Court Opinion

ID: 9373690
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-02-22 16:06:44.996641+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:16:42.623998
License: Public Domain

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
                        MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD

     MELENIE V. LANIER,                              DOCKET NUMBER
                   Appellant,                        NY-0752-14-0309-C-1

                  v.

     DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS                          DATE: May 18, 2022
       AFFAIRS,
                 Agency.

             THIS FINAL ORDER IS NONPRECEDENTIAL 1

           Tony Fisher, Esquire, Buffalo, New York, for the appellant.

           Jeffrey L. Whiting, Esquire, Buffalo, New York, for the agency.

                                           BEFORE

                               Raymond A. Limon, Vice Chair
                                 Tristan L. Leavitt, Member

                                       FINAL ORDER

¶1         The appellant has filed a petition for review of the compliance initial
     decision, which denied her petition for enforcement.            Generally, we grant
     petitions such as this one only in the following circumstances: the initial decision
     contains erroneous findings of material fact; the initial decision is based on an

     1
        A nonprecedential order is one that the Board has determined does not add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 Parties may cite nonprecedential orders,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

     erroneous interpretation of statute or regulation or the erroneous application of
     the law to the facts of the case; the administrative judge’s rulings during either
     the course of the appeal or the initial decision were not consistent with required
     procedures or involved an abuse of discretion, and the resulting error affected the
     outcome of the case; or new and material evidence or legal argument is available
     that, despite the petitioner’s due diligence, was not available when the record
     closed. Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 1201.115 ( 5 C.F.R.
     § 1201.115). After fully considering the filings in this appeal, we conclude that
     the petitioner has not established any basis under section 1201.115 for granting
     the petition for review. Therefore, we DENY the petition for review. Except as
     expressly MODIFIED by this Final Order to clarify the basis for finding that the
     agency did not breach the agreement and to address the appellant’s motions to
     strike and for sanctions, we AFFIRM the compliance initial decision.

                                      BACKGROUND
¶2        On June 17, 2012, the appellant began a 2-year term appointment, subject to
     a 1-year probationary period, as a GS-7 Veterans Claims Examiner. Lanier v.
     Department of Veterans Affairs, MSPB Docket No. NY-0752-14-0309-I-1, Initial
     Appeal File (IAF), Tab 1 at 1, 3, Tab 7 at 4. 2 On May 30, 2013, the agency
     notified her that, effective June 14, 2013, at 4:30 p.m., she would be terminated
     from her position during her probationary period due to unsatisfactory
     performance. IAF, Tab 18 at 84. On May 31, 2013, the appellant submitted a
     resignation letter, stating that her resignation would be effective J une 14, 2013,
     at 3:45 p.m. IAF, Tab 1 at 13, Tab 7 at 22. The agency processed her resignation
     accordingly. IAF, Tab 7 at 17-20.

     2
       Although the parties did not submit the Standard Form 50 documenting the appellant’s
     appointment or other official documentation showing the details of her appointment, it
     is undisputed that she received a 2-year term appointment subject to a 1-year
     probationary period. IAF, Tab 1 at 3, Tab 7 at 4.
                                                                                      3

¶3           A year later, in June 2014, the appellant, through counsel, filed a Board
     appeal alleging that her resignation was involuntary and challengin g the merits of
     the agency’s termination action. IAF, Tab 1. Effective October 17, 2014, the
     appellant and the agency entered into a settlement agreement resolving her
     involuntary resignation appeal.      IAF, Tab 20.      The settlement agreement
     provided, in relevant part, that the appellant would withdraw her appeal and that,
     in exchange, the agency would remove all records from her Official Personnel
     File (OPF) pertaining to “any proposed termination action taken against [her].”
     Id. at 6.    The administrative judge issued an initial decision finding that the
     agreement was lawful on its face, freely entered into, and understood by the
     parties. IAF, Tab 21, Initial Decision (ID). Thus, he accepted the agreement into
     the record for purposes of enforcement and dismissed the appeal as settled. ID
     at 9.
¶4           The appellant then filed a petition for enforcement of the settlement
     agreement and requested a hearing. Lanier v. Department of Veterans Affairs,
     MSPB Docket No. NY-0752-14-0309-C-1, Compliance File (CF), Tab 1.              She
     argued that the agency breached the settlement agreement by failing to remove all
     records from her OPF pertaining to “any proposed termination,” as evidenced by
     the fact that the agency submitted such records in the Board appeal of another
     agency employee. Id. at 4-5. She also complained that she had requested a copy
     of her OPF from the “National Records office,” where the agency informed her it
     had been sent, but that she was still waiting to receive it. Id. at 5. The agency
     responded in opposition to the appellant’s petition for enforcement. CF, Tab 3.
     The appellant replied to the agency’s response, arguing that the agency retaliated
     against her for participating in the Board appeal of a former coworker, Sabio v.
     Department of Veterans Affairs, MSPB Docket No. NY-315H-13-0277-I-1
     (Sabio), “by breaching the Settlement Agreement and by having a chilling effect
                                                                                             4

     on [the appellant’s] freedom of speech and expression.” 3             CF, Tab 5 at 6
     (emphasis in original); id. at 7-20, 32-33.        In particular, she alleged that the
     agency breached the clean record provision of the settlement agreement when the
     agency filed a July 16, 2014 affidavit from her involuntary resignation appeal file
     and her resignation letter in Sabio and elicited testimony from agency personnel
     pertaining to her employment during the Sabio hearing. Id. The appellant also
     appeared to allege that the agency had breached the settlement agreement by
     maintaining custody of her OPF rather than sending it to the National Personnel
     Records Center (NPRC).        Id. at 17, 22.    She argued that she was entitled to
     monetary damages for the agency’s “retaliatory material breach” of the settlement
     agreement and to rescission of the settlement agreement.             Id. at 25-30.    She
     further argued that the agency failed to comply with the administrative judge’s
     acknowledgment order and that the agency should be sanctioned by striking the
     noncompliant pleading from the record. Id. at 20, 24, 34.
¶5         The agency submitted a second response opposing the appellant’s petition
     for enforcement and responding to the arguments in the appellant’s reply. CF,
     Tab 6. In a letter directed to the administrative judge, the appellant “formally
     object[ed]” to the agency’s second response, arguing that it was filed after the
     close of the record and requesting that it be stricken from the record. CF, Tab 7.
     The agency responded in opposition to the appellant’s request to strike its second
     response.    CF, Tab 8.      The appellant then submitted another letter to the
     administrative judge, again requesting that he strike the agency’s submissions

     3
       Ms. Sabio, one of the appellant’s former coworkers, appealed her termination to the
     Board and raised, in relevant part, an affirmative defense of race -based discrimination.
     See Sabio v. Department of Veterans Affairs, 124 M.S.P.R. 161 (2017). In support of
     her affirmative defense, she submitted an affidavit executed by the appellant alleging
     disparate treatment of African American females in their department. Id., ¶ 7. The
     agency moved to strike the appellant’s affidavit from the record, arguing that it violated
     a prior sanctions order, and submitted a copy of the appellant’s resignation letter and a
     copy of a July 16, 2014 affidavit from her involuntary resignation appeal, in which she
     attested that “[d]iscrimination did not cause [her] to resign.” Id.; IAF, Tab 1 at 13,
     Tab 9 at 6-8.
                                                                                        5

     filed after the close of the record and asking that the agency be sanctioned for not
     complying with the acknowledgment order. CF, Tab 9.
¶6         In a compliance initial decision based on the written record, the
     administrative judge found that the appellant failed to establish that the agency
     breached the settlement agreement and denied her petition for enforcement. CF,
     Tab 12, Compliance Initial Decision (CID).       The administrative judge did not
     address the appellant’s motion to strike the agency’s submissions or motion to
     impose sanctions on the agency for failing to comply with the acknowledgment
     order. Id.
¶7         The appellant has filed a petition for review of the compliance initial
     decision. Lanier v. Department of Veterans Affairs, MSPB Docket No. NY-0752-
     14-0309-C-1, Compliance Petition for Review (CPFR) File, Tab 1. She argues
     that the administrative judge erred in failing to rule on her motion to strike , in
     finding that the agency did not breach the settlement agreement, and in
     determining that she was not entitled to rescission of the settlement agreement.
     Id. at 6, 12-23. The agency has responded to the petition for review. CPFR File,
     Tab 3.

                     DISCUSSION OF ARGUMENTS ON REVIEW
     The appellant’s motions to strike the agency’s submissions and for sanctions are
     denied.
¶8         As stated above, the administrative judge did not rule on the appellant’s
     motions to strike and for sanctions against the agency.         We agree with the
     appellant that this was error. See Johnson v. U.S. Postal Service, 37 M.S.P.R.
     388, 392 (1988).      An administrative judge’s procedural error is of no legal
     consequence, however, unless it is shown to have adversely affected a party’s
     substantive rights.   Karapinka v. Department of Energy, 6 M.S.P.R. 124, 127
     (1981).   For the reasons discussed below, we deny the appellant’s motions to
     strike and for sanctions against the agency and find that the administrative
     judge’s error did not prejudice the appellant’s substantive rights.
                                                                                          6

¶9          In the September 28, 2015 Acknowledgment Order, the administrative judge
      ordered the agency to file a written response to the appellant’s petition for
      enforcement within 15 days and informed the appellant of her option to file a
      reply within 10 days from the date of service of the agency’s submission. CF,
      Tab 2 at 2. He further informed the parties that the record would close 10 days
      from the date of service of the agency’s response and that no evidence or
      argument filed after the close of record would be accepted unless accompanied by
      information showing that it was new and material evidence that was unavailable
      before the record closed. Id. On October 13, 2015, the agency timely responded
      in opposition to the appellant’s 1.5-page petition for enforcement. CF, Tab 3.
¶10         On October 23, 2015, the appellant submitted a 40-page reply to the
      agency’s response.    CF, Tab 5.    Thereafter, on October 28, 2015, the agency
      submitted a second response to the appellant’s petition for enforcement
      addressing the arguments she raised in her reply. CF, Tab 6. As noted above, the
      appellant moved to strike this submission on the ground that it was filed after the
      close of the record without showing that it contained new and material
      information that was unavailable before the record closed, as required by the
      acknowledgment order.      CF, Tab 7.     In response, the agency argued that the
      appellant raised numerous new allegations, submitted exhibits, and requested
      additional damages in her 40-page reply to the agency’s first response and that it
      would be unfair to deprive the agency of an opportunity to respond to her
      significantly expanded claims. CF, Tab 8.
¶11         Generally, the Board will not accept additional evidence or argument after
      the record closes unless: (1) the party submitting it shows that the evidence or
      argument was not readily available before the record closed ; or (2) it is in rebuttal
      to new evidence or argument submitted by the other party just before the record
      closed. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.59(c). Here, on the date the record closed, the appellant
      submitted a reply to the agency’s first response that significantly exceeded the
      scope of her petition for enforcement, raising new arguments and furnishing
                                                                                       7

      exhibits that were not included in her petition for enforcement. CF, Tabs 1, 5.
      Therefore, the agency was entitled to an opportunity to rebut the appellant’s new
      evidence and argument submitted just before the record closed, 5 C.F.R.
      § 1201.59(c)(2), and we find that the agency’s submission, filed only 5 days after
      the close of the record, was permissible. Accordingly, we deny the appellant’s
      motion to strike the agency’s second response to her petition for enforcement.
      We further find that the administrative judge’s failure to rule on this motion
      below did not prejudice the appellant’s substantive rights because she has not
      alleged, nor do we discern, that the agency’s second response contained new
      evidence or argument entitling her to the opportunity to rebut the submission after
      the close of the record pursuant to 5 C.F.R. § 1201.59(c)(2). CF, Tabs 6-7, 9;
      CPFR File, Tab 1; see Karapinka, 6 M.S.P.R. at 127.
¶12        The appellant also appeared to request that the administrative judge strike
      the agency’s October 30, 2015 response to her motion to strike the agency’s
      second response, arguing that it was not “new or material evidence that would
      require the reopening of this case.”       CF, Tabs 7-9.     Generally, unless the
      administrative judge provides otherwise, “any objection to a written motion must
      be filed within 10 days from the date of service of the motion.”          5 C.F.R.
      § 1201.55(b).   Thus, we find no basis to strike the agency’s response to the
      appellant’s motion, which it filed only 1 day after she submitted her motion. In
      addition, the appellant has not shown, and we do not discern, any prejudice
      suffered as a result of the administrative judge’s failure to rule on her motion to
      strike the agency’s timely filed response to her October 29, 2015 motion. See
      Karapinka, 6 M.S.P.R. at 127.
¶13        As noted above, the appellant also moved to strike the agency’s first
      response   to   her   petition   for   enforcement   as   noncompliant   with   the
      acknowledgment order and for sanctions against the agency for failing to comply
      with the order. CF, Tab 5 at 20, 24, 34. Specifically, the appellant argued that
      the agency failed to comply with the portion of the acknowledgment order
                                                                                        8

      instructing the agency to submit the names and addresses of the individuals
      “responsible for the agency’s decision even if the agency be lieves it is in full
      compliance” in its response to the appellant’s petition for enforcement. Id.; CF,
      Tab 2 at 2. The agency did not provide such information in its first response to
      the appellant’s petition for enforcement, although it submitted the information in
      its second response and explained that agency counsel believed the instruction to
      be incorrect as there was no final Board decision and it was unclear to which
      “agency decision” the order was referring. CF, Tab 6 at 5-6. We find no basis to
      strike the agency’s first submission or to impose other sanctions against the
      agency for its initial omission of this information because the appellant has not
      shown either that sanctions are necessary to serve the ends of justice, that the
      agency acted in bad faith, or that she was prejudiced by the agency’s action. See
      Holsapple v. Office of Personnel Management, 35 M.S.P.R. 558, 561 (1987)
      (denying the appellant’s request for sanctions because he did not show any harm
      suffered by the agency’s delay and it did not appear that the agency exhibited
      negligence or bad faith); 5 C.F.R. § 1201.43.      Furthermore, the administrative
      judge’s failure to rule on the appellant’s motion below did not prejudice her
      substantive rights.   See Holsapple, 35 M.S.P.R. at 561 (finding that, when no
      sanction was required, the administrative judge’s failure to rule on the appellant’s
      request for sanctions was not prejudicial to his substantive rights).

      The appellant failed to establish that the agency breached the settlement
      agreement.
¶14         As noted above, the administrative judge found that the appellant failed to
      meet her burden to establish that the agency breached a ma terial term of the
      settlement agreement.    CID.    On review, the appellant again argues that the
      agency breached the settlement agreement by submitting documents and eliciting
      testimony pertaining to her employment in the Sabio case and that the agency
                                                                                            9

      engaged in this breach in retaliation for her participation in Sabio. 4 CPFR File,
      Tab 1 at 11-12, 14-20.     For the reasons discussed below, we find no basis to
      disturb the administrative judge’s determination that the appellant failed to
      establish that the agency breached the settlement agreement and that she is,
      therefore, not entitled to rescission of the settlement agreement . CID at 12-29.
      However, because some of the administrative judge’s analysis may have been
      unnecessary to the compliance matter before us—such as his consideration of “a
      constitutional tort of witness retaliation” and the Board’s enforcement jurisdiction
      based on retaliation for prevailing in one’s own Board appeal —we modify his
      analysis consistent with this section.
¶15         The Board has the authority to enforce a settlement agreement that has been
      entered into the record in the same manner as any final Board decision or order.
      Vance v. Department of the Interior, 114 M.S.P.R. 679, ¶ 6 (2010).                  The
      appellant, as the party alleging noncompliance, bears the burden of proving by
      preponderant evidence that the agency breached the settlement agreement. 5
      Haefele v. Department of the Air Force, 108 M.S.P.R. 630, ¶ 7 (2008).                In
      response to a petition for enforcement claiming breach of a settlement agreement,
      the agency should submit evidence of the measures it took to comply, but this is a
      burden of production only; the overall burden of persuasion on the breach issue
      remains with the appellant.        Turner v. Department of Homeland Security,
      102 M.S.P.R. 330, ¶ 5 (2006).            An administrative judge should hold an

      4
        The appellant does not challenge the administrative judge’s finding that the agency
      did not breach the settlement agreement when the NPRC alle gedly failed to provide her
      with a copy of the OPF. The agency asserted below that it would provide her with a
      copy of her OPF and, on review, states that she received it prior to filing her petition
      for review. CF, Tab 6 at 5; CPFR File, Tab 3 at 11. Therefore, we agree with the
      administrative judge that the agency did not breach the agreement in this manner. CID
      at 16.
      5
       A preponderance of the evidence is the degree of relevant evidence that a reasonable
      person, considering the record as a whole, would accept as sufficient to find that a
      contested fact is more likely to be true than untrue. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.4(q).
                                                                                      10

      evidentiary hearing if there is a genuine issue of fact concerning the agency’s
      breach of a settlement agreement. Id.; see 5 C.F.R. § 1201.183(a)(3).
¶16        A settlement agreement is a contract, and the Board will therefore
      adjudicate a petition to enforce a settlement agreement in accordance with
      contract law. Greco v. Department of the Army, 852 F.2d 558, 560 (Fed. Cir.
      1988); Tom v. Department of the Interior, 97 M.S.P.R. 395, ¶ 9 (2004).           In
      construing the terms of a written settlement agreement, the words of the
      agreement itself are of paramount importance in determining the intent of the
      parties at the time they contracted. Greco, 852 F.2d at 560; Tom, 97 M.S.P.R.
      395, ¶ 9. The Board will not imply a term into an agreement that is unambiguous
      and will not hear a party’s complaints about matters that were not incl uded in a
      settlement agreement. Tom, 97 M.S.P.R. 395, ¶ 9.
¶17        Here, the relevant portion of the settlement agreement provides that the
      agency will “[r]emove all records from Appellant’s [OPF] pertaining to any
      proposed termination action taken against [her].” IAF, Tab 20 at 6. We agree
      with the administrative judge that this term is unambiguous and requires the
      agency to provide the appellant with a “clean” OPF, i.e., one that does not contain
      any reference to any termination action.      Id.; CID at 18-19; see Torres v.
      Department of Homeland Security, 110 M.S.P.R. 482, ¶ 12 (2009). A settlement
      agreement providing for a clean record requires not only that the agency remove
      references to the challenged agency action from the employee’s OPF, but also
      that the agency act as if the appellant had a clean OPF in dealings and
      communications with third parties.       Torres, 110 M.S.P.R. 482, ¶ 12.       The
      appellant does not appear to argue, and has not submitted any evidence showing,
      that the agency failed to remove references to “any proposed termination action”
      from her OPF. CF, Tabs 1, 5; CPFR File, Tab 1. Rather, she argues that the
      agency violated the settlement agreement by submitting documents and eliciting
      testimony from agency personnel regarding her employment and termination in
      the Sabio case. CF, Tab 5 at 7-19; CPFR File, Tab 1 at 11-12, 14-20.
                                                                                    11

¶18        As noted above, in Sabio, the agency submitted a copy of the appellant’s
      resignation letter and a copy of her July 16, 2014 affidavit from her involuntary
      resignation appeal. Sabio v. Department of Veterans Affairs, 124 M.S.P.R. 161,
      ¶ 7 (2017). We find no merit to the appellant’s argument that the submission of
      these documents in Sabio establishes that the agency breached the clean record
      provision of the settlement agreement.       First, the affidavit postdates the
      appellant’s resignation by approximately 13 months and would not have been
      included as part of her OPF. IAF, Tab 9 at 6-8. Second, her resignation letter
      does not “pertain[] to any proposed termination action taken against [her],” and
      the clean record provision of the settlement agreement did not require the agency
      to excise her resignation letter from the OPF. IAF, Tab 1 at 13, Tab 20 at 6. In
      any event, the appellant has not shown that the agency obtained these documents,
      which were available to both parties in her involuntary resignation Board appeal,
      from her OPF. IAF, Tab 1 at 13, Tab 3 at 5, Tab 9 at 6-8.
¶19        Contrary to the appellant’s argument on review, the settlement agreement
      did not impose upon the agency an obligation to “clean all records wherever they
      may be in the Federal Government.” CPFR File, Tab 1 at 28. Rather, pursuant to
      the unambiguous terms of the settlement agreement, the agency was only required
      to remove records from the appellant’s “[OPF] pertaining to any proposed
      termination action taken against [her].”   IAF, Tab 20 at 6.      The settlement
      agreement does not require the agency to ensure that every system within the
      agency is free from references to the noticed termination and the s ettlement
      thereof, and we decline to imply such a term into the parties’ unambiguous
      agreement. IAF, Tab 20; see Tom, 97 M.S.P.R. 395, ¶ 9; Shirley v. Department of
      the Interior, 120 M.S.P.R. 195, ¶¶ 21-23 (2013) (finding that the presence of
      documents referencing the appellant’s removal in a separate file in a separate
      office did not violate the clean record provision of the settlement agreement,
      which required the agency to “remove any and all documents related to
      Appellant’s removal from Federal service from the Appellant’s OPF”).
                                                                                       12

      Therefore, the appellant has not carried her burden to show by preponderant
      evidence that the agency breached the settlement agreement when it submitted her
      affidavit and resignation letter in the Sabio proceeding.
¶20         The appellant’s claim that the agency violated the settlement agreement by
      eliciting testimony from agency personnel about her “performance, attitude,
      termination and the nature of employment” during the Sabio hearing is likewise
      unavailing. CPFR File, Tab 1 at 15-20. As noted above, the appellant, as the
      party alleging noncompliance, bears the burden of proving by preponderant
      evidence that the agency breached the settlement agreement.                Haefele,
      108 M.S.P.R. 630, ¶ 7. Her vague claim, unsupported by any hearing transcript
      or recording, that unspecified questioning of agency personnel by agency counsel
      at the Sabio hearing violated the settlement agreement falls well short of
      demonstrating breach by preponderant evidence.
¶21         Lastly, the appellant argues again on review that the agency’s breach of the
      settlement agreement was retaliation for her having provided an affidavit in
      support of the appellant in Sabio, and that its breach has a “chilling effect on the
      exercise of speech” and harms her potential for future employment. CPFR File,
      Tab 1 at 20 (emphasis in original); id. at 20-24. A party may breach a settlement
      agreement by acting in bad faith as to a settlement term, and the appellant may
      establish that the agency breached the settlement agree ment by showing that the
      agency’s retaliatory or harassing actions constituted bad-faith noncompliance.
      See Kuykendall v. Department of Veterans Affairs, 68 M.S.P.R. 314, 323 (1995).
      As discussed above, however, there is no indication here that the agency has
      breached a term of the settlement agreement. Moreover, there is no indication
      that the agency acted in bad faith regarding a settlement term when, in an attempt
      to rebut the appellant’s affidavit alleging dispar ate treatment in Sabio, it
      submitted her resignation letter speaking of her employment at the agency in
      positive terms and an affidavit explicitly stating that “[d]iscrimination did not
                                                                                           13

      cause [her] to resign.” IAF, Tab 1 at 13, Tab 9 at 7; see Sabio, 124 M.S.P.R. 161,
      ¶ 7.
¶22          In light of the foregoing, we agree with the administrative judge’s
      determination that the appellant failed to demonstrate that the agency breached
      the settlement agreement and affirm the denial of her petition for enforcement.

                               NOTICE OF APPEAL RIGHTS 6
             The compliance initial decision, as supplemented by this Final Order,
      constitutes the Board’s final decision in this matter. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.113. You
      may obtain review of this final decision. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(a)(1). By statute, the
      nature of your claims determines the time limit for seeking such review and the
      appropriate forum with which to file. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(b). Although we offer the
      following summary of available appeal rights, the Merit Systems Protection
      Board does not provide legal advice on which option is most appropriate for your
      situation and the rights described below do not represent a statement of how
      courts will rule regarding which cases fall within their jurisdiction. If you wish
      to seek review of this final decision, you should immediately review the law
      applicable to your claims and carefully follow all filing ti me limits and
      requirements. Failure to file within the applicable time limit may result in the
      dismissal of your case by your chosen forum.
             Please read carefully each of the three main possible choices of review
      below to decide which one applies to your particular case. If you have questions
      about whether a particular forum is the appropriate one to review your case, you
      should contact that forum for more information.

             (1) Judicial review in general. As a general rule, an appellant seeking
      judicial review of a final Board order must file a petition for review with the U.S.

      6
        Since the issuance of the initial decision in this matter, the Board may have updated
      the notice of review rights included in final decisions. As indicated in the notice, the
      Board cannot advise which option is most appropriate in any matter.
                                                                                        14

Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which must be received by the court
within 60 calendar days of the date of issuance of this decision.                 5 U.S.C.
§ 7703(b)(1)(A).
      If you submit a petition for review to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
Federal   Circuit,   you   must   submit    your   petition    to   the   court    at   the
following address:
                              U.S. Court of Appeals
                              for the Federal Circuit
                             717 Madison Place, N.W.
                             Washington, D.C. 20439

      Additional information about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit 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, 10, and 11.
      If you are interested in securing pro bono representation for an appeal to
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, you may visit our website at
http://www.mspb.gov/probono for information regarding pro bono representation
for Merit Systems Protection Board appellants before the Federal Circuit. The
Board neither endorses the services provided by any attorney nor warra nts that
any attorney will accept representation in a given case.

      (2) Judicial   or    EEOC    review     of   cases      involving    a   claim     of
discrimination. This option applies to you only if you have claimed that you
were affected by an action that is appealable to the Board and that such action
was based, in whole or in part, on unlawful discrimination. If so, you may obtain
judicial review of this decision—including a disposition of your discrimination
claims—by filing a civil action with an appropriate U.S. district court (not the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit), within 30 calendar days after you
receive this decision.      5 U.S.C. § 7703(b)(2); see Perry v. Merit Systems
Protection Board, 582 U.S. ____ , 137 S. Ct. 1975 (2017).                 If you have a
                                                                                 15

representative in this case, and your representative receives this decision before
you do, then you must file with the district court no later than 30 calendar days
after your representative receives this decision. If the action involves a claim of
discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or a disabling
condition, you may be entitled to representation by a court ‑appointed lawyer and
to waiver of any requirement of prepayment of fees, costs, or other security. See
42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f) and 29 U.S.C. § 794a.
      Contact information for U.S. district courts can be f ound at their respective
websites, which can be accessed through the link below:
      http://www.uscourts.gov/Court_Locator/CourtWebsites.aspx.
      Alternatively, you may request review by the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC) of your discrimination claims only, excluding
all other issues. 5 U.S.C. § 7702(b)(1). You must file any such request with the
EEOC’s Office of Federal Operations within 30 calendar days after you receive
this decision. 5 U.S.C. § 7702(b)(1). If you have a representative in this case,
and your representative receives this decision before you do, then you must file
with the EEOC no later than 30 calendar days after your representative receives
this decision.
      If you submit a request for review to the EEOC by regular U.S. mail, the
address of the EEOC is:
                         Office of Federal Operations
                  Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
                               P.O. Box 77960
                          Washington, D.C. 20013

      If you submit a request for review to the EEOC via commercial delivery or
by a method requiring a signature, it must be addressed to:
                         Office of Federal Operations
                  Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
                              131 M Street, N.E.
                                Suite 5SW12G
                          Washington, D.C. 20507
                                                                                     16

      (3) Judicial    review     pursuant    to   the   Whistleblower       Protection
Enhancement Act of 2012. This option applies to you only if you have raised
claims of reprisal for whistleblowing disclosures under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(8) or
other protected activities listed in 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D).
If so, and your judicial petition for review “raises no challenge to the Board’s
disposition of allegations of a prohibited personnel practice described in
section 2302(b) other than practices described in section 2302(b)(8), or
2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D),” then you may file a petition for judicial
review either with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit or any court
of appeals of competent jurisdiction. 7 The court of appeals must receive your
petition for review within 60 days of the date of issuance of this decision.
5 U.S.C. § 7703(b)(1)(B).
      If you submit a petition for judicial review to the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Federal Circuit, you must submit your petition to the court at the
following address:
                                U.S. Court of Appeals
                                for the Federal Circuit
                               717 Madison Place, N.W.
                               Washington, D.C. 20439

      Additional information about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit 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, 10, and 11.

7
   The original statutory provision that provided for judicial review of certain
whistleblower claims by any court of appeals of competent jurisdiction expired on
December 27, 2017. The All Circuit Review Act, signed into law by the President on
July 7, 2018, permanently allows appellants to file petitions for judicial review of
MSPB decisions in certain whistleblower reprisal cases with the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit or any other circuit court of appeals of competent jurisdiction.
The All Circuit Review Act is retroactive to November 26, 2017. Pub. L. No. 115 -195,
132 Stat. 1510.
                                                                             17

      If you are interested in securing pro bono representation for an appeal to
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, you may visit our website at
http://www.mspb.gov/probono for information regarding pro bono representation
for Merit Systems Protection Board appellants before the Federal Circuit. The
Board neither endorses the services provided by any attorney nor warrants that
any attorney will accept representation in a given case.
      Contact information for the courts of appeals can be found at their
respective websites, which can be accessed through the l ink below:
      http://www.uscourts.gov/Court_Locator/CourtWebsites.aspx.

FOR THE BOARD:                            /s/ for
                                          Jennifer Everling
                                          Acting Clerk of the Board
Washington, D.C.