated Coal (BRB 19-0520): benefits award and payment liability affirmed
Dallas McCoy received Black Lung benefits after a judge found complicated pneumoconiosis arising from twenty-two years of coal mine work. Eastern Associated Coal and Peabody Energy did not challenge the disease finding on appeal but disputed their responsibility for payment and raised appointment…
Ingrodi v. CSX Transportation, Inc.
Illness may create an FRSA safety hazard
CSX Transportation terminated conductor Nicholas Ingrodi under its attendance policy after he missed work while suffering from vomiting and diarrhea. The ALJ granted summary decision to CSX because Ingrodi's personal, non-work-related illness could not create a hazardous safety or security…
Moody v. National Western Life Insurance Co.
Business losses outside SOX employee protection
Robert Moody Jr. owned an insurance business that sold policies for National Western Life Insurance Company, and he was also a major shareholder in National Western. After Moody raised concerns about foreign sales disclosures, he alleged that National Western harmed his company by canceling an…
Patricia Reed, Administratrix of the Estate of S. Scott Sittner v. Jacobs Engineering Group
Reed v. Jacobs Engineering Group (DOL ARB 2019-0062): internal quality-plan concerns not PSIA protected
Jacobs Engineering hired S. Scott Sittner for a trial period to manage quality auditors supporting Southern California Gas's pipeline program. Sittner said inadequate auditor training and documentation created a stop-work condition, and Jacobs ended his trial period before its planned end. The…
B.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Marina Processing & Distribution Center
Board dismisses late appeal of postal worker’s claim (ECAB 21-0558)
B.J. appealed OWCP’s June 26, 2020 decision on February 24, 2021. The Board’s 180 day filing period had expired on December 23, 2020. Because the appeal arrived after that deadline and B.J. did not establish compelling circumstances for the delay, the Board dismissed it without addressing the OWCP…
R.M. and Department of the Navy, Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
Board dismisses Navy worker’s appeal on request (ECAB 21-0386)
R.M. appealed a December 2020 OWCP decision through counsel. Counsel then requested dismissal of the appeal. The Board granted the request and dismissed the case without ruling on the OWCP decision’s merits.
I.O. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Orlando VA Healthcare System
Board dismisses appeal at appellant’s request (ECAB 20-1593)
I.O. appealed a July 2020 OWCP decision, and the Board assigned docket No. 20-1593. Counsel sent a letter requesting dismissal of the appeal in March 2021. The Board granted that request and closed the appeal without ruling on the merits of the OWCP decision.
S.S. and Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Agency
Board upholds denial of hearing loss schedule award (ECAB 20-1352)
S.S. developed accepted hearing loss and tinnitus after noise exposure during federal work. He requested a schedule award. The Board found that his audiogram did not show hearing loss severe enough to produce a ratable impairment under the A.M.A. Guides. Without ratable hearing loss, tinnitus alone…
A.N. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service
Board restores physical therapy authorization and orders wage loss payment (ECAB 20-0320)
A.N. received physical therapy for an accepted lower back injury, but OWCP later denied authorization for that treatment and related wage loss. The Board found that OWCP had already authorized the treatment period and failed to follow its procedures for rescinding authorization. Work status records…
A.K. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons
Board upholds 13 percent left leg impairment rating (ECAB 19-1927)
A.K. sought a larger schedule award for impairment of his left lower extremity. His physician rated the impairment at 51 percent using a range of motion method. OWCP’s physicians rated it at 13 percent using the diagnosis based method. The Board found that the applicable A.M.A. Guides table did not…
W.D. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency
Board orders related shoulder claim files combined (ECAB 19-0961)
W.D. sought review of decisions concerning his right shoulder claims. OWCP had accepted a shoulder contusion in one claim file and converted a recurrence notice into a new traumatic injury claim in another file, then denied that claim. The Board found that correct adjudication depended on reviewing…
D.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center
Board reverses lumbar surgery denial and orders further medical review (ECAB 19-0687)
D.H. sought authorization for lumbar surgery and asked OWCP to accept additional back and neck conditions related to her work injuries. OWCP denied both requests. The Board found that OWCP’s medical adviser had not reviewed all relevant reports and that multiple physicians supported the need for…
Mohammad N. Saheed v. Valbin Corporation and ACE American Insurance Company
Saheed v. Valbin Corporation (BRB 20-0393): disability award wage calculation affirmed
Mohammad Saheed sustained physical and psychological injuries while working for Valbin Corporation in Afghanistan. He challenged the judge's calculation of his average weekly wage, arguing it should use only his higher overseas earnings. The Board upheld the calculation using both stateside and…
Goebel R. Burke v. Kiah Creek Mining Company
Burke v. Kiah Creek Mining (BRB 20-0218): benefits award remanded for disease and disability findings
Goebel Burke received Black Lung benefits after a judge found complicated pneumoconiosis and, alternatively, total respiratory disability after eighteen years of underground coal mining. The Board upheld the designation of Kiah Creek Mining as the company responsible for payment. It vacated the…
Michael Stelly v. Tigress Environmental & Dockside Services, LLC and Louisiana Workers' Compensation Corporation
Stelly v. Tigress Environmental (BRB 20-0211): back injury claim denied
Michael Stelly alleged that he injured his back while lifting pipe at work. The administrative law judge accepted that he had back symptoms but found that he had not proved the alleged workplace accident occurred. The Board upheld that finding because the judge reasonably identified inconsistencies…
Herbert H. Moore, Jr. v. Consolidated Energy, Incorporated
Moore v. Consolidated Energy (BRB 20-0185): benefits award vacated and remanded
Herbert Moore received Black Lung benefits after a judge found complicated pneumoconiosis, which carries an irrebuttable presumption of disability due to the disease. Consolidated Energy challenged that finding and sought to withdraw its earlier agreement that it was responsible for payment. The…
William C. Bishoff v. Dana Mining Company, Incorporated
Bishoff v. Dana Mining (BRB 20-0161): Black Lung benefits award affirmed
William Bishoff received Black Lung benefits after a judge found forty-eight years of underground coal mine work and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. Dana Mining challenged the fifteen-year presumption and the handling of medical reports submitted after the hearing. The Board rejected…
Lois M. McGlothlin, widow of Jerry B. McGlothlin v. Island Creek Coal Company
McGlothlin v. Island Creek Coal (BRB 20-0136): survivor benefits denial affirmed
Lois McGlothlin sought survivor benefits after the death of her husband, a coal miner with at least fifteen years of qualifying work. The Board upheld the judge's finding that the evidence did not establish a totally disabling respiratory impairment, so she could not use the fifteen-year…
C.E. and U.S. Postal Service, South Jersey Postal & Distribution Center
Board returns knee disability claim for complete medical review (ECAB 19-1923)
C.E. sought to add right knee conditions as a consequence of an accepted 1992 left knee injury. OWCP relied on an impartial examiner to deny expansion of the claim. The Board found that the examiner had not received a complete statement of the accepted conditions or all relevant earlier medical…
B.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cincinnati, OH
Board orders review of overlooked Social Security records (ECAB 19-1686)
B.S. challenged an OWCP finding that she had received compensation and Social Security retirement benefits without the required offset. Before OWCP issued its final overpayment decision, she submitted records concerning her Social Security payments. The Board found that OWCP had not addressed…
A.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Los Angeles Bulk Mail Center
Board reverses reduction of postal worker’s compensation (ECAB 19-1615)
A.W. had accepted neck, shoulder, and earlier lumbar work injuries. OWCP reduced her compensation after she did not participate in vocational rehabilitation, relying on a doctor’s assessment of her ability to work. The Board found that OWCP gave the doctor an incomplete statement of accepted…
S.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Mill Valley, CA
Board orders payment for time lost obtaining treatment (ECAB 19-1235)
S.H. sought compensation for time away from work to obtain treatment for an accepted cervical sprain. OWCP denied his claim for 15 hours of intermittent wage loss between January and July 2018. The Board found that the records established treatment by his attending physician on the claimed dates…
L.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Cicero Branch Post Office
Board upholds denial of intermittent disability and recurrence claims (ECAB 19-1231)
L.S. sought compensation for several intermittent periods of disability in early 2018 and for a recurrence of total disability beginning April 25, 2018. The Board reviewed the medical evidence against her accepted 2005 work injury. It found that the reports did not adequately establish that the…
M.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Dallas Processing & Distribution Center
Board upholds benefit suspension but reverses overpayment finding (ECAB 19-1104)
M.B. did not return an employment and earnings report within 30 days after OWCP requested it. The Board found that OWCP properly suspended her wage loss compensation on that basis. OWCP also treated payments made during the suspension as an overpayment. The Board found no authority in 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.