contained in a preliminary order issued pursu-
ant to either paragraph (4) or paragraph (6). 
(B) PROCEDURES.—Such hearing request 
shall be granted, and shall be conducted expedi-
tiously and in accordance with the Federal 
Rules of Civil Procedure. In conducting such 
proceeding, the Secretary may issue subpoenas 
requiring the deposition of or the attendance 
and testimony of witnesses and the production 
of any evidence, including any books, papers, or 
documents, relating to the matter under consid-
eration. A decision issued in accordance with 
the criteria set forth in subsection (d)(2), shall 
be issued not later than 90 days after the date 
on which a hearing was requested under this 
paragraph. The parties and the Secretary shall 
promptly be notified of the decision. If the ad-
ministrative law judge find that a violation of 
section 102(a) has occurred, the judge shall 
issue a preliminary order providing the relief 
prescribed by paragraph (10). If review under 
paragraph (8) is not timely requested, such pre-
liminary order shall be deemed a final order of 
the Secretary that is not subject to judicial re-
view. 
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(8) FURTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.—Not 
later than 10 days after the date of notification of 
a decision by an administrative law judge under 
paragraph (7), the complainant or the responsible 
party alleged to have committed a violation of sec-
tion 102(a) may file objections to specified portions 
thereof and request a further review by the Sec-
retary. The Secretary shall have discretion as to 
whether to grant such a review and shall be limited 
to determining whether the decision of the adminis-
trative law judge was based upon substantial evi-
dence. If review is granted, the decision of the ad-
ministrative law judge shall be stayed pending the 
completion of further review, except for any order of 
reinstatement which shall be stayed only upon mo-
tion. The final decision and order of the Secretary 
shall be issued not later than 30 days after the ad-
ministrative law judge issues a decision. If judicial 
review under paragraph (11) is not timely requested, 
such preliminary order shall be deemed a final order 
of the Secretary that is not subject to judicial re-
view. 
(9) SETTLEMENT.—At any time before issuance 
of a final order, a proceeding under this subsection 
may be terminated on the basis of a settlement 
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agreement entered into by the Secretary, or adminis-
trative law judge conducting a hearing, the com-
plainant, and the responsible party alleged to have 
committed the violation. The Secretary or adminis-
trative law judge conducting a hearing may not ac-
cept any settlement that contains conditions that are 
contrary to the public policy of this title, including 
any restrictions or activity protected by this Act, and 
the right to seek future employment without dis-
crimination prohibited by this Act. 
(10) REMEDY.—If, in response to a complaint 
filed under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary of Labor 
determines that a violation of section 102(a) has oc-
curred, the Secretary shall order the responsible 
party who committed such violation to— 
(A) take affirmative action to abate the 
violation; 
(B) reinstate the complainant to his or her 
former position and with the same seniority sta-
tus together with the compensation (including 
back pay and interest) and restore the terms, 
rights, conditions, and privileges associated with 
his or her employment, and provide preference 
to the complainant to transfer to any available 
position that provides equivalent or better com-
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pensation, terms, conditions and privileges of 
employment for which the complainant is quali-
fied; 
(C) provide compensatory damages and 
consequential damages to the complainant, in-
cluding relief for emotional distress and harm 
to reputation, and may include punitive dam-
ages; 
(D) expunge all warnings, reprimands or 
derogatory references that have been placed in 
paper or electronic records or databases of any 
type relating to the actions by the complainant 
that gave rise to the unfavorable personnel ac-
tion, and, at the complainant’s direction, send 
a copy of the decision on the complaint to any 
person whom the complainant reasonably be-
lieves may have received such unfavorable infor-
mation; and 
(E) post appropriate public notice of the 
violation. 
If such an order is issued under this paragraph, the 
Secretary, at the request of the complainant, shall 
assess against the responsible party against whom 
the order is issued a sum equal to the aggregate 
amount of all costs and expenses (including attor-
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neys’ and expert witness fees) reasonably incurred, 
as determined by the Secretary, by the complainant 
for, or in connection with, the bringing the com-
plaint upon which the order was issued. 
(11) INACTION BY THE SECRETARY.—Notwith-
standing subsection (a), if the Secretary has not 
issued a final decision within 180 days of the filing 
of the complaint, the complainant may bring an ac-
tion at law or equity for de novo review in the ap-
propriate district court of the United States, as de-
scribed in subsection (c), which shall have jurisdic-
tion over such an action without regard to the 
amount in controversy, and which action shall, at 
the request of either party to such action, be tried 
by the court with a jury. 
(12) JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 
(A) APPEAL TO COURT OF APPEALS.—Any 
complainant or responsible party adversely af-
fected or aggrieved by a final order issued 
under this subsection for which review is avail-
able, may obtain review of the order in the 
United States Court of Appeals for the circuit 
in which the violation, with respect to which the 
order was issued, allegedly occurred or the cir-
cuit in which the complainant resided on the 
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