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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White Buck Coal Company
Requested stay denied and docket assigned
The Secretary’s Conference and Litigation Representative asked the Judge to stay assignment of the docket for 180 days because of a high contest rate and limited staff. Judge Robert J. Lesnick denied the motion, citing the Acting Secretary’s assurance that the Department of Labor had resources to…
Dominion Coal Corporation
One order affirmed, one dismissed with $4,000 penalty
MSHA brought proceedings against Dominion Coal Corporation over orders and a citation involving its Mine #36. Judge William S. Steele affirmed an order concerning a failure to report a communication-system condition. He dismissed a separate order because the cited entry had been dangered off and…
R.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
R.T. (ECAB 13-833): No ratable leg impairment from accepted injury
R.T., a Postal Service mail handler, sought a schedule award for right leg impairment following an accepted 1989 fall. The accepted conditions included a hip contusion and back strain, and OWCP later accepted a knee sprain. The Board found no medical explanation connecting the later knee…
B.S. and Office of Personnel Management, Federal Investigations Division, Denver, CO
B.S. (ECAB 13-641): Shoulder condition not linked to accepted work injury
B.S., an Office of Personnel Management investigator, sought to establish a right shoulder condition in a claim that already covered bilateral forearm tendinitis and left carpal tunnel syndrome with ulnar nerve compression. Earlier appeals had raised problems with the selection of impartial medical…
C.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, East Saint Louis, IL
C.H. (ECAB 13-432): Vehicle accident accepted, injury claim lacked medical proof
C.H., a Postal Service mail carrier, reported back and neck injuries after a motor vehicle accident while working. OWCP accepted that the accident happened. The Board found that the medical reports with physicians’ typed names were unsigned and that another signature was illegible, leaving those…
S.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New Orleans, LA
S.C. (ECAB 13-374): Reconsideration denied without reopening the merits
S.C., a Postal Service employee, sought to reopen a long-running claim involving termination of wage-loss compensation and an alleged emotional condition. He argued that his accepted injury still caused disability, questioned the impartial physician, and submitted additional medical and other…
L.M., Executrix of the Estate of W.M., and Department of the Army, Army Depot, Corpus Christi, TX
L.M., Estate of W.M. (ECAB 13-322): Chemical exposure claim remanded for medical conflict
L.M., executrix of W.M.’s estate, pursued a claim that his illnesses were linked to chemical exposure while overhauling military helicopters for an Army depot. The Board agreed that the record did not document his claimed exposure to Agent Orange. It found, however, that his physician and OWCP’s…
M.S. and Department of the Navy, Pacific Fleet Shipyard, Pearl Harbor, HI
M.S. (ECAB 13-152): Arm impairment ratings sent back for fuller medical analysis
M.S., a Navy shipyard mechanic, had received schedule awards for seven percent impairment of his right arm and three percent of his left arm after an accepted shoulder and cervical injury. He sought higher ratings. The Board found that the examiner had explained a separate right suprascapular nerve…
D.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Harrisburg Processing and Distribution Center, Harrisburg, PA
D.H. (ECAB 12-1975): Benefit termination reversed, disc claim denied
D.H., a Postal Service employee, had an accepted lumbar strain and later sought recognition of a herniated disc from the same lifting injury. OWCP terminated her wage-loss and medical benefits after concluding that the accepted injury had resolved. The Board found equally weighted medical opinions…
E.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
E.J. (ECAB 12-1948): Fourteen percent impairment awards for each leg upheld
E.J., a Postal Service mail handler with an accepted low back injury, had received schedule awards totaling 14 percent impairment of each leg. He sought a larger award based on his physician’s 29 percent rating of each leg. The Board found that OWCP’s medical adviser had applied the appropriate…
Secretary of Labor v. Pay Car Mining, Inc. and Dynamic Energy, Inc.
Late contests reopened after medical disruption
Pay Car Mining and Dynamic Energy missed the 30-day deadline to contest proposed penalty assessments after their representative placed the papers in a secretary's work box. Unforeseen medical developments prevented the secretary from filing the contests until after the assessments became final. The…
Raw Coal Mining Company, Inc.
Citations affirmed with $69,348 penalty
MSHA brought civil penalty proceedings against Raw Coal Mining Company at the Sewell Mine B. The case involved four citations and two orders concerning mine safety conditions, including belt equipment, accumulations, and examinations. Judge William S. Steele affirmed the citations and orders as…
Secretary of Labor v. Justice Energy Company, Inc.
Truck and haul-road citations cut to $3,802
Justice Energy contested six citations involving contractor and company trucks, dusty haul roads, a dump-site berm, and a rock in the roadway at its surface coal mine. Judge Jeffrey Tureck upheld a contractor-truck maintenance citation but reduced the mine operator's negligence and penalty because…
Secretary of Labor v. Clintwood Elkhorn Mining Company, LLC
Adjacent-mine mapping charges vacated
MSHA alleged that Clintwood Elkhorn's maps did not show the full extent of an abandoned adjacent mine after a horizontal borehole intercepted an unexpected void. The engineer who certified the adjacent mine's final 1996 map testified that it showed the complete workings and that open and closed…
Matter of Eugene Reagan OTIENDE
A child’s petition must be considered separately from a spouse’s marriage-fraud bar
The Board reviewed a United States citizen's visa petition for his stepson after the petition for the child's mother had been denied under the marriage-fraud bar in section 204(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The Board held that section 204(c) applies to the alien who entered into or…
L.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Brush Prairie, WA
L.S. (ECAB 13-716): Termination of ankle injury benefits affirmed
L.S., a Postal Service rural carrier, received disability benefits after OWCP accepted right ankle tendinitis. OWCP later terminated benefits after its referral physician examined her and concluded that the accepted condition had resolved without work-related residuals. The Board found that opinion…
A.W. and Peace Corps, Washington, DC
A.W. (ECAB 13-648): Preexisting knee symptoms defeated Peace Corps presumption
A.W., a Peace Corps volunteer in Nicaragua, claimed that walking on uneven ground and long bus rides to treatment worsened her left knee condition. The Board recognized the usual presumption that an illness or injury arising during overseas Peace Corps service is work related. It found that medical…
R.M. and Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service, Del Rio, TX
R.M. (ECAB 13-531): New knee report did not warrant reopening schedule award
R.M., a U.S. Marshals Service employee with an accepted knee injury, sought further review of a schedule award. His reconsideration request included a new physician report describing how a torn meniscus contributed to knee osteoarthritis. The Board found that the report gave no impairment rating…
J.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Palatine, IL
J.A. (ECAB 13-478): Continued schedule award payments created overpayment
J.A., a Postal Service mail handler, continued receiving schedule award payments after the award’s January 2011 end date because OWCP failed to stop them. OWCP calculated an additional $47,250.56 paid from January 16, 2011 through April 7, 2012. The Board upheld that amount and found J.A. at fault…
T.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tampa, FL
T.C. (ECAB 13-441): Termination of disability and medical benefits reversed
T.C., a Postal Service city carrier, received compensation for an accepted back strain and sciatica after a work injury. OWCP terminated benefits after obtaining an impartial medical examination. The Board found that the examiner’s opinion that she could do sedentary work did not establish that she…
D.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Jersey City, NJ
D.M. (ECAB 13-367): Spine injury claim lacked reasoned medical causation
D.M., a Postal Service mail keyer, claimed that sorting and lifting duties worsened neck and low back conditions. OWCP accepted his description of work factors and that he experienced pain, but denied the injury claim. The Board found that one physician generally linked his radiculitis to work…
E.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Vienna, VA
E.B. (ECAB 13-359): Oral hearing request missed the 30-day deadline
E.B., a Postal Service rural carrier, requested an oral hearing after OWCP denied his emotional condition claim on June 11, 2009. His request was postmarked July 14, three days after the 30-day period ended. The Board held that he had no right to a hearing after that deadline. OWCP considered…
L.D. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Coppell, TX
L.D. (ECAB 13-69): Lumbar fusion authorization denied
L.D., a transportation security screener, requested a lumbar fusion after an accepted back and rib injury. Her surgeon recommended surgery, while an OWCP examiner disagreed. The Board found OWCP properly referred the medical conflict to an impartial specialist. It credited his examination and…
Secretary of Labor v. Leeco, Inc.
Ventilation order reduced and two penalties set at $70,000
MSHA found a continuous miner operating with most of its ventilation curtain on the floor, no measurable airflow at the face, and thick suspended dust. Leeco admitted violating its approved ventilation plan, and Judge David F. Barbour found the condition significant and substantial because…
C.H. and Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD
C.H. (ECAB 13-742): Ulnar neuropathy claim lacked medical causation proof
C.H., an FDA microbiologist, claimed that repetitive laboratory tasks caused hand and wrist symptoms and right ulnar neuropathy. The Board found that her physician’s reports lacked a reasoned explanation connecting the diagnosed nerve condition to the specific duties. Notes from a nurse did not…
E.W. and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles, CA
E.W. (ECAB 13-741): Chair fall established, medical link to back injury lacking
E.W., a Customs and Border Protection secretary, fell after her office chair tilted in 2009 and later sought compensation for a low back injury. The fall itself was undisputed. The Board found that her physicians diagnosed a lumbosacral sprain but stated only in general terms that it was consistent…
D.B. and Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney's Office, Birmingham, AL
D.B. (ECAB 13-727): Suspension for missed medical examination affirmed
D.B., an assistant U.S. attorney receiving compensation for an accepted emotional condition, was directed to attend a second-opinion medical examination. She asked for another date and missed the scheduled appointment, citing travel distance, a late appointment time, and an early hearing the next…
W.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Augusta, GA
W.T. (ECAB 13-197): Long-distance medical travel reimbursement denied
W.T., a retired Postal Service employee, sought reimbursement for travel from Augusta to Washington for medical care. OWCP had accepted left knee conditions but had denied his claim for a consequential right hip condition. The Board found no showing that appropriate care was unavailable near…
J.D. and Department of Homeland Security, Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, Houston, TX
J.D. (ECAB 13-86): Compensation forfeiture upheld with restitution credit
J.D., a Customs and Border Protection officer receiving compensation for an accepted back injury, omitted business activity from periodic work and earnings reports. The Board upheld forfeiture for the reporting period and termination of benefits following his guilty pleas to benefit-related fraud…
V.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Morgan General Mail Facility, New York, NY
V.J. (ECAB 13-5): No ratable leg impairment from accepted low back injury
V.J., a Postal Service mail handler, sought a schedule award for left leg impairment after an accepted low back injury. Her physician rated the leg at 23 percent, while OWCP’s examiner found no qualifying nerve root impairment. OWCP obtained an impartial examination to resolve the conflict. The…
Progressive Interest, Inc.
Late contest dismissed over mail-handling failure
Progressive Interest received an OSHA citation while the employee responsible for mail was outside the country. Its backup employee signed for the certified mail and left it unopened on the responsible employee's desk, following the company's existing procedure. The employee returned two days…
R.C. and Department of the Navy, Naval Sea Systems Command, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crain, IN
R.C. (ECAB 12-1797): Late reconsideration lacked clear evidence of error
R.C., a Navy electrical engineer with an accepted back condition, sought benefits for injuries from a car accident after a medical appointment. He asked OWCP to reconsider its denial several years after the last merit decision. The Board found that the request missed the one-year deadline and that…
R.B. and Department of the Army, Installation Management Command, West Point, NY
R.B. (ECAB 12-1667): Hearing loss claim remanded after noise exposure established
R.B., an Army boiler operator, claimed hearing loss from noise around boilers, turbines, and auxiliary machines. OWCP denied the claim after he did not answer a request for more information about his exposure. The Board found that his work in the boiler area, the employer’s lack of dispute, and…
Georgia Power Company
Existing-conditions citation vacated after line-repair fatality
A Georgia Power crew responded to repair a 7,200-volt distribution line downed during a thunderstorm. The line later moved close to an energized jumper, became energized, and a journeyman lineman was electrocuted. The cited standard required a reasonable evaluation of existing safety conditions…
Secretary of Labor v. Tilcon New York, Inc.
Final penalty assessment reopened
Tilcon New York said it mailed a timely contest notice and payment for uncontested citations to St. Louis, Missouri, instead of Arlington, Virginia. The assessment became final, and Tilcon discovered the routing error after receiving a delinquency notice. It contacted MSHA on September 10, 2012…
Secretary of Labor v. Preston Contractors, Inc.
Unopposed final assessment reopening granted
Preston Contractors asked the Commission to reopen a penalty assessment that had become a final order after the contest deadline. The official order does not describe why the deadline was missed. The Secretary did not oppose reopening. The Commission granted relief in the interests of justice and…
Secretary of Labor v. Kiah Creek Transport, LLC
Untracked contest mailing led to reopening
Kiah Creek Transport asked the Commission to reopen three penalty assessments that became final after MSHA recorded no timely contests. The company said its counsel mailed contest notices on time but did not use certified mail. It discovered the problem after receiving delinquency notices about six…
Secretary of Labor v. Atlantic Leaseco, LLC
Deleted calendar deadline excused one-day delay
Atlantic Leaseco missed a penalty-contest deadline after a legal assistant accidentally deleted it from the company's new computer system. The company filed the contest one day after the assessment became final. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but urged Atlantic to prevent future late…
Secretary of Labor v. Spartan Mining Company, Inc.
Assessment reopened after reported mistaken payment
Spartan Mining received a proposed assessment containing 14 citations. It said it paid the penalty for Citation No. 8148369 by mistake instead of contesting it. The Secretary did not oppose reopening and noted that the other 13 citations were timely contested and docketed. The Commission reopened…
Secretary of Labor v. Scott Carpenter
Individual penalty reopened after mail went to former address
Scott Carpenter asked the Commission to reopen an individual section 110(c) penalty assessment that became final after no contest was filed. MSHA sent the assessment and delinquency notice to an address where Carpenter said he had not lived since 2010, even though he had requested that…
Secretary of Labor v. Stollings Trucking Company, Inc.
Unopposed request reopened final assessment
Stollings Trucking Company asked the Commission to reopen a penalty assessment that had become final after the contest period expired. The official order does not state the operator's reason for missing the deadline. The Secretary did not oppose the request. After reviewing the submissions, the…
Secretary of Labor v. Carter Roag Coal Company and Pocahontas Coal Company
Three assessments reopened after reported outage
Carter Roag Coal Company and Pocahontas Coal Company missed deadlines to contest three penalty assessments. The operators said a mine explosion left their safety department without power and communications from June 29 through July 7, disrupting their normal contest processing. MSHA received…
Secretary of Labor v. Louisa Construction Company
Three late contests reopened despite opposition
Louisa Construction missed deadlines to contest three assessments after an inexperienced office clerk handled the papers. A new assistant began overseeing MSHA correspondence, mailed late contests, and later encountered further delays from citation and docket-number mistakes. The Secretary opposed…
Secretary of Labor v. Anglogold Ashanti (Colorado) Corp.
Retirement file review revealed missed contest
Anglogold Ashanti asked the Commission to reopen a penalty assessment that became final after no contest was filed within 30 days. The company's safety manager said office absences and an unexpected illness caused him to miss the deadline. He discovered the delinquency while reviewing files before…
Secretary of Labor v. Brimhall Sand & Rock
Assessment reopened after contest sent to wrong office
Brimhall Sand & Rock said it timely mailed a penalty-contest notice and payment for uncontested citations to MSHA’s St. Louis office instead of the Civil Penalty Compliance Office in Arlington. MSHA received the payment, but the contested assessment became final. The Secretary did not oppose…
Secretary of Labor v. Western Mesquite Mines, Inc.
One-day-late contest reopened with filing warning
Western Mesquite Mines discussed a proposed assessment with counsel two weeks before the contest deadline but did not ask counsel to file until late on the deadline date. Counsel saw the email the next day and faxed the contest one day late. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but warned that…
Secretary of Labor v. Diamond Creek Mill
Assessment overlooked in crowded email was reopened
Diamond Creek Mill received a proposed assessment in an email containing other time-sensitive material and inadvertently failed to address it. The assessment became final, and the company discovered the delinquency on MSHA's website about seven weeks later. Diamond revised its procedures for…
Secretary of Labor v. Iluka Resources, Inc.
Late assessment contest reopened
Iluka Resources said it mailed a penalty contest on September 17, four days after the assessment became final. It received MSHA’s delinquency notice on October 11. Iluka said its mine manager had not known the deadline and that it had adopted a new filing procedure. The Secretary did not oppose…
Secretary of Labor v. Lewis Johnson, employed by Elmore Sand and Gravel, Inc.
Unreceived individual assessment was not final
MSHA mailed Lewis Johnson an individual section 110(c) penalty assessment four days after he left Elmore Sand and Gravel. The mailing was returned unclaimed, and Johnson said he did not remember receiving it. The Secretary did not oppose Johnson's request to reopen. The Commission held that the…
Secretary of Labor v. Drummond Company, Inc.
Contest mailed one day late was reopened
Drummond Company's inside counsel gave a contest form to his secretary for outgoing mail on the deadline date. The package was not postmarked until the following day, after the assessment had become final. Drummond adopted new procedures to prevent future defaults. The Secretary did not oppose…
Secretary of Labor v. Lance R. Battersby
Individual penalty reopened after move disrupted mail
Lance Battersby filed an individual section 110(c) penalty contest 17 days after the assessment became final. He said a move to Pennsylvania caused delays in forwarding his mail, and later delinquency notices were returned undelivered. MSHA eventually transferred the debt to the Department of…
Secretary of Labor v. Precision Aggregates, II, LLC
Assessment signed for by unknown person was reopened
Precision Aggregates said it never received a proposed assessment mailed to its address of record. Delivery records showed that the assessment was signed for by a person who did not work for the company. Precision learned of the problem after a delinquency notice was mailed to the same address. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Prairie State Generating Company, LLC
Final assessment reopened after contest went unrecorded
Prairie State said its former safety manager mailed a contest and payment for uncontested citations to MSHA's St. Louis office instead of Arlington. The company became concerned that the contest had not been processed after receiving a petition in another case and contacted MSHA. The Secretary did…
Secretary of Labor v. Ohio County Coal Company, LLC
Third mail-system default reopened with warning
Ohio County Coal said an internal mail-delivery failure delayed its safety manager's receipt of a proposed assessment. The company mailed its contest seven days after the assessment became final. The Secretary did not oppose reopening solely because the delay was short, but noted that this was the…
Secretary of Labor v. Tackett Creek Mining, Inc.
Late contest reopened after request citing president's health
Tackett Creek Mining said it missed its penalty-contest deadline while the company's president experienced medical problems during July and August. After returning in September, the president sent the assessment to the company's representative, and MSHA received a late contest dated September 10…
Secretary of Labor v. Milwhite, Inc.
Unopposed assessment reopening granted
Milwhite asked the Commission to reopen a penalty assessment that had become final after the contest deadline. The official order does not state why the company missed the deadline. The Secretary did not oppose reopening. The Commission granted relief in the interest of justice and remanded the…
Secretary of Labor v. P&H MinePro Services South Central Operations
Filing responsibility mix-up excused late contest
P&H MinePro's safety manager and counsel each believed the other had filed the company's penalty contest. The assessment became final, and the company discovered the mistake after receiving a delinquency notice. P&H adopted new policies to prevent another responsibility mix-up. The Secretary did…
West Bay Exploration Co.
In re West Bay Exploration Co. (EAB UIC Appeal Nos. 13-01 & 13-02): reconsideration denied after permit withdrawal
Peter Bormuth and Sandra K. Yerman challenged an Underground Injection Control permit issued to West Bay Exploration Co. EPA Region 5 later withdrew the permit in its entirety. The Environmental Appeals Board held that the petitioners had not shown a demonstrable error in the Board's earlier…
PBS Coals, Inc.
Untimely-filing dismissal denied
PBS Coals asked the Judge to dismiss a civil-penalty petition as untimely and argued that the delay caused actual prejudice. Judge John Kent Lewis found that the record did not establish sufficient prejudice to justify dismissal and denied the request. He ordered the case to proceed to a hearing on…
Timothy S. Gelinas v. Electric Boat Corporation
Gelinas v. Electric Boat (BRB 12-0587): security guard's Longshore claim denial affirmed
Timothy Gelinas worked as a security guard and emergency medical technician at Electric Boat's submarine production facility. He claimed hearing loss from industrial noise and sought Longshore Act benefits. After an earlier remand, an administrative law judge again found that his duties were not…
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.