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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M.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Dallas Performance Cluster, Coppell, TX
M.C. (ECAB 13-1161): Late hearing request denied
M.C., a postal supervisor, requested a hearing nearly two years after OWCP denied her tendinitis claim. The Board held that the request missed the 30-day period for a hearing as of right. It also found that OWCP reasonably declined to grant a discretionary hearing because M.C. could seek…
S.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Port Hueneme, CA
S.M. (ECAB 13-1140): Mail route incident accepted, injury claim still denied
S.M., a postal carrier, reported back and leg pain while walking her delivery route. OWCP denied her claim because it doubted that the incident occurred as she described. The Board found her prompt report, treatment, and consistent account sufficient to establish the work incident. It still denied…
W.G. and Department of the Navy, Charleston Naval Shipyard, Charleston, SC
W.G. (ECAB 13-1105): Wage capacity reduction left in place
W.G., a former Navy shipyard welder, injured his left thumb and wrist and later worked for years as a container maintenance mechanic. OWCP used his earnings in that job to determine his wage-earning capacity. He sought modification after OWCP also accepted a left wrist condition. The Board found…
C.K. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
C.K. (ECAB 13-0970): Shipyard shoulder injury claim denied
C.K., a shipyard electroplater, reported shoulder pain after catching equipment that slipped while he was on a ladder. OWCP accepted that the event occurred but denied his injury claim. The Board found that the physician’s report marked the condition work related without explaining a diagnosis…
L.S. and Social Security Administration, Personnel Operations, Jamaica, NY
L.S. (ECAB 13-0847): Benefit termination reversed for medical review
L.S., a Social Security Administration benefits authorizer, received compensation for back conditions after workplace incidents in 2008 and 2010. OWCP ended her wage-loss and medical benefits in September 2011, relying on an examining surgeon who found that the work-related conditions had resolved…
E.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Coppell, TX
E.S. (ECAB 13-0645): Part-time telephone solicitor wage capacity upheld
E.S., a former postal carrier with accepted physical injuries and depression, had worked four hours a day in a modified position before the Postal Service stopped providing work. OWCP later reduced his wage-loss compensation based on earnings available in a part-time telephone solicitor position…
P.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Madison, WI
P.D. (ECAB 12-1429): Neck injury benefit termination upheld
P.D., a postal clerk, received benefits for a neck strain and cervical spinal subluxation after a 2000 workplace injury. OWCP ended her compensation and medical benefits after an impartial orthopedic examiner concluded that she no longer had injury-related residuals. P.D. challenged the…
Secretary of Labor v. Spartan Mining Company, Inc.
Mistaken payment did not erase earlier citation contests
Spartan Mining had timely contested three citations but later mistakenly paid the related proposed penalties. The Secretary opposed reopening because this was Spartan's second similar request, its internal system appeared unreliable, and it waited months after related settlement activity to seek…
Lewis-Goetz and Company, Inc.
Fall protection citation vacated by ALJ
Lewis-Goetz performed conveyor-belt fabrication and repair work at the Dobbin Ridge Prep Plant. An employee worked 10 to 12 feet above the ground on a wet coal belt without a safety harness or tag line, although fall-protection equipment was available and the employee had recently been trained…
Secretary of Labor v. Drilling & Blasting Systems, Inc.
Overlooked assessment was reopened despite opposition
Drilling & Blasting Systems missed a penalty-contest deadline after downsizing, heavy travel, and an overloaded safety manager caused the assessment mail to sit unnoticed. The company then waited about five months after a delinquency notice to request reopening. The Secretary opposed relief, noting…
A.C. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Canaan, PA
A.C. (ECAB 13-1128): Ten percent ankle impairment award upheld
A.C., a correctional officer, fractured his left ankle during an incident at work. He sought a schedule award, and his treating surgeon rated the resulting leg impairment at 15 percent. OWCP’s medical adviser rated it at 10 percent, which OWCP awarded. The Board found that the measured ankle motion…
F.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Alexandria, LA
F.W. (ECAB 13-0878): Late reconsideration denied; separate claim awaits decision
F.W., a postal carrier, reported left wrist and thumb pain associated with carrying mail. OWCP denied his traumatic injury claim in February 2011, and he sought reconsideration more than a year later. The Board held that his request was late and that his new argument did not show clear error in the…
H.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Gulf Winds Station, St. Petersburg, FL
H.S. (ECAB 13-0797): Bilateral arm impairment awards upheld
H.S., a postal worker with accepted conditions affecting both arms, sought higher schedule awards after earlier Board decisions required further medical review. An impartial examiner rated impairment in both shoulders, elbows, wrists, and thumbs and combined the ratings to 27 percent for each arm…
C.P. and Department of the Air Force, Joint Base Andrews, MD
C.P. (ECAB 13-0795): Finger injury claim denied for lack of medical proof
C.P., an Air Force medical support assistant, reported cutting her left little finger on a metal chart at work. OWCP denied her injury claim because it found the incident unproven. The Board disagreed on that point: her account, prompt treatment, and the employer’s lack of objection established…
D.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Coatesville, PA
D.L. (ECAB 13-0723): Aggravation claim denied after return to modified work
D.L., a Veterans Affairs health aide with earlier accepted injuries, claimed that a short return to modified work in January 2010 aggravated several conditions. OWCP denied the occupational disease claim after further development ordered in an earlier Board appeal. Her physicians reported increased…
P.V. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
P.V. (ECAB 13-0678): Late hearing request denied
P.V., a postal mail handler, sought a hearing after OWCP denied disability compensation for a period in February 2010. His hearing request was postmarked in December 2012, more than 30 days after OWCP’s February 2011 decision. The Board held that he had no right to a hearing after that deadline. It…
J.G. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Drakesboro, KY
J.G. (ECAB 13-0657): Lung impairment rating and reconsideration denial upheld
J.G., a retired Tennessee Valley Authority machinist, sought a higher schedule award for work related pneumoconiosis. OWCP’s medical adviser rated his lung impairment at 23 percent under the sixth edition of the impairment guides, below awards J.G. had already received. The Board found that the…
A.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Atlanta, GA
A.W. (ECAB 13-0621): Additional knee impairment award denied
A.W., a postal letter carrier, had received schedule awards totaling 31 percent permanent impairment of the right leg after a work related knee injury and surgeries. A.W. sought an additional award after a total knee replacement. The treating physician first used an outdated edition of the…
F.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Nashville, TN
F.G. (ECAB 13-0571): Further knee treatment not linked to accepted injury
F.G., a retired Veterans Affairs health technician, sought further medical treatment for a knee condition several years after an accepted meniscus injury. OWCP had approved surgery for the torn meniscus but had not accepted his separate degenerative joint disease or approved a later knee…
Secretary of Labor v. Bresee Trucking
Defective coal truck brakes supported an $11,306 penalty
Bresee Trucking used a heavy coal truck on steep, winding roads while its braking system had an audible air leak and two slack adjusters beyond the permitted travel limit. Judge Jacqueline R. Bulluck credited the inspector's evidence that those defects reduced braking capacity and could cause loss…
G.G. and Department of the Army, Medical Network Operations & Security Center, Fort Sam Houston, TX
G.G. (ECAB 13-0644): Emotional condition claim lacked a proven work factor
G.G., an Army information technology specialist, claimed work stress caused an emotional condition. He described a heavy workload, problems with supervision and training, and alleged harassment and violations of a labor agreement. The Board found that the record did not substantiate a compensable…
T.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Rocky Mount Annex, Rocky Mount, NC
T.H. (ECAB 13-0979): Reconsideration denial upheld without reopening injury claim
T.H., a postal letter carrier, sought reconsideration of OWCP’s denial of an emotional condition claim following reported confrontations during work. OWCP had found that the record did not establish a compensable work factor. The Board held that her new medical reports and work assignment letters…
D.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Detroit, MI
D.D. (ECAB 13-0908): Disability claim returned for medical development
D.D., a postal mail clerk, sought disability compensation from November 2, 2009 through January 25, 2010 for an accepted left foot and leg condition. OWCP denied the claim. The Board found that her physician’s reports did not fully explain the claimed inability to work, but they consistently…
C.T. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Estill, SC
C.T. (ECAB 13-0886): Dependent rate overpayment and recovery upheld
C.T. received compensation at a higher rate while claiming her daughter as a dependent. The daughter ceased full time college enrollment in December 2011, and the record did not establish that she was unable to support herself because of a disability. The Board upheld OWCP’s finding that the higher…
P.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bethpage, NY
P.C. (ECAB 13-0802): Repeated medical account did not reopen knee claim
P.C., a postal employee, asked OWCP to reconsider an earlier denial of her claim that she injured her left knee at work. She submitted a new report from her orthopedic surgeon, who repeated the account of the alleged incident and disagreed with the Board’s earlier decision. The Board found that the…
J.T. and Department of the Army, McAlester Army Ammunition Plant, McAlester, OK
J.T. (ECAB 13-0681): Termination of back injury benefits upheld
J.T., an Army ammunition plant worker, received benefits after accepted thoracic and lumbar sprains. His treating physicians and an OWCP physician disagreed about whether the work injuries still caused disability. An impartial orthopedic examiner found no objective evidence of continuing effects…
D.D. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Milwaukee, WI
D.D. (ECAB 13-0512): Three percent shoulder impairment rating upheld
D.D., a transportation security officer, sought a higher schedule award for a left shoulder injury. His physician proposed a 10 percent rating but did not identify the edition, pages, or tables of the impairment guides used to calculate it. An OWCP medical adviser applied the sixth edition and…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Plainfield, NJ
J.B. (ECAB 13-0237): Knee osteoarthritis claim denied after impartial examination
J.B., a postal letter carrier, claimed that his work caused or aggravated right knee osteoarthritis. Earlier appeals led OWCP to obtain an impartial orthopedic examination because physicians disagreed about the cause. The impartial specialist attributed the condition to aging and degeneration and…
D.B. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Quantico, VA
D.B. (ECAB 13-0133): Off duty fitness practice injury outside work coverage
D.B., an FBI new agent trainee, injured his leg while practicing for a required physical fitness test at a track near his home on a weekend. The Board accepted that the injury occurred but found it was outside the performance of duty. The employer recommended practice outside work hours but did not…
Barlament Erection Crane Rentals
Crane tag, latch, and inspection items affirmed
Barlament used a truck-mounted crane to hoist bundled wooden roof trusses at a residential construction site. Its fabricated chain sling lacked the required capacity and manufacturer tag, the hoist hook's self-closing latch had been intentionally removed, and its monthly and annual inspection…
Secretary of Labor v. Savage Services Corporation
New safety director's late contest was reopened
Savage Services missed the 30-day penalty-contest deadline while its new safety director contacted MSHA representatives to understand the contest procedure. After receiving instructions, the company filed a late contest and adopted new procedures to prevent another delay. The Secretary did not…
Secretary of Labor v. United Mine Services
Claimed timely contest was reopened
United Mine Services said it mailed a penalty-contest notice two days after receiving the proposed assessment. MSHA had no record of the filing, and the company learned of the discrepancy from a later delinquency notice. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged the company to ensure…
Secretary of Labor v. Freeport-McMoRan Morenci, Inc.
Timely contest sent to the wrong office was reopened
Freeport-McMoRan said it mailed a timely penalty-contest notice to MSHA's St. Louis payment office instead of the Arlington civil penalty office. It discovered the mistake after a collection agency contacted it. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but noted the earlier delinquency notice and…
Boart Longyear Company v. Secretary of Labor
Alternative platform charge rejected before trial
MSHA had cited Boart Longyear for a foreman's failure to use fall protection while working on a truck bed and proposed a $70,000 penalty. Shortly before trial, the Secretary sought to add an alternative charge that the truck bed was an unsafe work platform without handrails. Judge David Barbour…
Sierra Pacific Industries (Anderson Processing Facility)
In re Sierra Pacific Industries (Anderson Processing Facility) (EAB PSD Appeal Nos. 13-01 through 13-04): Public hearing ordered, other issues denied
EPA Region 9 issued Sierra Pacific Industries a PSD permit for a new biomass and natural gas boiler in Anderson, California. Four petitions challenged the permit, including the Region's decision not to hold a public hearing, its treatment of comments, its classification of the project, its…
Secretary of Labor v. Duffy, Inc. and Dennis S. Bell
Consent to a stay defeated the delay-based dismissal request
Duffy, Inc. and foreman Dennis Bell sought dismissal of company and individual penalty proceedings based on alleged enforcement delays. Judge William S. Steele held that the Secretary timely filed the company penalty petition and that later delays were reasonable or occurred during a stay Duffy had…
Secretary of Labor v. Hubble Mining Company, LLC
Accounting clerical error was excused
Hubble Mining missed the 30-day penalty-contest deadline because of a clerical error in its accounting department. The company discovered the problem after receiving a delinquency notice and said it implemented new procedures to prevent recurrence. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged…
Matter of J-G-, Respondent
Matter of J-G- (BIA ID 3788): changed country conditions can support reopening without rescinding an in absentia order
The Board reviewed a Chinese respondent's appeal from the denial of a motion to reopen removal proceedings. The respondent had been ordered removed in absentia after failing to appear and later sought reopening to apply for asylum and withholding of removal based on changed conditions in China. The…
American Performance Technologies, Inc.
In re American Performance Technologies, Inc. (EAB CAA 13-02C): consent agreement ratified
American Performance Technologies, Inc. was the respondent in a Clean Air Act penalty matter before the Environmental Appeals Board. The Board incorporated an attached Consent Agreement into its Final Order by reference and ratified it. The Board ordered the respondent to comply with all terms of…
M.C. and Department of Defense, Defense Accounting & Finance Service, Indianapolis, IN
M.C. (ECAB 13-1147): Retirement offset overpayment and recovery upheld
M.C. received FECA disability compensation and Social Security retirement benefits subject to a federal retirement offset. OWCP had failed to apply the offset for more than a year, causing a $1,865.19 overpayment. The Board upheld that amount and OWCP’s refusal to waive recovery because M.C.’s…
D.L. and Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency, Camp Pendleton, CA
D.L. (ECAB 13-0887): Termination of neck and back injury benefits upheld
D.L., a former Defense Commissary Agency worker, received benefits for a back contusion, neck strain, and temporary aggravation of a preexisting cervical condition. Her treating physician and OWCP’s referral physician disagreed about whether the work injury still caused symptoms. An impartial…
R.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, St. Louis, MO
R.W. (ECAB 13-0830): Postal route duties not medically linked to back condition
R.W., a postal worker, claimed that extensive walking and stair climbing on her delivery route caused or worsened a lumbar condition. OWCP accepted those duties as work factors. The Board found that her physicians did not explain how those duties caused or aggravated the diagnosed condition; one…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Newark, NJ
J.B. (ECAB 13-0786): Schedule award denied without link to accepted back strain
J.B., a postal worker, sought a schedule award after an accepted low back strain. Earlier decisions found that the strain had resolved and that his continuing symptoms came from a preexisting degenerative condition. His physician later rated impairment from disc disease and surgery but did not…
L.Y. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Ogden, UT
L.Y. (ECAB 13-0761): Fall claim returned for evidence about workplace premises
L.Y., an IRS tax examining technician, fell on a sidewalk near her workplace while on a break and sought compensation for a knee injury. OWCP denied the claim because it concluded the fall occurred outside the employer’s premises. The Board found the record too vague to support that conclusion: the…
L.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Brooklyn, NY
L.P. (ECAB 13-0561): Postal worker's back injury claim denied for lack of medical explanation
L.P., a postal clerk, reported a right leg cramp while handling packages at work and later received a diagnosis of a lumbar nerve condition. OWCP accepted that the April 2011 incident occurred but denied compensation because the medical evidence did not link the condition to that incident. Two…
B.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, North Little Rock, AR
B.S. (ECAB 13-0405): Painter's stroke claim denied without proof of work exposure
B.S., a painter at a Veterans Affairs facility, suffered a stroke and claimed that his work caused it. He reported symptoms before and during his workday, but did not describe the duties or exposure he believed caused the condition. Medical records confirmed the stroke without explaining when it…
T.F. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Butner, NC
T.F. (ECAB 12-1971): Full-time airline earnings support wage capacity decision
T.F. left his federal job after OWCP accepted an acute stress reaction and post-traumatic stress disorder. He later worked full time as an airline reservations representative, and OWCP used that job’s earnings to calculate his reduced compensation. After he moved to part-time work, he sought a…
G.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Main Post Office, Cincinnati, OH
G.H. (ECAB 04-2160): Late reconsideration request did not show clear error
G.H., a postal mail handler, claimed that pulling containers and emptying an elevator injured her lower back. OWCP denied the injury claim in April 2003 because the medical evidence did not establish a connection to the work incident. She requested reconsideration in May 2004, more than a year…
Secretary of Labor v. Pyne Sand and Stone Co., Inc.
Contest-procedure misunderstanding was excused
Pyne Sand and Stone missed the 30-day penalty-contest deadline while trying to discuss the underlying citations with MSHA. The company said it did not understand the formal contest procedure and later received a delinquency letter. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged Pyne to ensure…
Secretary of Labor v. Blue Mountain Energy, Inc.
Timely mailed contest was reopened after nonreceipt
Blue Mountain Energy said it mailed a penalty-contest notice one week after receiving the proposed assessment. MSHA had no record of receiving the form, and the company discovered the problem after a delinquency notice arrived. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged reliable future filing…
Secretary of Labor v. Tennco Energy, Inc.
Three rib-hazard enforcement actions vacated
Tennco Energy operated the Hance Mine No. 1, an underground coal mine in Kentucky. After a miner was injured by falling coal, MSHA alleged that Tennco failed to record hazardous rib conditions during weekly and preshift examinations and failed to support or control the ribs. Judge Jeffrey Tureck…
Matter of Oleg B. ZELENIAK, Beneficiary of a visa petition filed by Serge V. Polajenko, Petitioner
Matter of Oleg B. ZELENIAK (BIA ID 3787): lawful same-sex marriages can support immigration benefits
The Board reviewed a petitioner's appeal from the denial of a visa petition filed for his same-sex spouse. The petitioner and beneficiary were both men, and the Director had determined that their marriage was valid under Vermont law. After the Supreme Court held that section 3 of the Defense of…
Secretary of Labor v. Barber & Sons Aggregate
Unopposed reopening request was granted
A proposed MSHA penalty against Barber & Sons Aggregate became a final Commission order after the statutory contest period passed. Barber asked the Commission to reopen the assessment, and the Secretary did not oppose the request. The official order does not state the factual reason for the missed…
Secretary of Labor v. Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
Law department oversight was excused
Halliburton's safety manager instructed the company's law department to contest a proposed MSHA penalty on the day it was received. An administrative oversight in the law department prevented timely filing. The plant manager found the delinquency on MSHA's website nine days after the assessment…
R.L. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant, Chattanooga, TN
R.L. (ECAB 13-1177): Hearing loss claim filed decades after federal noise exposure
R.L., a retired Tennessee Valley Authority painter, claimed that noise from federal work caused hearing loss. He last worked for that employer in February 1984 and filed his claim in November 2012, after an audiogram showed greater hearing loss than earlier tests. The Board found that he had not…
D.G. and Department of the Treasury, U.S. Mint, West Point, NY
D.G. (ECAB 13-1148): Mint employee did not establish a compensable work factor
D.G., a lead information technology specialist at the U.S. Mint, claimed that workplace actions caused an emotional condition. She cited changes to her duties, a missed promotion, smaller office space, limits on telework, and alleged harassment and retaliation. The Board treated these as personnel…
N.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Fort Lauderdale, FL
N.H. (ECAB 13-0849): Medical reports did not link lumbar condition to mail handling
N.H., a postal mail processor, reported back pain after sweeping mail and moving racks at work in February 2012. OWCP accepted that these activities happened but denied her injury claim because the medical evidence did not explain how they caused or aggravated a lumbar condition. The Board agreed…
T.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Pittsburgh, PA
T.R. (ECAB 13-0837): Repeated arguments did not reopen recurrence claim
T.R., a postal letter carrier, had an accepted lumbar strain and knee contusion after escaping a dog during his route. He later sought benefits for a claimed herniated disc as a consequence of that incident. OWCP denied the recurrence claim, and T.R. requested reconsideration in 2012 by repeating…
B.F. and Department of Homeland Security, San Antonio, TX
B.F. (ECAB 13-0824): Board upholds 21 percent hearing loss award
B.F., a federal dog handler, developed hearing loss after exposure to barking and other workplace noise. OWCP accepted his hearing loss claim and awarded compensation for 21 percent loss in both ears, covering 42 weeks. He appealed the percentage. The Board found that OWCP’s medical adviser…
T.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Somers, MT
T.T. (ECAB 13-0774): Medical evidence did not link back condition to postal duties
T.T., a postmaster, attributed back, shoulder, and neck pain to distributing mail and moving heavy containers. OWCP accepted that he performed the described duties and that medical records showed a condition, but denied his claim for lack of a supported medical explanation connecting the two. 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.