UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD 

SHARON L. MCRAE,

Appellant,

v.

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS,

Agency.

DOCKET NUMBER

DE-1221-14-0085-W-1

DATE: September 2, 2014

THIS FINAL ORDER IS NONPRECEDENTIAL*

Sharon L. McRae, Southfield, Michigan, pro se.

Kristen F. Trainor, Esquire, Kansas City, Missouri, for the agency.

BEFORE

Susan Tsui Grundmann, Chairman

Anne M. Wagner, Vice Chairman

Mark A. Robbins, Member

FINAL ORDER

¶1 The appellant has filed a petition for review of the April 22, 2014 initial 

decision in this individual right of action appeal. Initial Appeal File, Tab 92;

Petition for Review (PFR) File, Tab 1. During later settlement discussions, the 

 * A nonprecedential order is one that the Board has determined does not add 

significantly to the body of MSPB case law. Parties may cite nonprecedential orders, 

but such orders have no precedential value; the Board and administrative judges are not 

required to follow or distinguish them in any future decisions. In contrast, a 

precedential decision issued as an Opinion and Order has been identified by the Board 

as significantly contributing to the Board’s case law. See 5 C.F.R. § 1201.117(c).
2

appellant decided to withdraw the appeal and submitted a notice to that effect. 

PFR File, Tab 5. The agency responds that it has no objection to the withdrawal. 

PFR File, Tab 6.

¶2 Finding that withdrawal is appropriate under these circumstances, we 

VACATE the initial decision and DISMISS the appeal as withdrawn, “with 

prejudice to refiling” (i.e., the parties normally may not refile this appeal).

¶3 This is the final decision of the Merit Systems Protection Board in this 

appeal. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.113.

NOTICE TO THE APPELLANT REGARDING

YOUR FURTHER REVIEW RIGHTS

You have the right to request the United States Court of Appeals for the 

Federal Circuit to review this final decision. You must submit your request to the 

court at the following address:

United States Court of Appeals

for the Federal Circuit

717 Madison Place, N.W.

Washington, DC 20439

The court must receive your request for review no later than 60 calendar 

days after your receipt of this order. If you have a representative in this case, and 

your representative receives this order before you do, then you must file with the 

court no later than 60 calendar days after receipt by your representative. If you 

choose to file, be very careful to file on time. The court has held that normally it 

does not have the authority to waive this statutory deadline and that filings that 

do not comply with the deadline must be dismissed. See Pinat v. Office of 

Personnel Management, 931 F.2d 1544 (Fed. Cir. 1991)

If you need further information about your right to appeal this decision to 

court, you should refer to the federal law that gives you this right. It is found in 

Title 5 of the United States Code, section 7703 (5 U.S.C. § 7703). You may read 

this law, as well as review the Board’s regulations and other related material, at 
3

our website, http://www.mspb.gov. Additional information is available at the 

court's website, www.cafc.uscourts.gov. Of particular relevance is the court's 

"Guide for Pro Se Petitioners and Appellants," which is contained within the 

court's Rules of Practice, and Forms 5, 6, and 11.

If you are interested in securing pro bono representation for your court 

appeal, you may visit our website at http://www.mspb.gov/probono for a list of 

attorneys who have expressed interest in providing pro bono representation for 

Merit Systems Protection Board appellants before the court. The Merit Systems 

Protection Board neither endorses the services provided by any attorney nor 

warrants that any attorney will accept representation in a given case.

FOR THE BOARD:

Washington, D.C.

______________________________

William D. Spencer

Clerk of the Board