DOL Publishes Revised Rules of Practice and Procedure for Administrative Hearings Before the OALJ | Practical Law

DOL Publishes Revised Rules of Practice and Procedure for Administrative Hearings Before the OALJ | Practical Law

The US Department of Labor (DOL) has published in the Federal Register a final rule responding to comments on and establishing the final text of the revised regulations governing practice and procedure for proceedings before the DOL, Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ). The OALJ hears claims involving, among other things, whistleblower and other workplace retaliation, immigration and occupational diseases and injuries. This rule is effective June 18, 2015.

DOL Publishes Revised Rules of Practice and Procedure for Administrative Hearings Before the OALJ

by Practical Law Labor & Employment
The US Department of Labor (DOL) has published in the Federal Register a final rule responding to comments on and establishing the final text of the revised regulations governing practice and procedure for proceedings before the DOL, Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ). The OALJ hears claims involving, among other things, whistleblower and other workplace retaliation, immigration and occupational diseases and injuries. This rule is effective June 18, 2015.
On May 19, 2015, the DOL published in the Federal Register a final rule responding to comments on and finalizing revisions to the regulations governing practice and procedure for proceedings before the DOL, Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ) (29 C.F.R. Part 18, subpart A. Rules of Practice and Procedure for Administrative Hearings Before the Office of Administrative Law Judges, 80 Fed. Reg. 28768-01 (May 19, 2015)).
The OALJ hears claims involving, among other things, whistleblower and other workplace retaliation, immigration and occupational diseases and injuries. The current rules of practice and procedure for OALJ proceedings are from 1983 and largely track the then-applicable Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) (see 29 C.F.R. Part 18, subpart A. Rules of Practice and Procedure for Administrative Hearings Before the Office of Administrative Law Judges (Jul. 1, 2012)).
On December 4, 2012, the DOL published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the Federal Register requesting public comment on proposed amendments to the regulations governing practice and procedure for OALJ proceedings (29 C.F.R. Part 18, subpart A. Rules of Practice and Procedure for Administrative Hearings Before the Office of Administrative Law Judges, 77 Fed. Reg. 72142 (Dec. 4, 2012)). The DOL received 16 comments on the proposed rule. This final rule responds to those comments and finalizes the revised regulations.
The revisions to the regulations are intended to:
  • Make the rules of practice and procedure more accessible and useful to parties.
  • Provide increased guidance and clarity to parties practicing before the OALJ.
  • Accord OALJ administrative hearing procedures with:
    • the current FRCP used in the US district courts; and
    • the Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower and other workplace retaliation claims now increasingly heard by the OALJ.
The new rule is effective June 18, 2015.