Federal agency decisions, searchable in plain English.
Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC) and mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), each with a plain-English summary, the standards it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Portable, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor
Portable, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC EAJA 2015-1-M): Unjustified inspection-delay case supported fee award
Portable prevailed in the underlying penalty case after Judge William B. Moran found that a roughly 30-minute wait for an escort did not unreasonably delay or indirectly deny an MSHA inspection. Portable then sought attorney fees and expenses under the Equal Access to Justice Act. The Secretary…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Reuben Shemwell v. Armstrong Coal Company, Inc. and Armstrong Fabricators, Inc.
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Reuben Shemwell v. Armstrong Coal Company, Inc. and Armstrong Fabricators, Inc. (FMSHRC KENT 2013-362-D): Retaliation settlement approved over dissent
Armstrong filed a Kentucky civil lawsuit against miner Reuben Shemwell after he exercised Mine Act discrimination rights. An ALJ found that the lawsuit unlawfully interfered with those rights but later rejected a proposed settlement. The Commission majority vacated that denial and approved an…
What these documents are
- Commission decisions: Rulings by the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission itself, the highest level of agency review. These are citable as Commission precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by OSHRC Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j): it binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent in other cases.
- 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 OSHRC public release, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.