FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION
601 NEW JERSEY AVENUE, NW
SUITE 9500
WASHINGTON, DC 20001
September 30, 2011
SECRETARY OF LABOR, MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION (MSHA)
v.
JET MATERIALS |
: : : : : : : : |
Docket Nos. CENT 2010-702-M CENT 2010-1296-M CENT 2010-1297-M |
BEFORE: Jordan, Chairman; Duffy, Young, Cohen, and Nakamura, Commissioners
ORDER
BY THE COMMISSION:
These proceedings arise under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, 30 U.S.C. § 801 et seq. (2006) (“Mine Act”).
On August 24, 2011, Administrative Law Judge L. Zane Gill issued a Default Order
entering judgment in favor of the Secretary of Labor and ordering Jet Materials to pay civil
penalties of $6,452, $10,000, and $1,671. On September 6, 2011, the Commission received a
letter from James Thompson, the former owner of Jet Materials, requesting that the default order
be set aside.
We construe the letter to be a petition for discretionary review. On September 26,
2011, the Secretary filed an opposition to the petition for discretionary review. For the reasons
that follow, we grant the petition, vacate the judge’s order, and remand for further proceedings
consistent with this order.
The judge issued a prehearing order on April 20, 2011. The order required the parties to confer regarding the possibility of settlement, to provide a status report, and, if no settlement was reached, to initiate a conference call to set a date and location for the hearing.
On July 22, 2011, the Commission received the Secretary’s motion for default judgment. The motion asserted that most of the Secretary’s attempts to reach Jet Materials had been unsuccessful and that Jet Materials had failed to comply with the judge’s prehearing order by failing to participate in a conference call with the judge and the Secretary’s representative to set a date and location for the hearing. Without further proceedings, the judge granted this motion on August 24, 2011.
The Commission’s procedural rule concerning orders of default, Rule 66, 29 C.F.R. § 2700.66, provides that:
(a) Generally. When a party fails to comply with an order of a Judge or these rules, except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, an order to show cause shall be directed to the party before the entry of any order of default or dismissal. The order shall be mailed by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested.
(b) Failure to attend hearing. If a party fails to attend a scheduled hearing, the Judge, where appropriate, may find the party in default or dismiss the proceeding without issuing an order to show cause.
Thus, our rule requires that prior to issuing an order of default, a judge must issue a show cause order unless the party fails to attend a hearing. See Secretary of Labor v. Reb Enterprises, Inc., 18 FMSHRC 311 (March 1996); Patsy v. Big “B” Mining Co., 16 FMSHRC 1937, 1938 (September 1994). Here, the judge did not issue an order to show cause before he entered the default order, as required by Rule 66(a). A party’s failure to attend a scheduled conference call with the judge, although objectionable, is not the equivalent of failure to attend a “scheduled hearing” so as to obviate the need for an order to show cause pursuant to Rule 66(b).
Accordingly, for the reasons set forth above, Jet Materials’ petition for
discretionary review is granted. The default order is vacated, and the case is
remanded to the judge for further proceedings in accordance with the
Commission’s procedural rules.
/s/
Mary Lu Jordan, Chairman
/s/
Michael F. Duffy, Commissioner
/s/
Michael G. Young, Commissioner
/s/
Robert F. Cohen, Jr., Commissioner
/s/
Patrick K. Nakamura, Commissioner
Distribution
James Thompson
P.O. Box 385
Maynard, AZ 72444
W. Christian Schumann, Esq.
Office of the Solicitor
U.S. Department of Labor
1100 Wilson Blvd., Room 2220
Arlington, VA 22209-2296
Melanie Garris
Office of Civil Penalty Compliance
MSHA
US Department of Labor
1100 Wilson Blvd. 25th Floor
Arlington, VA 22209
Administrative Law Judge L. Zane Gill
Federal Mine Safety & Health Review Commission
601 New Jersey Avenue, N.W., Suite 9500
Washington, D.C. 20001-2021