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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G.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, John D. Dingle Veterans Administration Medical Center, Detroit, MI
G.L. (ECAB 13-975): Continuing wage loss after back strain not established
G.L., a nurse, injured her back while turning a patient, and OWCP accepted a lumbar sprain. She received wage-loss compensation through April 20, 2011 and sought payments for later disability. A second opinion physician found that the accepted sprain had resolved and that she could return to work…
F.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
F.H. (ECAB 13-966): Delayed reconsideration requires a merits decision
OWCP terminated F.H.’s compensation and medical treatment after finding that his accepted work injury no longer caused disability or required treatment. He sought reconsideration the next month, but OWCP waited five months before denying review without reaching the merits. The Board found that this…
S.B. and Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Printing & Engraving, Fort Worth, TX
S.B. (ECAB 13-952): Timely reconsideration request sent back for review
S.B. sought reconsideration of OWCP’s January 31, 2012 denial of an occupational disease claim. OWCP treated his request as late and denied it for failure to show clear evidence of error. The Board found that OWCP received his written authorization for a reconsideration appeal on January 22, 2013…
A.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
A.R. (ECAB 13-924): Related knee injury files must be combined
A.R., a postal employee, appealed the termination of compensation for injuries from a work-related motor vehicle accident. OWCP’s hearing representative had considered evidence from his earlier occupational disease claim involving the same knee and instructed OWCP to combine the two files. Only the…
M.L. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Linthicum, MD
M.L. (ECAB 13-918): Dependent rate overpayment and recovery affirmed
M.L., a Transportation Security Administration screener, continued receiving compensation at the higher rate for a worker with a dependent after separating from his wife. OWCP calculated a $5,196.42 overpayment for December 31, 2010 through May 5, 2012. Although he had told OWCP about the…
J.Z. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Florence, CO
J.Z. (ECAB 13-890): Withdrawn light duty did not establish disability recurrence
J.Z., a prison maintenance supervisor, had an accepted neck and back injury and later worked in a restricted assignment. He stopped work in February 2012, and the Bureau of Prisons withdrew that assignment. The Board explained that withdrawal of light duty could support compensation if medical…
P.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New York, NY
P.H. (ECAB 13-642): Life insurance overpayment upheld, fault finding reversed
P.H., a postal letter carrier receiving disability compensation, had elected to maintain life insurance coverage, but OWCP did not deduct the premiums for more than ten years. The Board upheld OWCP’s calculation of a $12,100.35 overpayment for the missed deductions. It reversed the fault finding…
A.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Marion, IL
A.W. (ECAB 13-453): Actual earnings supported zero wage loss
A.W., a psychiatric nursing assistant, had an accepted shoulder, arm, and neck injury. She returned to a full-time modified program support assistant position that met her medical restrictions. After she worked there for more than 60 days, OWCP used her actual pay to find no loss of wage-earning…
R.E. and U.S. Postal Service, Transportation Department, San Francisco, CA
R.E. (ECAB 13-397): No increase to bilateral arm impairment awards
R.E., a postal truck driver, had accepted bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and right hand trigger finger. He had received schedule awards for 24 percent impairment of each upper extremity and requested an increase. A second opinion physician and OWCP medical adviser applied the sixth edition of the…
V.D. and Department of the Navy, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, VA
V.D. (ECAB 13-331): Hearing loss award remanded for tinnitus explanation
V.D., a Navy shipyard pipefitter leader, received a schedule award for 14 percent hearing loss in both ears. An OWCP referral physician calculated a higher rating after adding three percent for tinnitus, while OWCP’s medical adviser did not add a tinnitus component. The Board found that the…
Miller Construction Co.
Four-month-late contest dismissed
OSHA issued Miller Construction two serious citations with a combined proposed penalty of $4,000. Delivery records showed that the company received the citations, which clearly stated the 15-working-day contest deadline. The company waited after receiving both the citations and a later collection…
M.K. and Department of the Navy, Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Philadelphia, PA
M.K. (ECAB 13-259): Wage rate decisions lacked required explanation
M.K., a former Navy shipyard molder, challenged the pay rate used in a prior loss of wage-earning capacity determination. OWCP issued two decisions saying it had used the correct rate, but did not explain the calculation or identify what evidence would show an error. It also did not determine…
W.C. and Department of the Navy, Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, CA
W.C. (ECAB 12-1931): Asbestos claim remanded for factual findings
W.C., a former Navy shipyard worker, claimed a pulmonary condition from asbestos exposure at work. OWCP’s hearing decision did not state whether it accepted that he had been exposed or establish the nature and extent of any exposure. It also did not fully review the medical reports. The Board set…
J.D. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Memphis, TN
J.D. (ECAB 12-1729): Impartial physician selection must be documented
J.D., a Veterans Affairs employee with an accepted left arm condition, received a schedule award for three percent impairment. OWCP rescinded the award after a referee physician found no ratable impairment and then declared an overpayment. J.D. challenged how OWCP chose the physician. The Board…
Basic Marine, Inc.
Most shipyard citations affirmed
Basic Marine performed shipbuilding and repair work involving confined spaces, hazardous coatings, forklifts, cranes, lifting equipment, and work on barges and a pier. The judge affirmed nearly all contested items, including violations involving confined-space testing and rescue, respiratory…
Bellco Glass, Inc.
Late contests dismissed in consolidated cases
OSHA issued separate health and safety citations to Bellco Glass after inspecting its New Jersey facility. The company did not submit a written notice of contest within 15 working days and filed its request for a hearing eleven weeks after the deadline. Despite several extensions and opportunities…
Matter of Charlemagne Micabalo ESTRADA and Matter of Vanessa Joan ESTRADA, Respondents
Matter of ESTRADA (BIA ID 3790): after-acquired spouses cannot be derivative grandfathered aliens
The Board reviewed a married Filipino couple's appeal from the denial of adjustment of status under section 245(i) and the grant of voluntary departure. The couple argued that earlier family and employment visa petitions made them eligible for section 245(i) as grandfathered aliens. The Board held…
J.H. and Department of the Army, Red River Army Depot, Texarkana, TX
J.H. (ECAB 13-1180): Medical evidence did not link prostate cancer to workplace exposure
J.H., a rubber injection molding machine operator at an Army depot, claimed that exposure to substances from rubber products caused his prostate cancer. The Board accepted that he had been exposed at work and had been diagnosed with cancer. His physicians’ reports, however, did not discuss his…
C.E. and U.S. Postal Service, Arch Annex Station, Stockton, CA
C.E. (ECAB 13-1110): Untimely reconsideration request did not show clear error
C.E., a postal carrier, sought compensation for back and arm symptoms that she attributed to her duties. After OWCP denied the claim, she sought reconsideration more than a year after the latest merit decision. Her new evidence included a physician’s report supporting a connection between her…
Y.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bedford Park, IL
Y.W. (ECAB 13-985): Untimely reconsideration request did not establish clear error
Y.W., a postal mail handler, claimed that her work caused bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome. OWCP denied her claim in March 2009, and she requested reconsideration in September 2011. The Board found the request outside the one-year period. A new surgeon’s report diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome and…
D.B. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Borders Protection, Chula Vista, CA
D.B. (ECAB 13-957): Medical evidence did not connect vision loss to stressful driving
D.B., a federal equipment operator, claimed that driving heavy equipment under hazardous road conditions caused a blood clot, stroke, and loss of sight in his right eye. OWCP accepted the reported work incident but denied compensation for lack of medical evidence connecting it to an injury. An…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Fort Dearborn Post Office, Chicago, IL
J.S. (ECAB 13-909): Overpayment occurred, but amount and fault need review
J.S., a postal carrier receiving disability compensation, returned to work part time while a payment for total disability was deposited into her account. The Board agreed that she had received an overpayment. It found that OWCP had calculated the $775.23 amount using a full-time return date that…
A.S., widow of M.S., and Department of the Navy, Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, Pearl Harbor, HI
A.S. (ECAB 13-768): Conflicting medical opinions require review of survivor claim
M.S., a former Navy shipyard worker, had an accepted claim for work-related asbestosis. After he died, his widow A.S. sought survivor benefits. OWCP denied the claim based on its medical adviser’s view that asbestosis had not caused or aggravated his death. M.S.’s treating physician gave the…
J.K. and Department of the Army, Army Material Command, Fort Monmouth, NJ
J.K. (ECAB 13-327): Unresolved medical conflict defeats termination of benefits
J.K. received compensation for neurological effects of a work injury. OWCP ended her benefits after a second-opinion neurologist found no remaining work-related neurological condition or disability. Her treating physicians reached the opposite conclusion. The Board found their opinions carried…
H.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Hudson Park Station, Philadelphia, PA
H.J. (ECAB 13-144): Twelve percent arm impairment award affirmed
H.J., a postal letter carrier with an accepted cervical spine condition, received a schedule award for 12 percent impairment of his right arm. His physician calculated 25 percent, but the Board found that he had not applied the required impairment-rating method for spinal nerve injuries. OWCP’s…
S.B. and Department of the Navy, Navy Region Southwest Human Resources Office, San Diego, CA
S.B. (ECAB 12-1715): Emotional condition claim lacked a proven compensable work factor
S.B., a Navy transportation assistant, attributed stress to supervisory decisions, discipline, workplace accommodations, and alleged verbal mistreatment. The Board found no evidence of error or abuse in the administrative actions it examined. It also found the alleged verbal abuse and harassment…
United Mine Workers of America on behalf of Mark A. Franks and Ronald M. Hoy v. Emerald Coal Resources, LP
Discrimination remedies remained in effect during review
An administrative law judge found that Emerald Coal Resources discriminated against miners Mark Franks and Ronald Hoy by suspending each for seven days. The judge ordered back pay with interest, notice posting, and removal of the related reprimands from the miners' personnel files. After the…
R.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fleetwood, PA
R.S. (ECAB 13-922): Part-time job could not support full-time wage capacity finding
R.S., a postal carrier injured at work, later held a four-hour-a-day light-duty job. OWCP based a wage-earning capacity determination on that job, then denied further compensation after the Postal Service withdrew the position. The Board held that the earlier determination was erroneous because the…
E.O. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Boston, MA
E.O. (ECAB 13-872): Missed hearing request deemed abandoned
E.O., a postal carrier, asked for a hearing after OWCP ended her compensation benefits. OWCP mailed a hearing notice to her address of record more than 30 days before the scheduled date. She did not appear and did not ask for another hearing within the following 10 days. The Board held that OWCP…
S.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Washington, DC
S.D. (ECAB 13-864): Shoulder impairment rating needs further explanation
S.D., a postal worker, injured her right shoulder and later received a schedule award based on five percent arm impairment. Her treating surgeon had given both five and six percent ratings, and OWCP’s medical adviser chose five percent. The Board found that neither physician explained the grade…
D.P. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
D.P. (ECAB 13-843): Left-ear hearing-loss award affirmed
D.P., a former Navy shipyard employee, sought a larger award for hearing loss associated with workplace noise. OWCP used an audiogram from his 2000 retirement date to rate the loss attributable to his federal work. His physician said the later increase in hearing loss arose from other factors, and…
A.D. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, Pembroke Pines, FL
A.D. (ECAB 13-490): Accident during personal trip was outside duty
A.D. was on a temporary work assignment in Jacksonville, Florida, and then traveled to Orlando to visit her sister. She was injured in a vehicle accident while driving from Orlando toward her duty station in Panama City. The Board found that the Orlando trip was personal and that the accident on…
A.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Princeton, NJ
A.S. (ECAB 13-447): Knee injury claim lacked a reasoned medical link
A.S., a postal carrier, reported that a wall-mounted mail box fell onto his right knee while he was delivering mail. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred, but denied compensation because the medical evidence did not establish an injury caused by it. A surgeon described possible post-traumatic…
V.R. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Newark, NJ
V.R. (ECAB 12-1239): Recurrence claim and request to reopen denied
V.R., a transportation security worker with an accepted shoulder injury, claimed total disability after her limited-duty airport assignment changed. She argued that the new exit-lane position was more demanding than her earlier office work. The Board found the record did not show a change in…
C.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Pomona, CA
C.B. (ECAB 13-1139): Additional impairment award denied
C.B., a Postal Service letter carrier, had accepted carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands and had received schedule awards for impairment in each arm. She sought another award after a 2012 examination. Her surgeon reported that her condition and impairment were relatively unchanged, and an OWCP…
L.M. and Department of the Army, Tobyhanna Army Depot, Tobyhanna, PA
L.M. (ECAB 13-0960): End of wage-loss compensation affirmed
L.M., an Army Depot education technician, received wage-loss compensation after an accepted ankle injury and later consequential injuries. OWCP ended those payments after a second-opinion orthopedic surgeon said she had recovered from the work-related disability and could perform her job. The Board…
L.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
L.B. (ECAB 13-0789): Request to reopen impairment claim denied
L.B., a Postal Service worker with accepted neck and arm conditions, sought a larger schedule award for arm impairment. OWCP had denied an increase, and she later asked it to reconsider. The Board could review only OWCP’s refusal to reopen, because her appeal came too late for review of the earlier…
C.S. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Logistics Base, Barstow, CA
C.S. (ECAB 13-0787): Right-arm award and late reconsideration denial upheld
C.S., a former Navy logistics-base employee, challenged the amount of his right-arm impairment award after a shoulder injury. The Board accepted an OWCP medical adviser’s correction of the examining surgeon’s calculation and found no other physician had supplied an impairment rating supporting more…
T.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Birmingham, AL
T.W. (ECAB 13-0594): Late reconsideration request did not reopen claim
T.W., a former Postal Service letter carrier, sought compensation for a right-arm condition he attributed to repetitive work. OWCP had denied that claim in 1996 because the medical evidence did not establish a causal connection. He asked for reconsideration in 2012, long after the one-year limit…
D.J. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Oklahoma City, OK
D.J. (ECAB 13-0064): Benefit reinstatement date upheld
D.J.’s compensation was suspended in 2003 because she did not attend a required medical examination. OWCP restored eligibility as of June 30, 2008, when it found she had agreed to comply. She sought an earlier reinstatement date. The Board held that a later medical report and other materials did…
S.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Philadelphia Veterans Administration Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA
S.H. (ECAB 12-1776): Workplace fall established; injury claim remanded
S.H., a Veterans Affairs transportation clerk, reported falling while trying to sit in a chair at work and claimed back, leg, and ankle injuries. OWCP denied the claim after finding that the reported incident had not been established. The Board found her account consistent with the prompt injury…
W.J. and Federal Judiciary, U.S. Probation Office, Jacksonville, FL
W.J. (ECAB 12-1606): Additional knee and nerve conditions denied
W.J., a federal probation officer, was injured in a work-related vehicle accident, and OWCP accepted shoulder and rib conditions. He later sought recognition of right knee arthritis and a right ulnar nerve lesion. The Board found that knee imaging did not support the claimed arthritis and that the…
B.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Southeastern, PA
B.N. (ECAB 12-1394): Additional impairment compensation denied
B.N., a Postal Service mail handler, sought larger impairment awards for his left arm and right leg after accepted work injuries. The medical opinions conflicted, so OWCP selected an impartial orthopedic surgeon to examine him. The Board found that OWCP documented a proper rotational selection and…
Secretary of Labor v. Performance Coal Company
The judge had to address the increased penalty request
MSHA cited Performance Coal for a significant-and-substantial accumulation of float coal dust and initially proposed a $4,329 penalty. After the hearing, the Secretary asked for $34,653 based on asserted evidence of high negligence and seven miners potentially affected. The judge discussed the…
Pio Pico Energy Center, LLC
In re Pio Pico Energy Center, LLC (EAB PSD Appeal Nos. 12-04 through 12-06): PM BACT analysis remanded, other issues denied
EPA Region 9 issued Pio Pico Energy Center, LLC a PSD permit for a 300-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant in Otay Mesa, California. Three petitions challenged the permit and several conditions, including the greenhouse-gas and particulate-matter BACT analyses, public comments, air-quality…
J.S. and General Services Administration, Office of Federal Supplies & Services, Duluth, GA
J.S. (ECAB 13-0995): End of wage-loss compensation affirmed
J.S., a General Services Administration warehouse worker, had received disability compensation for a 1983 work injury involving his back and an accepted psychiatric condition. After an earlier appeal, OWCP obtained new orthopedic and psychiatric examinations. The Board found that the examiners gave…
B.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Portland, ME
B.D. (ECAB 13-0915): Vocational rehabilitation sanction upheld
B.D., a Postal Service postmaster, received compensation for an accepted depression claim. OWCP directed her to participate in vocational rehabilitation after her psychologist said she could work with limits. The Board found that she did not complete assigned tasks, pursue approved job leads, or…
F.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Omaha, NE
F.H. (ECAB 13-0866): Increased arm impairment award denied
F.H., a Postal Service mail handler, had accepted cervical disc, carpal tunnel, and ulnar nerve conditions and had already received arm impairment awards. He sought additional compensation for worsening impairment. The Board found that the new examination showed no ratable arm impairment from…
S.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Richmond, CA
S.S. (ECAB 13-0688): Abandoned hearing request affirmed
S.S., a Postal Service employee, requested a hearing after OWCP reduced her compensation based on a receptionist job it found suitable. OWCP mailed hearing notices to her and her representative. Neither appeared, and she did not ask for another hearing or explain the absence within 10 days. The…
F.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New York, NY
F.T. (ECAB 13-0617): Injury claim denied despite documented accident
F.T., a Postal Service vehicle operator, was involved in a work-related vehicle accident and claimed back, hip, and chest injuries. OWCP accepted that the accident happened but denied compensation because the submitted records did not identify a definite injury diagnosis. The Board found that…
D.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Atlanta, GA
D.P. (ECAB 13-0530): Dependent-rate overpayment and fault finding upheld
D.P., a Postal Service mail handler, received wage-loss payments at the higher rate for claimants with an eligible dependent after listing her partner’s child as her son. The Board found that the record did not establish a qualifying parent-child relationship under the FECA definition applied in…
T.C. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York, NY
T.C. (ECAB 13-0511): Pregnancy-related injury claim sent back for medical review
T.C., an FBI investigator who was seven months pregnant, was involved in a work-related vehicle accident and was examined at a hospital afterward. OWCP accepted that the accident occurred but denied her injury claim for lack of a reasoned medical opinion connecting her diagnosed pregnancy…
C.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fort Worth, TX
C.D. (ECAB 12-1913): Overpayment upheld; early fault finding sent back
C.D., a Postal Service letter carrier, received some wage-loss payments at the higher dependent rate even though he had reported no eligible dependents. The Board agreed that the difference between that rate and the basic rate produced a $4,985.09 overpayment. It found OWCP had not shown he should…
T.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Denver, CO
T.M. (ECAB 12-1651): Examination suspension upheld; recurrence ruling modified
T.M., a Postal Service carrier with an accepted neck injury, claimed renewed disability after her work hours were reduced. Conflicting medical opinions led OWCP to schedule an impartial examination twice, but she did not attend either appointment. The Board found the reasons she gave did not…
Matter of Lennyn Dejesus TAVAREZ PERALTA, Respondent
Matter of Lennyn Dejesus TAVAREZ PERALTA (BIA ID 3789): laser interference endangers public safety but is not a crime of violence
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security's appeal after an Immigration Judge terminated removal proceedings against a Dominican respondent. The respondent had been convicted under 18 U.S.C. § 32(a)(5) after shining a laser into the eyes of a police-helicopter pilot, causing a…
J.S. and Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Villa Park, CA
J.S. (ECAB 13-1001): Additional right-wrist condition denied
J.S., a Census Bureau enumerator, had accepted injuries after leaping away from a truck while working. He later claimed a right-wrist condition from the same incident. The Board found that reports favoring the claim lacked a reasoned explanation of causation or described a different accident than…
W.F. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Butler, PA
W.F. (ECAB 13-0901): Back and neck injury claim denied
W.F., a Veterans Affairs vehicle operator, reported neck and back pain after driving a small bus over a bumpy road. OWCP accepted that the driving incident occurred but denied his injury claim. The Board found that his doctor diagnosed sprains and said the incident aggravated spinal stenosis, but…
S.D. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Philadelphia, PA
S.D. (ECAB 13-0889): End of wage-loss compensation upheld
S.D., an IRS tax examiner, received compensation after a work fall injured her back, ankle, and legs. Treating and second-opinion doctors disagreed about whether the accepted injuries still caused disability, so OWCP obtained an impartial orthopedic examination. The Board gave special weight to…
T.Z. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Milan, IL
T.Z. (ECAB 13-0834): Additional right-arm award denied
T.Z., a Postal Service clerk, had accepted right carpal tunnel and shoulder conditions and had received a 10 percent right-arm impairment award. After another shoulder injury and surgery, she sought an increased award. Her doctor rated a full-thickness rotator cuff tear, but the operating surgeon…
M.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, New York, NY
M.H. (ECAB 13-0825): Social Security offset overpayment sent back
M.H., a Veterans Affairs nurse receiving FECA compensation, also received Social Security benefits. OWCP calculated a $22,122.50 overpayment by offsetting benefits it attributed to federal service and directed deductions from her continuing payments. The Board found the Social Security information…
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.