By James L. Curtis, Patrick D. Joyce, and Craig B. Simonsen
Seyfarth Synopsis: OSHA has rescinded its midnight rule, adopted by the outgoing Administration in December 2016 which attempted to end run the federal court’s decision in Volks that limits the statute of limitations on injury recordkeeping violations to six months.
Prior to 2012, OSHA’s longstanding position
Continue Reading OSHA “Removes” Late Term Rule Which Allowed OSHA to Cite Injury Recordkeeping Violations Going Back Five-Years
By Brent I. Clark, James L. Curtis, Benjamin D. Briggs, Mark A. Lies, II, and Craig B. Simonsen
Seyfarth Synopsis: Congress passes a Resolution to dismantle an OSHA final rule, adopted in December 2016, which despite statutory language to the opposite, “more clearly states employers’ obligations” to record an injury or illness which continues for
Continue Reading Congress Moves to Invalidate OSHA Rule Which Provides Employers Can Be Cited for Five-Years For Injury and Illness Records
By Mark A. Lies, II, Brent I. Clark, James L. Curtis, and Craig B. Simonsen
Seyfarth Synopsis: OSHA finalizes rule that “more clearly states employers’ obligations” to record an injury or illness which continues for the full five-year record-retention period.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced last week a new final rule that “clarifies an
Continue Reading OSHA Issues Final Rule “Clarifying” The Ongoing Obligation To Make And Maintain Accurate Records Of Work-Related Injuries And Illnesses
By Ilana R. Morady and Craig B. Simonsen
OSHA, through a rulemaking, is seeking to build a work-a-round to a D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals opinion on issuing citations for recordkeeping violations that are more than six months old. 80 Fed. Reg. 45116 (July 29, 2015).
We had blogged previously about the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals opinion in AKM
Continue Reading OSHA Seeks Work-a-Round to Issuing Citations for Recordkeeping Violations More Than Six Months Old
By James L. Curtis, Meagan Newman, and Craig B. Simonsen
Dr. David Michaels, Administrator for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, testified yesterday at a hearing before the Senate Subcommittee on Employment & Workplace Safety. The topic of discussion was “Whistleblowers and Job Safety: Are Protections Adequate to Build a Safer Workplace?”
Dr. David Michaels’ Answer: No, They’re
Continue Reading Whistleblowers and Job Safety: Are Protections Adequate to Build a Safer Workplace?
By Andrew H. Perellis, Jeryl L. Olson, and Craig B. Simonsen
The Third Circuit concludes that the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency may not force former facility owners to obtain missing preconstruction permits or to install missing pollution controls on a plant that they no longer own or operate — as it did not cry foul until more
Continue Reading Third Circuit Finds Enforcement Action Time-Barred Because the Failure to Obtain a Preconstruction Permit is Not a Continuing Violation of the Clean Air Act
By Andrew H. Perellis and Jeryl L. Olson
How much change can occur without a permit is a contentious and difficult question.
A Clean Air Act major source undergoing construction or modification needs to obtain a construction permit under 42 U.S.C. §7475(a) that would then obligate it to install best available control technology (BACT). However, mere repairs to an existing
Continue Reading USA v. Midwest Generation — Seventh Circuit Finds Enforcement Action Time-Barred Because the Failure to Obtain a PSD Construction Permit is Not a Continuing Violation of the Clean Air Act
By Mark A. Lies, II, Brent I. Clark, and Craig B. Simonsen
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals recently found, in AKM LLC v. Secretary of Labor, — F.3d —-, 2012 WL 1142273 (DC Cir., April 06, 2012), that where the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) had issued certain recordkeeping citations and penalties for alleged errors
By Andrew H. Perellis and William R. Schubert
The Montana Supreme Court recently held that the statute of limitations provided no defense to a defendant even though the plaintiffs had not asserted their nuisance and trespass claims until decades after the initial discovery of contamination.
In Burley v. Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway Co., Mont., No. 11-0021 (Feb.
Continue Reading Burley v. BNSF: Montana Supreme Court Rules that Continuing Tort Doctrine Applies to Nuisance and Trespass Claims Involving Groundwater Contamination