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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R.E. and Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Neopit, WI
Existing 12 percent leg impairment award upheld
A Bureau of Indian Affairs logger sought an increased schedule award after a falling limb injured his right leg. His physician rated the impairment at 22 percent, but OWCP’s medical adviser found errors in the impairment class and adjustments and rated it at 12 percent. The Board agreed that the…
L.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Elgin, IL
Foot injury claim denied for lack of medical causation
A Postal Service employee claimed right foot conditions after stepping into a hole on her mail route. OWCP accepted the incident but denied the injury claim. The Board found that her physician diagnosed a plantar plate tear and other conditions without adequately explaining how the step into the…
F.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Discovery Bay, CA
Reconsideration denial affirmed after duplicate evidence
A Postal Service carrier sought reconsideration of OWCP’s denial of a right shoulder claim. She cited a physician’s earlier opinion that her mail work worsened the shoulder condition and submitted copies of reports already in the record. The Board held that neither the repeated argument nor the…
Social Security Administration, Office of Hearing Operations and International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Association of Administrative Law Judges
SSA Office of Hearing Operations and AALJ (FLRA 0-AR-5407): Telework remedy upheld
An administrative law judge requested temporary telework after back surgery, but the Social Security Administration denied the request. An arbitrator found that the agency violated its telework policy and ordered it to restore sick leave the employee used instead of working from home. The agency…
United States Department of Defense, U.S. Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms, California and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2018
Marine Corps Twentynine Palms and AFGE Local 2018 (FLRA 0-AR-5376): Classification grievance barred
The union alleged that an employee performed duties above her grade and sought a promotion and backpay. An arbitrator issued an interim award allowing the grievance to proceed while stating that the merits hearing would avoid classification issues. The Authority held that the grievance's essential…
Secretary of Labor v. Yahara Materials, Inc.
Dump-site berm citation settled for $286
MSHA cited Yahara Materials for failing to provide a berm at a dump site and proposed a $2,361 penalty. In settlement, the operator asserted that a spotter and berms were present, while the Secretary declined to provide requested inspection photographs. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy approved the…
Secretary of Labor v. American Aggregates of Michigan, Inc.
Untrained-miner settlement rejected
MSHA ordered an inexperienced driller's helper withdrawn because he had not completed all required new-miner training. The parties proposed removing the S&S designation, lowering gravity and negligence, and reducing the penalty from $2,007 to $132 based on his prior OSHA training, partial MSHA…
Teddy Alvin Robinette v. Bevins Energy, Incorporated and American Business & Mercantile Insurance Mutual, Incorporated
Robinette v. Bevins Energy (BRB 18-0465 BLA): benefits award vacated for a new hearing
Teddy Robinette filed a later black lung benefits claim against Bevins Energy. An administrative law judge found that he had pneumoconiosis and was totally disabled by it, and awarded benefits. The employer and carrier challenged the judge's appointment under the Appointments Clause. After an…
Richard Lee Fluty v. SMC Coal Terminal Company Pier, self-insured through Shell Coal & Terminal Company
Fluty v. SMC Coal Terminal Company Pier (BRB 18-0364 BLA): black lung benefits award affirmed
Richard Fluty had twenty-three years of underground coal mine employment and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. The administrative law judge applied the fifteen-year presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis and awarded benefits after finding that the employer did not rebut it. The…
C.S. and Department of Agriculture, Food Safety & Inspection Service, St. Paul, MN
Compensation suspension reversed after completed earnings report
A food inspector receiving wage-loss compensation had to return an earnings and activity report on Form EN1032. OWCP received her completed form on November 5, 2018, two days before it issued a decision suspending benefits for failure to respond. Although the form arrived more than 30 days after…
C.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Headquarters Facility Services, Washington, DC
Falling cabinet incident established; medical causation sent back
A Postal Service maintenance supervisor reported that a radio cabinet fell from a wall and struck his head during a night shift. OWCP denied his injury claim because it found that he had not established the incident. A witness described the fallen cabinet and the worker’s immediate reaction, and a…
C.S., claiming as widower of K.S., and Department of Veterans Affairs, Atlanta Regional Office, Decatur, GA
Survivor claim returned for required investigation and decision
A widower claimed survivor benefits after his wife, a Department of Veterans Affairs attorney, died by suicide. He alleged that work conditions contributed to her emotional condition and death. The Board found that OWCP had not followed its procedures for developing a claim involving suicide: it…
D.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Milwaukee, WI
Emotional-condition claim denied after alleged incident was not established
A Postal Service letter carrier reported an anxiety attack after an encounter with a man while delivering mail. She said he put his hand to her forehead as though it were a gun and said “pow.” Her supervisor reported that store video did not show the conduct she described, and she did not answer…
P.B. and Department of the Navy, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, San Diego, CA
Hand-condition denial and reconsideration refusal upheld
A Navy contract specialist said six to eight hours of daily computer work caused bilateral hand conditions. OWCP accepted the work exposure but received no physician’s report diagnosing a condition and explaining causation before it denied the claim. Her reconsideration request added no relevant…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Sacramento, CA
Two percent right leg impairment award upheld
A Postal Service carrier sought more than the two percent schedule award for accepted right foot and calf conditions. His physician calculated a 12 percent rating using a diagnosis that OWCP had not accepted. OWCP’s medical adviser used the accepted metatarsophalangeal sprains and the required…
K.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Lakewood, NJ
Rolled ankle claim returned for specialist opinion
A Postal Service mail carrier rolled her right ankle while walking a route. Her foot surgeon explained how the rolling motion could cause the diagnosed ligament and tendon injuries, addressed an earlier ankle condition, and cited imaging findings. The Board found that the opinion did not fully…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Malcolm Randall VA Medical Center, Gainesville, Florida (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2779 (Union)
VA Gainesville and AFGE Local 2779 (FLRA 0-AR-5392): Email-system remedy partly set aside
Union officials at a VA medical center repeatedly could not find emails saved in agency-provided Outlook files and reported delays in technical support. An arbitrator found that the VA violated the parties' agreement and ordered help with the files, training, and an apology. He also ordered the VA…
United States Department of Homeland Security, Citizenship and Immigration Services, District 18 (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1944 (Union)
USCIS District 18 and AFGE Local 1944 (FLRA 0-AR-5370): Fourteen-day suspension reinstated
USCIS suspended an immigration services officer for fourteen days after finding improper conduct toward agency customers. An arbitrator sustained part of the charge but reduced the suspension to one day, treating the misconduct as a first offense. The Authority found that the employee had already…
Peggy L. Shook v. Jewell Smokeless Coal Corporation and SunCoke Energy, Incorporated
Shook v. Jewell Smokeless Coal (BRB 18-0457 and 18-0458 BLA): miner and survivor awards vacated for a new hearing
Peggy Shook pursued her late husband's black lung claim and her own survivor claim against Jewell Smokeless Coal and its carrier. An administrative law judge applied the fifteen-year presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis, awarded the miner's claim, and awarded survivor benefits as well…
L.L. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Tacoma, WA
Schedule-award claim returned for clearer impartial medical opinion
An Internal Revenue Service worker sought a schedule award after accepted injuries from a workplace fall. Her physician and an OWCP referral physician disagreed about permanent impairment. The impartial specialist found none, but did not adequately explain when the accepted conditions resolved or…
E.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, West Los Angeles Veterans Administration Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
Emotional-condition denial and reconsideration refusal affirmed
A Department of Veterans Affairs nursing assistant attributed an emotional condition to workplace discipline, alleged harassment, and a police presence at a meeting. The Board found no established error or abuse in the personnel actions and no factual support for the alleged harassment. A police…
S.T. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Installations East, Camp Lejeune, NC
Back and hip claim denied for insufficient medical causation
A Navy motor vehicle operator said she injured her back while moving tires at work. OWCP accepted that the lifting incident occurred, but denied her claim for lumbar and hip conditions. Her physicians diagnosed conditions and recorded pain, yet did not explain how the incident caused or aggravated…
C.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
Wage-loss reduction based on suitable clerk work affirmed
A Postal Service letter carrier with accepted back conditions challenged a reduction in wage-loss compensation. OWCP found that she could earn wages as a customer complaint clerk. The Board credited a physician’s work restrictions and a vocational counselor’s assessment that the sedentary position…
T.H. and Department of the Army, 7th Signal Command, Fort Gordon, GA
Reconsideration refusal upheld in gas-exposure claim
An Army budget analyst reported symptoms after a gas leak in her office. The Board’s appeal concerned only OWCP’s later refusal to reconsider its injury denial, because the earlier merits decision was outside the Board’s review period. The new ambulance bill and emergency technician notes did not…
L.A. and Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Engraving & Printing, Washington, DC
Recurrence claim denied for missing link to accepted injuries
A Bureau of Engraving and Printing accountant had accepted knee and lower-leg contusion and neck and back strains after a workplace fall. She later claimed renewed disability. Her physician discussed spondylosis, joint degeneration, and pain but did not explain with objective findings how an…
S.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New York, NY
Disability period after authorized surgery sent back
A Postal Service letter carrier claimed a recurrence of disability involving accepted neck, shoulder, and carpal tunnel conditions. The Board found that her physicians had not adequately explained why accepted conditions prevented work before October 11, 2016. OWCP had authorized carpal tunnel…
CWP Asset Corp., d/b/a Mister Car Wash
Conveyor machine-guarding violation affirmed
Mister Car Wash moved vehicle-drying work inside a car wash bay near a conveyor system. An employee was hospitalized after his foot entered a gap above the conveyor's moving chain and sprocket. The judge found that this work arrangement made employee exposure to the moving parts reasonably…
Secretary of Labor v. Wolf Run Mining, LLC
Mistaken penalty payment reopened
Wolf Run Mining intended to contest citations after penalties were proposed, but internal miscommunication caused the penalties to be paid instead. The company discovered the error while responding to mine-management inquiries and immediately contacted outside counsel. Counsel moved to reopen less…
Secretary of Labor v. The Monongalia County Coal Company, successor to Consolidation Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. The Monongalia County Coal Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2015-0074): Long stay lifted in accumulation cases
Three penalty cases involving alleged combustible-material accumulations had remained stayed while related litigation addressed the meaning of a repeated flagrant violation. Judge Jerold Feldman found that the pending Commission appeal in the related Monongalia case did not require further delay…
Secretary of Labor v. Canyon Fuel Company, LLC
Missing contest excused after prompt response
Canyon Fuel sought to reopen a penalty assessment after MSHA did not receive its contest of two citations. The company said its safety manager mailed the contest form in January 2019, but it provided no proof of mailing. Canyon moved to reopen within ten days after receiving MSHA's delinquency…
Secretary of Labor v. New Gold Nevada, Inc.
Informal-conference delay excused
New Gold Nevada did not contest a proposed penalty assessment because it believed informal discussions with MSHA about citation changes were still underway. The company repeatedly asked MSHA for a response and did not receive one until two days after the assessment became final. New Gold…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Twentymile Mining, LLC
Unsent counsel request excused
Peabody Twentymile Mining missed the deadline to contest a proposed penalty assessment after its compliance manager prepared, but did not send, a request for outside counsel to file the contest. The manager discovered the mistake on May 23, 2018, and immediately contacted counsel. Counsel moved to…
Secretary of Labor v. Mach Mining, LLC
Unhandled assessment reopened
Mach Mining decided to contest six of 27 citations and pay the remaining penalties, but its assistant corporate safety director did neither. He discovered the oversight when the company received a delinquency notice and immediately contacted outside counsel. Counsel filed a reopening motion within…
Secretary of Labor v. Industrial Process Equipment Constructors
Citation-number typo supported reopening
Industrial Process Equipment Constructors sought to reopen a penalty assessment after an error during informal negotiations with MSHA. The company said it typed the wrong citation number in an email requesting a conference, which caused MSHA to modify the wrong citation in its records. The contest…
Matter of Renata MIRANDA-CORDIERO
An absent respondent who withheld a mailing address cannot rely on a deficient hearing notice
The Board reviewed a Brazilian respondent's appeal from the denial of a motion to reopen an in absentia removal order. The respondent had been personally served with a Notice to Appear, refused to provide an address for hearing notices, and did not appear at the scheduled hearing. The Board held…
Matter of Lourdes Suyapa PENA-MEJIA
A later hearing notice can complete notice for an in absentia hearing
The Board considered a Honduran respondent's motion to reopen and terminate proceedings after she did not appear at a scheduled hearing and was ordered removed in absentia. Her original Notice to Appear did not specify the hearing date and time, but the Immigration Court later sent a notice of…
Dennis H. Feltner v. Shamrock Coal Company, Incorporated and Sun Coal Company
Feltner v. Shamrock Coal Company (BRB 18-0293 BLA): denial of black lung benefits affirmed
Dennis Feltner filed a later black lung benefits claim after at least ten but fewer than fifteen years of underground coal mine work. The administrative law judge found a totally disabling respiratory impairment but concluded that Feltner had not proved pneumoconiosis, and denied benefits. The…
Thomas J. Baldoni v. Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs
Baldoni v. Director, OWCP (BRB 18-0085 BLA): reconsideration denied
Thomas Baldoni sought reconsideration of a Board decision about claims involving his parents. The Board said the issue in his motion had already been addressed in two earlier decisions. By the time he filed his claim in 2013, his parents' claims could no longer be reopened and new claims could no…
Department of Defense, Domestic Dependent Elementary and Secondary Schools, Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico and Antilles Consolidated Education Association
DOD Fort Buchanan Schools and Antilles Education Association (FLRA BN-CA-17-0170): Impasse agreement order narrowed
The Federal Service Impasses Panel directed a Defense Department school system and its teachers' union to adopt a successor labor agreement, but the agency refused to implement it. The Authority upheld the finding that the agency committed unfair labor practices by refusing to follow the lawful…
Wright v. Railroad Commission of Texas
Environmental retaliation causation not proved
Railroad Commission of Texas employee Frederick Wright alleged retaliation after raising concerns about oil and gas operators' compliance with rules protecting underground drinking-water sources. On an earlier appeal, the Board had required the ALJ to reconsider whether Wright reasonably believed…
C.P. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Miami, FL
Shoulder impairment rating returned for complete measurements
An FBI special agent sought an increased right shoulder schedule award after rotator cuff surgery. His treating physician rated impairment at 18 percent, while OWCP’s medical adviser rated it at five percent. Neither properly applied all required diagnosis-based adjustments, and the record lacked…
T.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bethesda, MD
Increased knee award returned for medical adviser review
A Postal Service worker who had already received an eight percent right leg schedule award sought an increase. OWCP obtained a second medical opinion on impairment but did not send that report to a district medical adviser as its procedures required. The Board set aside OWCP’s decision and directed…
K.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Lamond Riggs Station, Washington, DC
Knee surgery request returned for impartial medical examination
A Postal Service carrier sought payment for left knee surgery after a work-related fall. His treating physician attributed the knee arthritis to the fall, while an OWCP referral physician considered it degenerative. The Board found the opposing opinions equally weighty and held that OWCP had to…
B.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
Late reconsideration request did not show clear error
A former Postal Service worker sought reconsideration of a benefits termination that the Board had upheld in 2008. OWCP received her new request in April 2018, long after the one-year filing period. She repeated objections to the termination notice and impartial medical opinion and resubmitted…
V.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Naperville, IL
Carpal tunnel award claim returned for combined-file review
A retired Postal Service letter carrier sought a schedule award for right carpal tunnel syndrome. She had another accepted claim and prior schedule award involving upper extremity conditions. OWCP decided the new award request without combining the related files. The Board held that the records had…
C.T. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA
Right knee schedule award denied for lack of permanent impairment
A Department of Veterans Affairs housekeeping aide sought a schedule award after an accepted right knee sprain and temporary aggravation of osteoarthritis. He had undergone a knee replacement and argued that his preexisting arthritis should count toward the award. The impartial examiner found that…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Jamaica, NY
Mail handler’s arm claim returned for second medical opinion
A Postal Service mail handler linked left elbow and shoulder conditions to repeated pushing and pulling of heavy mail pallets. OWCP accepted the work factors but denied the claim based on the medical evidence. Her treating orthopedic surgeon described her job duties, examination findings, and how…
D.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Capital Heights, MD
Knee claim returned to combine related files
A Postal Service clerk claimed a right knee condition from years of standing and walking at work. She also had an earlier accepted claim involving both knees. OWCP denied the new claim without combining the medical records from the related files. The Board held that the files had to be combined for…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2198 (Union) and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Beckley, West Virginia (Agency)
VA Beckley Medical Center and AFGE Local 2198 (FLRA 0-AR-5412): Premature attorney-fee denial removed
The VA suspended an employee for five days over improper disposal of agency equipment. An arbitrator reduced the discipline to an admonishment and awarded backpay, but also denied attorney fees before the union filed a fee petition. The Authority held that the fee denial was premature because the…
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 121 (Union) and United States Government Publishing Office (Agency)
Government Publishing Office and IBEW Local 121 (FLRA 0-AR-5401): Reduced suspension upheld
A Government Publishing Office mechanic was suspended for 14 days after an investigation into a grill another employee built using agency materials. The arbitrator found the charges proved but reduced the suspension to seven days, matching the discipline imposed on the employee who built the grill…
Larry Moore v. Bodie Mining Company and American Mining Insurance Company
Moore v. Bodie Mining Company (BRB 18-0469 and 18-0511 BLA): benefits and attorney fee awards vacated
Larry Moore won black lung benefits from Bodie Mining after an administrative law judge found that coal dust had caused pneumoconiosis and a disabling respiratory condition. The judge also awarded attorney fees. The employer and carrier challenged the judge's appointment under the Appointments…
Lloyd E. Lambert v. Clinchfield Coal Company and Wells Fargo Disability Management
Lambert v. Clinchfield Coal Company (BRB 18-0358 BLA): black lung benefits award affirmed
Lloyd Lambert had a disabling respiratory impairment after coal mine work and a substantial smoking history. On remand, the administrative law judge found that coal dust was a significant contributing cause of his obstructive lung disease and disability, and awarded benefits. Clinchfield Coal…
Rebecca Coburn, executrix of the estate of Alma M. Richards, v. United States Steel Mining Company, LLC
Coburn v. United States Steel Mining (BRB 18-0356 BLA): survivor benefits denial affirmed
Rebecca Coburn pursued her late mother's survivor claim after the death of coal miner Emory Richards. The administrative law judge denied benefits because the evidence did not establish complicated pneumoconiosis or fifteen years of qualifying coal mine work needed for the statutory presumptions…
Patricia Mills v. Pal Coal, Incorporated and West Virginia CWP Fund
Mills v. Pal Coal (BRB 18-0268 BLA): derivative survivor award vacated after miner award was vacated
Patricia Mills received survivor benefits because an administrative law judge had awarded black lung benefits in her late husband's claim. While the employer's appeal of her survivor award was pending, the Board vacated the miner's award and sent that claim back for reconsideration. The Board then…
DeSalvo v. Waterfront Property Services, LLC d/b/a Gator Dredging
DeSalvo v. Waterfront Property Services, LLC (DOL ARB 2017-0044): first-day insubordination supports same-action defense
Andrew DeSalvo was hired as a survey crew chief at a Florida jobsite. On his first day, he repeatedly interrupted and argued with two officials explaining his duties, then left after being told to sit down and listen or be terminated. For purposes of summary decision, the ALJ assumed DeSalvo had…
J.M. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center, Washington, DC
Emotional-condition claim denied for unproved work factors
A Federal Aviation Administration manager claimed physical and emotional conditions aggravated by an allegedly hostile environment during earlier Department of Veterans Affairs employment. He did not provide the requested details or evidence identifying the work incidents he alleged. The Board held…
J.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Long Beach Veterans Administration Medical Center, Long Beach, CA
Medical-visit wage loss ordered after disability denial
A Department of Veterans Affairs social worker sought wage-loss compensation after a work-related vehicle collision. Her doctor said she could not work but did not explain why accepted neck and back strains prevented her from performing modified duties. The Board affirmed denial of the claimed…
E.B. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Morgantown, WV
Late claim reconsideration did not show clear error
A former Bureau of Prisons cook foreman sought reconsideration of the earlier denial of his occupational disease claim as untimely. OWCP received the new request in April 2018, years after the last merits decision. He pointed to a 2004 equal employment opportunity complaint, but the Board held that…
S.S. and Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau, Franklin, NY
Foot injury sent back after mixed ruling on fall claim
A Census Bureau field representative reported several conditions after falling down stairs at work. The Board found the evidence insufficient to connect her shoulder, back, head, and thumb conditions to the fall. A foot specialist, however, described how her foot twisted and bore weight during the…
D.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
Additional pain conditions not linked to accepted back injury
A Postal Service clerk with an accepted lumbar disc injury asked OWCP to accept additional conditions, including complex regional pain syndrome and reflex sympathetic dystrophy. The Board found that the supporting medical opinions lacked a reasoned causal explanation or relied on an inaccurate…
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.