 |
|
|
 |
||
 |
||
|
Guide to Review Commission Procedures Glossary Abatement Period -- Period of time specified in citation for correcting alleged workplace safety or health violation. Answer -- Written document filed in response to a complaint, consisting of short plain statements denying the allegations in the complaint which the employer contests. Citation -- Written notification from OSHA of alleged workplace violation(s), proposed penalty(ies), and abatement period. Complaint -- Written document filed by the Secretary of Labor detailing the alleged violations contained in a citation. Discovery -- The process by which one party obtains information from another party prior to a hearing. Exculpatory Evidence -- Information that may clear one of a charge or of fault or of guilt; in the context of OSHRC cases, information that might help the employer's case. File -- To send papers to the Commission Executive Secretary, or to the judge assigned to a case, and to give copies of those papers to the other parties in the case. Interlocutory Appeal -- An appeal of a judge's ruling on a preliminary issue in a case that is made before the judge issues a final decision on the full case. These types of appeals are infrequently made. One example of an issue often raised in an interlocutory appeal is whether certain material that a party wants kept confidential, such as an employer's trade secrets or employee medical records, should become part of the public record in a case. Notice of Contest -- Written document disagreeing with any part of an OSHA citation. Notice of Docketing -- Written document from the Review Commission's Executive Secretary telling an employer, the Secretary of Labor, and any other parties in a case that the case has been received by the Commission and given an OSHRC docket number. Notice of Withdrawal -- A written document from a party withdrawing its notice of contest or the citation and thus terminating the proceedings before the Commission (see Appendix 5). Party -- Anyone who files a notice of contest or chooses to participate in a proceeding before the Commission judge. Petition for Discretionary Review -- A written request from a party in a case asking the Commission in Washington, D.C. to review and change the judge's decision. The grounds on which a party may request discretionary review are these: (1) it believes the judge made findings of material facts which are not supported by the evidence; (2) it believes that the judge's decision is contrary to law; (3) it believes that a substantial question of law, policy, or abuse of discretion is involved; or (4) it believes that a prejudicial error was committed. Pro Se -- Latin for without an attorney. An employer is said to be "pro se" when representing oneself. Settlement -- A consensual agreement reached by the parties resolving the disputed issues in a case.
|
||
 |
||
|
Home
| About OSHRC
| Procedural
Rules | Decisions
| Strategic
Plan | Performance
Report | Budget | Publications |
||