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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Lowell Vos d/b/a Lowell VOS Feedlot
In re Lowell Vos Feedlot (EAB EAJA Appeal No. 10-01): fee application denied
EPA brought a Clean Water Act enforcement action against Lowell Vos Feedlot, alleging unpermitted pollutant discharges. The ALJ ultimately found that EPA had not proved a violation by a preponderance of the evidence, and Vos Feedlot then sought $80,548.99 in attorneys’ fees and costs under the…
J.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Las Vegas, NV
J.G. (ECAB 10-2064): Left arm impairment rating corrected to 10 percent
J.G., a postal mail handler, sought a schedule award after an accepted left shoulder injury and surgery. OWCP’s medical adviser applied the impairment guides and calculated the component modifiers but omitted the final rating step. The Board found that a zero modification factor still placed his…
B.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, O’Fallon, MO
B.C. (ECAB 10-1947): Asthma benefit termination reversed over unresolved medical conflict
B.C., a postal letter carrier, had an accepted work-related aggravation of asthma and allergic rhinitis. OWCP ended her benefits after an impartial medical examiner described the aggravation as temporary. The Board found his report internally inconsistent: he also said her condition had not…
M.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Bellmawr, NJ
M.R. (ECAB 10-1909): Neuropathy benefit termination reversed over unresolved medical conflict
M.R., a postal mail handler, had received benefits for accepted right median nerve neuropathy. OWCP ended wage-loss and medical benefits after seeking an impartial opinion about continuing residuals. The Board found that the specialist did not directly resolve whether the accepted condition…
R.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bayamon, PR
R.R. (ECAB 10-1779): Leg impairment claim remanded for spinal nerve rating
R.R., a postal carrier, had an accepted aggravation of a lumbar disc condition and sought a schedule award for leg impairment. The Board explained that a spine injury may cause a ratable impairment of a covered leg even though the spine itself is outside the award schedule. The medical reports in…
G.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cleveland, OH
G.W. (ECAB 10-1761): Increased right arm award denied without supported rating
G.W., a retired postal clerk, had received schedule awards totaling 51 percent right arm impairment after an accepted shoulder injury. She sought an increase and submitted a physician’s 43 percent rating under the sixth edition of the impairment guides. The Board found that the report did not…
M.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Toms River Post Office, Toms River, NJ
M.T. (ECAB 10-1729): Reconsideration refusal upheld after impairment arguments
M.T., a postal letter carrier with accepted right elbow conditions, challenged a schedule award rating through a request for reconsideration. She argued that an impartial examiner had omitted sensory and strength impairment. The Board found that his report addressed those matters and that her…
S.C. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Richmond, VA
S.C. (ECAB 10-1706): Travel injury acceptance rescinded; late hearing request denied
S.C., an IRS employee on authorized training travel, fractured her tibia after falling while away from her hotel. OWCP initially accepted the claim, then rescinded it. The Board found the contemporaneous records placed the fall shortly after midnight, several hours after training ended, and that…
B.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Sepulveda Veterans Administration Medical Center, Sepulveda, CA
B.L. (ECAB 10-1646): Changed duties established, but recurrence disability unproved
B.L., a Veterans Affairs nurse with an accepted lumbosacral sprain, claimed total disability from a July 2009 recurrence. The Board found that he had established a change in his limited-duty work requirements. His medical reports, however, did not explain how disability on the claimed date was…
Y.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Detroit, MI
Y.M. (ECAB 10-1617): Elbow, ankle, and shoulder claims denied for lack of medical causation
Y.M., a postal mail handler, attributed left elbow, ankle, and shoulder conditions to work that included loading and unloading trucks. She supplied medical reports describing the conditions and her symptoms. The Board found that the reports did not give a reasoned medical explanation connecting any…
Wake Stone Corporation
Two horn citations vacated after pre-shift checks
MSHA cited Wake Stone Corporation at its Nash County Quarry after the service horns on an excavator and a dozer failed during pre-shift examinations. The company recorded the defects and tagged both machines as non-operational before they were used. Judge L. Zane Gill read the horn-maintenance rule…
L.W. and U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC
L.W. (ECAB 11-0002): Reconsideration refusal upheld after unrelated medical reports
L.W., a Government Printing Office employee, sought further review of a schedule award claim involving accepted right wrist conditions. His reconsideration request included reports describing wrist weakness, nerve impingement, and work restrictions. The Board found that those reports did not…
B.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Phoenix, AZ
B.D. (ECAB 10-2106): Thumb injury claim denied without diagnosis or causation opinion
B.D., a postal mail carrier, claimed that daily use of her hands at work caused a right thumb condition. OWCP accepted that the reported work exposure occurred. The Board found that the medical record lacked both a firm diagnosis and a physician’s reasoned opinion explaining how the work caused a…
A.G. and Department of the Air Force, Maintenance Department, Randolph Air Force Base, TX
A.G. (ECAB 10-2088): Foot schedule award denied without ratable impairment
A.G., an Air Force sheet metal mechanic, had an accepted right foot condition related to walking and standing at work. He sought a schedule award after treatment that included surgery. An OWCP referral physician’s examination found no significant objective abnormality, and the medical adviser…
R.M. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Richmond, VA
R.M. (ECAB 10-1836): Medical appointment time allowed; therapy hours remanded
R.M., an IRS contact representative, sought compensation for intermittent time away from work after an accepted right hand injury. OWCP had allowed time for several medical visits but denied three hours for a November 20, 2009 appointment. The Board found the physician’s records established…
D.F. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Mare Island Clinic, CA
D.F. (ECAB 10-1834): Emotional condition and reconsideration denials affirmed
D.F., a Veterans Affairs program support assistant, reported stress-related symptoms after a supervisor discussed a transfer with her. The Board treated the transfer discussion as a personnel matter and found no evidence that the employer acted in error or abused its authority. It held that she had…
S.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Augusta, GA
S.J. (ECAB 10-1832): Shoulder claim and reconsideration refusal affirmed
S.J., a Veterans Affairs nurse, claimed a right rotator cuff tear from repeatedly lifting and repositioning patients. OWCP accepted those work duties but found no medical opinion connecting them to the tear. The Board agreed that reports diagnosing and treating the shoulder did not explain…
L.V. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Orange, NJ
L.V. (ECAB 10-1469 and 10-1688): Termination of benefits upheld
L.V., a postal carrier, received benefits after a dog bite and accepted back conditions. OWCP ended wage-loss and medical benefits after an impartial examiner found that the accepted conditions had resolved and that she could work without restrictions. The Board gave that opinion special weight and…
J.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Corinth Post Office, Corinth, NY
J.T. (ECAB 10-1530): Shoulder impairment award sent back for clarification
J.T., a postal carrier, received a schedule award after an accepted left shoulder injury and later sought an additional award following surgery. OWCP awarded a seven percent left arm impairment in 2010, but the Board could not tell whether that was additional to his earlier award or a duplicate…
L.V. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Orange, NJ
L.V. (ECAB 10-1469 and 10-1688): Termination of benefits upheld
L.V., a postal carrier, received benefits after a dog bite and accepted back conditions. OWCP ended wage-loss and medical benefits after an impartial examiner found that the accepted conditions had resolved and that she could work without restrictions. The Board gave that opinion special weight and…
P.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cleveland, OH
P.G. (ECAB 10-2080): Additional left leg schedule award denied
P.G., a postal letter carrier, received schedule awards totaling 23 percent impairment of his left leg after a work-related ankle and foot injury. His treating doctor rated the impairment at 26 percent, while an OWCP medical adviser rated it at nine percent. OWCP obtained a referee examination to…
H.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Norwalk, CT
H.L. (ECAB 10-2073): One percent wrist impairment award upheld
H.L., a postal carrier, had an accepted left wrist condition known as de Quervain’s disease and underwent surgery. An OWCP examiner rated the resulting left arm impairment at one percent under the sixth edition of the impairment guides. The Board found the examiner applied the diagnosis-based grid…
S.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Jensen Beach, FL
S.P. (ECAB 10-2055): Intermittent disability claim denied
S.P., a postal rural carrier, claimed intermittent disability after an accepted lumbar sprain from pulling a mail cart. The Board found the medical reports did not explain an objective worsening of the accepted sprain during the claimed periods in 2009. Later diagnoses of disc disease had not been…
A.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Redwood City Post Office, Redwood City, CA
A.L. (ECAB 10-2021): Recurrence claim returned for combined file review
A.L., a postal distribution clerk, sought wage-loss compensation after her light-duty assignment was withdrawn in September 2009. OWCP assessed the claim against her accepted 2006 back strain, but the record also indicated an earlier accepted back claim that may have caused her work restrictions…
J.B. and Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency, MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, FL
J.B. (ECAB 10-1994): Consequential right shoulder claim denied
J.B. had an accepted left shoulder injury and later claimed her right shoulder condition resulted from it. A scan showed a right shoulder partial tear, but the Board found that no physician explained how the accepted left shoulder condition caused the right shoulder problem. One doctor attributed…
S.H. and Department of the Air Force, Hill Air Force Base, UT
S.H. (ECAB 10-1952): Hydrazine exposure claim denied for lack of diagnosed injury
S.H., an aircraft maintenance mechanic, inhaled hydrazine while disconnecting a fuel hose at work. OWCP accepted that the exposure happened. The Board found that the emergency physician recorded symptoms but did not diagnose an injury or medical condition caused by the exposure. Without medical…
R.C. and Social Security Administration, Office of the Deputy Commissioner, Savannah, GA
R.C. (ECAB 10-1904): Schedule award denied for lack of impairment evidence
R.C., a Social Security claims representative, had accepted back conditions and underwent authorized surgery. He sought a schedule award but did not provide a physician’s evaluation of permanent impairment to a covered body member under the applicable impairment guides. OWCP requested that medical…
L.A. and Department of Defense, Pentagon Force Protection Agency, Washington, DC
L.A. (ECAB 10-1705): Wage-earning capacity decision left in place
L.A. worked in a modified security position after accepted injuries from a work-related vehicle accident. OWCP had based her wage-earning capacity on her actual earnings in that position. She later claimed that worsening symptoms made her unable to work. The Board found no evidence that the…
W.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Edison, NJ
W.H. (ECAB 10-1450): Reconsideration denial set aside for merit review
W.H. sought reconsideration of a denied recurrence of disability claim. She argued that OWCP had failed to consider an impartial examiner’s report saying she was disabled and had likely developed a right shoulder condition from the accepted injury. The Board found that argument relevant and…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Kansas City, Missouri (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 910 (Union)
Kansas City VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 910 (FLRA 0-AR-4171): Reassignment remedy partly upheld
The Kansas City VA Medical Center moved a physician from head of nephrology to a staff position. An arbitrator found that the reassignment breached contract provisions against punitive reassignments and ordered reinstatement, a public acknowledgment, compensation, and attorney fees. A VA official…
Matter of M-A-M-
Signs of incompetency require further inquiry
The Board reviewed a Jamaican respondent's appeal from removal proceedings in which he appeared to have significant mental-health and competency concerns. The Board held that respondents are presumed competent, but an Immigration Judge must make further inquiry when the record shows indicia of…
D.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Charlotte, NC
D.H. (ECAB 10-2007): Shoulder condition claim and reconsideration denial affirmed
D.H., a postal processing clerk, claimed a left shoulder condition from repetitive work. The Board found the physicians’ reports did not adequately explain how the diagnosed condition resulted from those duties. It also reviewed her reconsideration request, which pointed to an error about which…
R.B. and Department of the Army, Corpus Christi Army Depot, Corpus Christi, TX
R.B. (ECAB 10-1992): Additional hearing loss award denied during ongoing exposure
R.B. had received a schedule award for 20 percent binaural hearing loss and later reported further loss while he continued to work around loud equipment. The Board found that his request concerned a new period of noise exposure, not an error in the original award. Because less than one year had…
D.B. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, Chula Vista, CA
D.B. (ECAB 10-1969): Continuation of pay denial reversed
D.B. sustained an accepted pelvic fracture while working for Customs and Border Protection. He filed his injury claim within 30 days and before his employment ended. OWCP had denied continuation of pay on the premise that he reported the injury after his dismissal. The Board rejected that premise…
C.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Reynoldsburg, OH
C.G. (ECAB 10-1853): Repetitive-work shoulder claim denied
C.G., a postal carrier, attributed right arm and shoulder problems to repetitive mail handling. The Board accepted that he performed the described work and had diagnosed conditions. It found that his physicians did not explain how those specific duties caused or aggravated the right arm and…
B.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
B.W. (ECAB 10-1823): Recurrence and reconsideration denials affirmed
B.W. claimed that her accepted left knee injury caused a recurrence of disability when she stopped work for right knee surgery. The Board found no reasoned medical explanation linking the right knee condition or inability to perform her modified job to the accepted injury. It also found that her…
M.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Mounds, OK
M.S. (ECAB 10-1798): Workplace fall accepted but injury claim denied
M.S., a postal salesperson, said her shoe caught on a mat at work and she fell. The Board found no persuasive evidence contradicting her account, so it accepted that the incident occurred. OWCP had not received medical evidence before its decision, however. The Board held that she had not…
S.A. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, Buffalo, NY
S.A. (ECAB 10-1786): Incident recognized and reconsideration sent back
S.A. claimed an injury from a December 2009 workplace incident. The Board accepted that the incident happened but found the medical evidence available for OWCP’s January decision insufficient to prove an injury. Later, a chiropractor submitted a new report based on x-rays, with a diagnosis and…
M.G. and Department of Health & Human Services, Rockville, MD
M.G. (ECAB 10-1771): Two percent knee impairment award upheld
M.G. sought a larger schedule award after an accepted right knee injury and partial meniscectomy. Her doctor rated the leg at 16 percent by combining two diagnoses, but the Board found that the impairment guides did not permit those ratings to be added and that the higher arthritis class lacked…
J.G. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, San Diego, CA
J.G. (ECAB 10-1603): Leg impairment evaluation sent back
J.G. had an accepted back injury with radicular symptoms and sought a schedule award for resulting leg impairment. His physician rated whole-person impairment under an outdated edition of the impairment guides, which could not support a schedule award. An OWCP consultant identified possible left…
Wolf Run Mining Company
Lightning-arrester citations split on remand
MSHA issued five citations concerning lightning-arrester protection for surface conductors and wires leading into Wolf Run's Dorothy No. 3 Mine after investigating the 2006 Sago Mine explosion. On remand, Judge Jerold Feldman affirmed an S&S violation involving inadequate separation between…
Black Beauty Coal Company
Inaccessible lifeline affirmed with $45,000 penalty
MSHA cited Black Beauty Coal Company because about 100 to 110 feet of a directional lifeline in a secondary escapeway hung 7 to 12 feet above the mine floor and could not be pulled within reach. Judge Margaret A. Miller found that the condition prevented effective use of the lifeline during an…
Cemex, Inc.
Operator liable for contractor driver's fall-protection violation
An MSHA inspector saw a truck driver standing about 12 feet above the ground on the rounded top of a tanker without fall protection during gusty conditions at Cemex's Kosmos mine. The driver worked for an independent trucking company and knowingly bypassed Cemex's posted requirement to use an…
Luminant Mining Company, LLC
Final penalty assessment reopened and remanded
Luminant Mining Company asked the Commission to reopen a penalty assessment that became final when it did not contest the assessment within 30 days. The Secretary did not oppose reopening. The Commission relied on its authority to grant relief from final orders in appropriate circumstances and…
A.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Regional Office, Huntington, WV
A.S. (ECAB 10-1898): Typing-related arm condition claim denied
A.S., a Veterans Affairs claims worker, typed for several hours daily and had diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome and right elbow epicondylitis. His physician checked a form box attributing the conditions to work, but did not explain how the specific typing duties caused them. Other records contained…
T.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tulsa, OK
T.H. (ECAB 10-1785): Suitable-work termination reversed
T.H. refused a modified postal job after an accepted injury. OWCP ended her wage-loss benefits based on an impartial examiner’s reports that it treated as showing the job was suitable. The Board found those reports inconclusive and inconsistent about her ability to work and physical restrictions…
K.O. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH
K.O. (ECAB 10-1759): Recurrence of disability claim denied
K.O., a Veterans Affairs nurse, returned to a full-time light-duty position after an accepted lumbar disc condition and later claimed a recurrence of disability beginning in July 2009. The Board found that her doctors did not explain how the accepted condition had changed or why it prevented her…
R.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Charlotte, NC
R.J. (ECAB 10-1746): Overpayment and waiver denial upheld
R.J. received FECA compensation while also receiving Veterans Affairs benefits, resulting in a $14,539.11 overpayment. OWCP found he was not at fault but denied waiver of recovery. The Board agreed that his documented income, even after the reduction in his Veterans Affairs benefits, exceeded his…
K.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Schuylerville, NY
K.R. (ECAB 10-1740): Tilted-seat back claim denied
K.R., a postal employee, claimed that sitting in a tilted mail truck seat caused or aggravated her back condition. Her physician diagnosed low back pain and checked a box attributing it to work, but did not explain medically how the seat caused the condition. A later report mentioned the seat…
R.B. and Department of the Army, Red River Army Depot, Texarkana, TX
R.B. (ECAB 10-1715): Typing claim and review requests denied
R.B., an Army depot employee, claimed bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome from years of typing and data entry. The Board found that the medical testing report diagnosed conditions but did not explain a causal connection to the work activity. His reconsideration request repeated evidence already in the…
S.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Nashville, TN
S.G. (ECAB 10-1713): Disability after casual appointment ended denied
S.G. sought compensation after her temporary postal appointment ended, claiming disability from an accepted wrist condition. The Board found that her doctors did not establish inability to work during the claimed December 2008 to January 2009 period because of the accepted condition. The postal…
T.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Toms River Post Office, Toms River, NJ
T.F. (ECAB 10-1701): Termination challenge reopened for merits review
T.F. sought reconsideration of OWCP’s termination of benefits after an impartial examiner reported shoulder restrictions. Her attorney argued that the examiner’s report was inconsistent because OWCP had accepted shoulder conditions as work related while the examiner treated the restrictions as…
L.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Birmingham, AL
L.N. (ECAB 10-1695): Shoulder diagnosis recognized but injury claim denied
L.N. claimed a shoulder injury from unloading a truck at work. The Board found the incident occurred and that medical reports did establish left shoulder diagnoses, correcting OWCP’s contrary finding on diagnosis. It nevertheless found the doctors had not explained how the incident caused the…
T.H. and U.S. Coast Guard, Environmental Logistics Center, Baltimore, MD
T.H. (ECAB 10-1736): Compensation termination upheld on corrected medical basis
T.H. had received benefits for accepted neck and back strains. OWCP treated an examining doctor as an impartial referee resolving a medical conflict, but the Board found that referral had not been warranted for those accepted conditions. The Board evaluated the doctor’s report as a second opinion…
K.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Main Post Office, Parlin, NJ
K.B. (ECAB 10-1735): Wage-loss termination upheld despite knee residuals
K.B., a postal employee, had accepted conditions in both knees after a workplace fall. An impartial orthopedic examiner found continuing knee residuals but concluded that he could perform his regular work. The Board gave that reasoned opinion special weight. It found the treating doctor’s later…
A.P. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Albany, NY
A.P. (ECAB 10-1650): Suitable-work termination reversed
A.P., a Veterans Affairs radiology technologist, was offered a limited-duty job after an accepted lumbar sprain. OWCP relied on a second opinion doctor who said she could work with restrictions. Her treating physicians said she remained totally disabled, creating an unresolved medical conflict…
M.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, St. Louis, MO
M.L. (ECAB 10-1625): Wage-loss claim beyond treatment time denied
M.L. had an accepted right ankle sprain and sought wage-loss compensation for weeks following the injury. OWCP allowed four hours for medical treatment on March 11, 2009. The Board found the doctor’s reports did not explain that the ankle condition prevented work on the other claimed dates. A scan…
F.C. and Federal Judiciary, U.S. Courts, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Los Angeles, CA
F.C. (ECAB 10-1596): Information-clerk wage capacity decision upheld
F.C., a federal court employee, challenged a wage-earning capacity determination based on a selected information-clerk job. She argued that hand and wrist restrictions prevented that work. The Board found the selected position did not require repetitive hand use or other duties barred by the…
S.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Charlotte Processing & Distribution Center, Charlotte, NC
S.M. (ECAB 10-1592): Injury denial affirmed; medical expenses sent back
S.M. claimed back and right leg injuries from an October 2009 incident at postal work. The Board found conflicting accounts and inadequate detail about the alleged incident, so it upheld the denial of the injury claim. She had been taken to a hospital, however, and OWCP had not decided whether her…
A.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Gillette, WY
A.R. (ECAB 10-1544): Wage capacity dispute returned for impartial examination
A.R. sought to change a wage-earning capacity determination based on a customer service job after an accepted shoulder-area injury. Her treating physician said worsening symptoms prevented even part-time work. An OWCP second opinion physician found that she could work 20 hours a week with…
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.