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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D.E. and General Services Administration, Public Building Services, Los Angeles, CA
D.E. (ECAB 12-1417): Consequential left knee injury returned for conflict resolution
D.E. sought to add a left knee condition as a consequence of earlier accepted injuries and a fall. His physician attributed a bilateral knee injury to the fall, while an OWCP referral specialist attributed the left knee condition to weight and ordinary osteoarthritis progression. The Board found an…
R.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
R.S. (ECAB 12-1346): Medical assistant wage capacity upheld
R.S. challenged a wage-capacity reduction after accepted injuries from a postal vehicle accident. The Board found that a medical assistant job fit her documented light-duty limits, prior training and experience, and local availability. It affirmed OWCP’s use of that constructed position to measure…
S.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dacono, CO
S.G. (ECAB 12-1107): New medical explanation requires merits review
S.G.’s physician submitted a new explanation of how lifting and turning with a mail tray could injure her spine. That explanation addressed the causal gap in OWCP’s earlier injury denial. The Board held it relevant enough to reopen the claim, set aside the refusal, and directed OWCP to review the…
L.B. and Department of the Air Force, Civil Engineering Support Agency, Tyndall Air Force Base, FL
L.B. (ECAB 12-899): Wage capacity modification returned for medical development
L.B. sought modification of a longstanding wage-capacity finding after further back symptoms and approved surgery. OWCP’s second-opinion questions had not addressed whether the accepted condition had worsened enough to cause total disability for work. Later doctors reported total disability. The…
N.C. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, JFK International Airport, Jamaica, NY
N.C. (ECAB 12-740): Duplicate payment upheld but fault finding set aside
N.C. received a duplicate $1,949.74 electronic compensation payment. The Board upheld the overpayment amount but found OWCP had not shown she knew or should have known it was incorrect at the moment of the first erroneous deposit, while she was receiving other periodic payments. It set aside the…
K.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Fox Creek Station, Detroit, MI
K.M. (ECAB 12-726): Hip injury recurrence returned for development
K.M. sought total disability after accepted hip and thigh contusions. Her doctors linked later back symptoms and work limitations to the incident but gave too little reasoning to prove the claim outright. The Board found their reports sufficient to require a specialist evaluation. It also directed…
H.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bedford, MA
H.R. (ECAB 12-1496): Patient-assistance incident not shown to cause injury
H.R. assisted a nurse in lowering a patient and reported back pain the same day. The Board found the work incident occurred despite the employer’s objections. Her medical reports, however, did not establish a diagnosed injury caused by it; pain alone was a symptom, and the other opinions lacked…
K.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Greensboro Performance Cluster, Greensboro, NC
K.H. (ECAB 12-1785): Five percent right arm award upheld
K.H. sought a larger right arm award after an accepted shoulder and wrist injury. OWCP’s medical adviser applied the sixth edition of the A.M.A. Guides to the treating doctor’s findings and rated impairment at five percent. The Board found the rating properly calculated and no evidence establishing…
N.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Statistical Programs, Pittsburgh, PA
N.W. (ECAB 12-1618): Suitable work refusal termination reversed
N.W. did not accept an offered modified clerk position. The offer described its duties only as “Combo Primary” and left unclear whether the job was permanent or temporary. Without the actual duties and appointment status, OWCP could not establish suitability. The Board reversed the compensation…
T.E. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Immigration Services, Los Angeles, CA
T.E. (ECAB 12-1608): Pre-surgery carpal tunnel disability not proven
T.E. sought disability compensation for several weeks before surgery for accepted left carpal tunnel syndrome. Her doctor stated that she could not grip or perform fine hand tasks but did not explain how the accepted condition prevented her specific federal job duties during those dates. The Board…
E.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Columbia, SC
E.R. (ECAB 12-1481): Carpal tunnel disease not linked to carrier duties
E.R. attributed bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome to repetitive postal work. Her doctor said work could have exacerbated it but did not describe the specific duties, their frequency, or a medical mechanism linking them to her condition. The Board found the opinion too speculative and inadequately…
K.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bladensburg, OH
K.P. (ECAB 12-1355): Carpal tunnel recurrence and reopening refused
K.P. claimed a recurrence of accepted right carpal tunnel syndrome. One physician’s report discussed shoulder conditions instead; another checked boxes for recurrence without explaining the finding or the claimed disability. The Board held that the evidence did not prove recurrence and that the…
P.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Greensboro, NC
P.T. (ECAB 12-1325): Continuing compensation restored after brief return
P.T. returned to modified postal work for only two days after accepted leg and ankle fractures. OWCP then treated later wage loss as a recurrence claim and placed the proof burden on her. The Board held that such a brief return did not shift OWCP’s burden to justify ending compensation. Because…
K.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Calverton, VA
K.M. (ECAB 12-1305): Multiple claimed conditions not linked to postal work
K.M. attributed back disease, bilateral carpal tunnel, and spinal subluxation to rural carrier duties. Her doctors described diagnoses and symptoms but did not give a reasoned explanation of how specific work factors caused or aggravated those conditions. The Board affirmed denial for lack of…
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
C.C. (ECAB 12-1248): Alleged coworker threat not established as work factor
C.C. claimed an emotional condition after overhearing unsettling coworker remarks and objecting to management’s response. The Board found the record did not establish a threat, harassment, or administrative error or abuse as a compensable work factor. Because no covered factor was established, it…
Honeywell International, Inc.
In re Honeywell International, Inc. (EAB EPCRA 12-02C): consent agreement ratified
Honeywell International, Inc. was the respondent in an Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act matter before the Environmental Appeals Board. The Board incorporated the attached Consent Agreement into its Final Order by reference and ratified it. The Board ordered Honeywell to comply…
M.K. and Department of the Navy, Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Philadelphia, PA
M.K. (ECAB 12-1663): Cashier wage capacity modification and reopening denied
M.K. challenged a longstanding wage-capacity finding based on cashier work. The Board had previously upheld that position. He submitted no sufficient medical evidence of material worsening, retraining, or original error, and his reconsideration request repeated prior arguments. The Board affirmed…
B.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, New Mexico Health Care System, Albuquerque, NM
B.S. (ECAB 12-1657): Warehouse incident not proven to cause back injury
B.S. reported back pain after packing fluid bags at work. OWCP accepted the incident, but the medical studies and reports did not explain how it caused a diagnosed back condition. The Board affirmed the injury denials. It also upheld refusal to reopen because the reconsideration request supplied no…
A.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Jacksonville, FL
A.J. (ECAB 12-1649): Reconsideration request did not reopen injury claim
A.J., a postal carrier, reported wrist and back pain after pushing a heavy mail cart. OWCP accepted that the event occurred but denied the injury claim for lack of medical evidence linking a diagnosed condition to it. A.J. sought reconsideration and submitted earlier reports and another report from…
V.M. and Department of the Navy, Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, Pearl Harbor, HI
V.M. (ECAB 12-1611): Emotional condition claim filed too late
V.M., a former Navy clerk typist, filed an emotional condition claim in 2011 for workplace conditions she associated with her illness in 1979. She left that job in April 1980. The Board held that the three-year filing period began when her exposure ended, and found no evidence that a supervisor had…
O.L. and Department of Homeland Security, Border Patrol, Wellton, AZ
O.L. (ECAB 12-1607): Medical benefits termination upheld
O.L., a border patrol agent, had an accepted claim for spinal sprains after a work-related vehicle accident. OWCP later stopped authorizing medical treatment, concluding that the accepted sprains had resolved. The Board found that OWCP’s second-opinion physician reviewed the medical record…
K.C. and Department of Health & Human Services, Indian Health Services, Talequah, OK
K.C. (ECAB 12-1602): Knee impairment award sent back for medical review
K.C., a nurse, injured his left knee at work and previously received a schedule award for permanent leg impairment. OWCP awarded an additional 10 percent impairment, bringing the total to 26 percent. Its medical adviser had recommended another examination after knee surgery, but OWCP did not obtain…
W.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
W.H. (ECAB 12-1599): Termination of wage and medical benefits upheld
W.H., a postal laborer and custodian, had an accepted claim for ankle and lower leg injuries. OWCP ended wage-loss and medical benefits after an impartial physician found that the accepted injuries had resolved and that remaining symptoms were related to other conditions. W.H. challenged the…
M.B. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Medical Command, Fort Carson, CO
M.B. (ECAB 12-1381): Right arm condition not linked to work duties
M.B., a medical support assistant, claimed that her right hand, wrist, and arm conditions arose from her work duties. Her doctors diagnosed several conditions and one attributed them to repetitive tasks and compensating for a left arm injury. The Board found that this opinion relied on duties that…
C.K. and Department of the Air Force, Engineering Department, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH
C.K. (ECAB 12-1347): Injury while collecting personal belongings excluded
C.K., an Air Force mechanical engineer on administrative leave before retirement, said he hurt his back and hip while taking a box of personal belongings from a cabinet at work. The Board accepted that the incident occurred at his workplace. It found that he was collecting his own property outside…
Dickenson-Russell Coal Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Mine operator had to report temporary worker's injury
A temporary worker supervised by Dickenson-Russell was injured while roof bolting at the Roaring Fork No. 4 Mine. His employment agency timely filed MSHA Form 7000-1, but Dickenson-Russell did not file its own report because it believed the contractor's submission was sufficient. Judge Jerold…
K.N. and Department of the Navy, Commander Navy Installations, Philadelphia, PA
K.N. (ECAB 12-1774): Wage capacity modification request requires merit review
K.N., a former Navy rigger with accepted back injuries, asked OWCP to change an earlier determination of his wage-earning capacity after he stopped working at a later job. OWCP treated his request as an ordinary reconsideration application and declined to reopen the claim. The Board found that his…
A.P. and Department of the Navy, Fleet Readiness Center Southwest, San Diego, CA
A.P. (ECAB 12-1583): Work exposure not medically linked to asthma
A.P., a Navy employee, reported asthma and coughing that he attributed to chemicals and fumes at work. OWCP accepted exposure to potentially hazardous substances but denied the claim. His physician observed that symptoms improved during vacation and that a work connection was possible, but deferred…
C.J. and Federal Judiciary, DC Superior Court, Washington, DC
C.J. (ECAB 12-1570): Timely reconsideration request sent back for review
C.J., a court clerk with an accepted back injury, sought reconsideration of an OWCP decision about disability benefits. OWCP treated her December 2011 request as untimely and required clear evidence of error. The Board found that she had filed within one year of OWCP’s January 2011 merit decision…
J.B. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Division of Fossil & Hydro Power, Drakesboro, KY
J.B. (ECAB 12-1549): Asbestos-related pleural condition claim sent back
J.B., a boilermaker and welder, claimed bilateral pleural thickening from asbestos exposure at work. OWCP denied the claim after its examiner found little evidence of asbestosis. The Board found that the same examiner had also described pleural thickening as probably related to asbestos exposure…
V.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dallas, TX
V.A. (ECAB 12-1474): Emotional condition claim denied after medical review
V.A., a postal clerk, sought compensation for an emotional condition after an upsetting customer encounter and other work incidents. OWCP accepted certain customer interactions as work factors and obtained an impartial psychiatric opinion after doctors disagreed about causation. The Board found…
G.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Jesse Brown Veterans Administration Medical Center, Chicago, IL
G.W. (ECAB 12-1416): Voluntary bowling injury outside work duties
G.W., a Veterans Affairs motor vehicle operator, fell while bowling during an outing for patients he had transported. He claimed a cervical injury from the fall. The Board found that his assigned task was transportation and that joining the game at an off-site bowling alley was voluntary. Although…
L.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Hartford, CT
L.C. (ECAB 12-1269): No ratable limb impairment for schedule award
L.C., a postal carrier, had accepted elbow, back, and neck injuries after a fall at work. She sought a schedule award for permanent impairment. Several physicians rated her spine or whole person, but the Board explained that those ratings do not qualify for a FECA schedule award. It credited an…
G.M. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, St. Louis, MO
G.M. (ECAB 12-0565): Twelve treatment hours allowed, other wage claims denied
G.M., an IRS customer service representative, had accepted knee, elbow, head, and ankle conditions after a fall at work. She claimed 96 hours of wage loss in early 2011 and further disability beginning that June. The Board found that she received treatment for accepted injuries on three February…
M.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Marysville, WA
M.W. (ECAB 12-0502): Compensation ended after refusal of suitable work
M.W., a rural postal carrier, had accepted physical and psychological conditions after a work-related vehicle accident. She briefly returned to a four-hour modified position, then stopped working and said her condition prevented a return. The Board credited OWCP’s second-opinion psychiatrist, who…
D.T. and Department of Housing & Urban Development, Headquarters Office, Alexandria, VA
D.T. (ECAB 12-1597): Shoulder diagnoses not medically linked to elevator incident
D.T., a Housing and Urban Development employee, said an elevator door closed on her left shoulder at work. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but later denied her injury claim when she sought wage-loss compensation. The Board found that a physician diagnosed shoulder conditions without…
J.M. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
J.M. (ECAB 12-1716): Hearing loss not linked to federal noise exposure
J.M., a former Navy shipyard engineering technician, claimed hearing loss from noise encountered during federal employment. OWCP accepted the noise exposure and the later hearing loss but denied a causal link. His physician reviewed the work history and an audiogram taken near the end of federal…
R.T. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Lompoc, CA
R.T. (ECAB 12-1647): Repeated impairment report did not reopen award claim
R.T., a correctional officer with an accepted right shoulder injury and other accepted arm conditions, had received a schedule award for 28 percent right arm impairment. He sought a larger award and later asked OWCP to reconsider its denial. His request resubmitted a physician’s report OWCP had…
A.L. and U.S. Postal Service, General Mail Facility, Phoenix, AZ
A.L. (ECAB 12-1584): Late knee injury report did not establish incident
A.L., a postal mail handler, said he hurt his knee while squatting to reach for mail in September 2011. He reported the incident and sought treatment almost six months later, after continuing his regular work. OWCP asked for more detail about the incident, but he did not provide it. The Board found…
L.P. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Materiel Command, Pine Bluff, AR
L.P. (ECAB 12-1443): Six percent arm award and payment period upheld
L.P., an Army motor vehicle operator, had accepted bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and received a schedule award for six percent right arm impairment. The Board found that OWCP’s medical adviser applied the impairment guide correctly and that the record did not show a higher ratable right arm…
C.O. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Radiology Department, Northern California Health Care System, Redding, CA
C.O. (ECAB 12-1435): Workplace harassment allegations not established in record
C.O., a Veterans Affairs program support assistant, claimed workplace stress from alleged coworker harassment and management’s handling of her complaints. She submitted a psychologist’s reports about her condition. The Board found insufficient reliable evidence in the OWCP record to establish the…
N.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Hospital, Gainesville, FL
N.S. (ECAB 12-1289): Leg schedule award and reconsideration denied
N.S., a Veterans Affairs mechanic, had accepted back conditions after an injury at work and sought a schedule award for leg impairment. His physician rated whole-person impairment and converted it to a leg rating, but the Board found that this did not apply the required method for spinal nerve…
L.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Oakland, CA
L.W. (ECAB 12-1001): Withdrawn postal job requires wage capacity review
L.W., a postal worker, had a wage-earning capacity determination based on a modified mail processing job. The Postal Service later withdrew that assignment during its National Reassessment Process, and L.W. sought a change in her compensation. She argued that the job had been a makeshift position…
S.E. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Danville, IL
S.E. (ECAB 12-0568): Carpal tunnel claim lacked reasoned work connection
S.E., a Veterans Affairs nursing assistant, claimed bilateral carpal and cubital tunnel conditions from patient care work. She also performed similar duties at a private hospital. The Board found that her treating surgeon had not addressed the mechanical aids used in her federal job or explained…
Secretary of Labor v. Argus Energy WV, LLC
Three final assessments reopened
Argus Energy asked the Commission to reopen three MSHA penalty assessments that had become final after they were not timely contested. The corrected published order does not state why the deadlines were missed. The Secretary did not oppose any of the requests. The Commission reopened all three…
District of Columbia Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4)
In re District of Columbia Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 11-05): petition dismissed with prejudice
District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority and Wet Weather Partnership jointly petitioned for review of the District of Columbia municipal separate storm sewer system permit. The petitioners and the District Government later submitted a settlement agreement allocating responsibility under the…
Secretary of Labor v. Beverly Materials, LLC
Equipment and electrical citations split
Beverly Materials contested nine non-S&S citations from two Illinois sand-and-gravel pits. Judge William B. Moran vacated a brake-light citation because the loader had only been moved to the grade where its preshift test would occur and had not yet been placed in service. He affirmed reduced…
G.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
G.S. (ECAB 12-1556): No additional award beyond ten percent leg impairment
G.S., a postal carrier, had accepted left knee meniscus injuries and previously received a schedule award for 10 percent left leg impairment. After an earlier Board remand, OWCP obtained an impartial orthopedic evaluation to resolve disagreement between physicians. The impartial specialist examined…
B.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Murfreesboro, TN
B.W. (ECAB 12-1537): Missing medical reports require record reconstruction
B.W., a former Veterans Affairs nursing assistant, appealed OWCP’s refusal to reopen his schedule award and wage-loss claims. The Board found that the record sent by OWCP lacked medical reports underlying an earlier conflict in medical opinion and the referral to an impartial examiner. Without…
M.E. and Office of Personnel Management, Work/Life Program Management Office, Washington, DC
M.E. (ECAB 12-1506): Reconsideration request did not reopen stress claim
M.E., an Office of Personnel Management specialist, sought compensation for an emotional condition she attributed to workplace conduct. OWCP had denied the claim after finding no established compensable work factor. In seeking reconsideration, M.E. referred to a psychiatrist’s recommendation…
B.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Robbinsville, NJ
B.C. (ECAB 12-1505): New injury history required merit review
B.C., a postal carrier with an accepted left foot injury, claimed that it led to right foot and ankle problems. OWCP had asked her to explain when and how the right ankle condition developed, then denied the claim when she did not respond. She supplied answers with a later reconsideration request…
M.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cleveland, OH
M.W. (ECAB 12-1499): Mail container incident not medically tied to injury
M.W., a postal mail handler, fell while pulling a bulk mail container, which then rolled over her. OWCP accepted that the incident happened but denied the injury claim. The Board found that the medical records listed several symptoms and possible conditions without explaining how the work event…
D.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Denver, CO
D.S. (ECAB 12-1498): Thumb impairment award changed to an arm award
D.S., a Veterans Health Administration medical instrument technician, injured her right thumb in a fall. OWCP awarded compensation for seven percent thumb impairment. The Board agreed with the medical adviser's impairment rating and rejected a higher rating for complex regional pain syndrome…
A.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Santa Ana, CA
A.H. (ECAB 12-1470): Neck and shoulder claim and reconsideration denial upheld
A.H., a postal employee, attributed neck and shoulder conditions to work performed after returning to her job in November 2009. OWCP denied the occupational disease claim and later declined to reopen it. The Board found that her physician described years of repetitive work but did not explain how…
P.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Islandia, NY
P.A. (ECAB 12-1247): Third-party recovery calculation returned for review of court costs
P.A., a postal employee, challenged OWCP's calculation of the surplus from a third-party recovery following an accepted work injury. OWCP disallowed $1,000 in court costs and said his attorney had not supplied itemization. The Board found that OWCP had received the attorney's itemized costs and…
D.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Coppell, TX
D.G. (ECAB 12-1173): Fault finding upheld for compensation overpayment
D.G., a postal employee, received a lump-sum schedule award and then accepted additional compensation payments during the period covered by that award. OWCP found an overpayment of $140,814.99 and determined that he was at fault. The Board found that the award terms put him on notice that further…
P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, St. Louis, MO
P.S. (ECAB 12-0892): Knee injury claim returned for missing investigation evidence
P.S., a postal employee, said he twisted his right knee after stepping in a hole while delivering mail. OWCP denied his injury claim because it found the incident unproven. The employing establishment referred to an onsite investigation and supervisors' statements, but relevant investigative…
Artemio Gonzalez Exteriors
Citation affirmed after the employer defaulted
Artemio Gonzalez Exteriors did not file an answer to the Secretary of Labor's complaint. The judge issued an order requiring the employer to explain why it should not be declared in default, but the certified mailing was returned unclaimed and unable to forward. The judge found that the employer…
K.M. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Secret Service, Washington, DC
K.M. (ECAB 12-0762): Occupational disease claim filed within time limit
K.M., a Secret Service law enforcement officer, claimed that repeated work stress and strain worsened right leg and foot conditions. OWCP rejected her occupational disease claim as too late. The Board found that she continued working until October 2009, so the three-year filing period ran from her…
J.E. and Department of the Army, Fort Benning, GA
J.E. (ECAB 12-0445): Disability claim returned for factual development
J.E., an Army employee, sought compensation for disability from August through October 2009 after an accepted workplace injury. The Board had previously ordered OWCP to resolve conflicting accounts of the incident and obtain a military police report. OWCP developed the medical record but did 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.