Law Commons^™

Administrative Law Judges And The Erosion Of The Administrative State: Why Jarkesy May Be The Straw That Breaks The Camel's Back, Nicholas D'Addio

Catholic University Law Review

The Trump-era unitary executive movement sought to expand presidential

power and shrink the influence of the administrative state through deregulation.

This movement ripples into the present moment, as Trump’s overhaul of the

federal judiciary installed a comprehensive system to delegitimize

administrative agency action— a system that is certain to endure. The

independence and role of administrative law judges (ALJs) has proven a key

target of the movement. Most recently, in the 2022 case of Jarkesy v. Securities

and Exchange Commission, the Fifth Circuit held that the dual-tiered for-cause

removal protections of SEC ALJs violated the Take Care Clause of Article …

An Attempt To Bring Modern Workplace Realities To The Social Security Disability Adjudication System, Robert E. Rains

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

No abstract provided.

The Guardian Trustee In Bankruptcy Courts And Beyond, Lindsey Simon

Scholarly Works

Litigation systems create dangers of unfairness. Citizens worry, and should worry, about exploitive settlements in aggregate litigation, potential biases in administrative proceedings, and troubling power imbalances in criminal trials. Public confidence in adjudicative processes has eroded to an all-time low. This Article explores the untapped potential of adding independent watchdog entities to address systemic threats to the integrity of government decisionmaking. These entities, which I call “guardian trustees,” do not fit within the traditional framework of our adversary system. Though guardian trustees already operate in bankruptcy proceedings, they have thus far received little attention in scholarly literature. This Article begins …

Regulating Impartiality In Agency Adjudication, Kent H. Barnett

Scholarly Works

Which should prevail—the Take Care Clause of Article II or the Due Process Clause? To Justice Breyer’s chagrin, the majorities in Lucia v. SEC and Free Enterprise Fund v. PCAOB expressly declined to resolve whether the U.S. Constitution condones SEC administrative law judges’ and other similarly situated agency adjudicators’ current statutory protection from at-will removal. The crux of the problem is that, on one hand, senior officials may use at-will removal to pressure agency adjudicators and thereby potentially imperil the impartiality that due process requires. On the other hand, Article II limits Congress’s ability to cocoon executive officers, including potentially …

The Need For A Central Panel Approach To Administrative Adjudication: Pros, Cons, And Selected Practices, Malcolm C. Rich, Alison C. Goldstein

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

The goal of this report is to document the growth of the central panel movement that has now emerged in a majority of states. This research is designed to provide data-informed recommendations to states and municipalities considering the adoption of a central panel system or the enlargement of the jurisdiction encompassed by an existing central panel as well as to states considering the adoption of a more final decision-making authority for their central panel ALJs. The work is also intended to inform the debate over whether the central panel approach is something that the federal government should consider. This research …

Lucia Et Al. V. Securities And Exchange Commission: Opinion Of The Court, Elena Kagan

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Introduction To Lucia Et Al. V. Securities And Exchange Commission, Selina Malherbe

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Clearing The Air: Does Choosing Agency Deference In Security Clearance Rulings Dilute Constitutional Challenges?, Frank Russo

Catholic University Law Review

The ability to obtain a security clearance has a wide-ranging impact from job placement to questions of fitness in a presidential election. Sustaining a functional career in intelligence, national security, and many other federal fields within the United States is nearly impossible without proper security clearance. In 2016, the importance of proper clearance evolved into a national debate as each presidential candidate staked claims that their opposition should be excluded from receiving sensitive material.

This Comment begins with a detailed history of modern security clearance procedures and MSPB reviews of clearance revocations. Part I focuses on those who need security …

The Shadow Of Free Enterprise: The Unconstitutionality Of The Securities & Exchange Commission’S Administrative Law Judges, Linda D. Jellum, Moses M. Tincher

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

Six years ago, Congress enacted the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act), for the first time giving the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) the power to seek monetary penalties through its in-house adjudication. The SEC already had the power to seek such penalties in federal court. With the Dodd-Frank Act, the SEC’s enforcement division could now choose between an adjudication before an SEC Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) or a civil action before an Article III judge. With this new choice, the SEC realized a significant home-court advantage. For example, in 2014, the SEC’s enforcement division prevailed …

Humphrey’S Executor Squared: Free Enterprise Fund V. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board And Its Implications For Administrative Law Judges, Robert S. Garrison Jr.

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Creating Mischief: The Tenth Circuit Declares The Sec’S Administrative Law Judges Unconstitutional In Bandimere V. Securities Exchange Commission, Casey M. Olesen

Maine Law Review

Since the passage of the APA, administrative agencies’ use of Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) to preside over hearings has exploded, and now far outpaces the number trials conducted before federal judges. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is one such agency that heavily utilizes ALJs to conduct their hearings. Recently, following an apparent higher percentage of SEC wins before their own ALJs as compared to before federal judges, a new constitutional challenge on the basis of the Appointments Clause has been brought before several circuits; that the SEC’s ALJs are inferior officers of the SEC, not employees, and therefore are …

Alj Central Panels: How Is It Going Out There?, W. Michael Gillette

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

For over 40 years, administrative law mavens have touted the desirability of “central panels,” i.e., panels of administrative law judges who, instead of being attached to a single administrative agency, are assigned to a “central,” “independent” panel that supplies administrative law judges to conduct contested case hearings for a variety of agencies. More than half the states have listened to the siren call and have created such panels — the earliest (California’s) as far back as 1946. As one who at first opposed, but later supported the creation of such a panel in his home state, Oregon, the author now …

Many Key Issues Still Left Unaddressed In The Securities And Exchange Commission's Attempt To Modernize Its Rules Of Practice, Joseph Quincy Patterson

Notre Dame Law Review

This Note analyzes and explains the current issues and criticism regarding the SEC’s use of ALJs. In particular, this Note recommends that the SEC ratify its ALJs in accordance with constitutional requirements, create a rigid formula for its forum selection, and amend its Rules of Practice to align more closely to the procedural due process rights in federal district courts. As many of these topics are currently being discussed in federal courts of appeals and within the SEC—through its proposed amendments to the Rules of Practice—this Note intends to add to the discussion on a topic with very little scholarly …

Cologna V. Board Of Trustees, Police & Firemen’S Retirement System, Erik W. Lane

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

California Year In Review: 2013 Special Education Alj Decisions, Ruth Colker

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

This article reviews 74 special education cases decided by California ALJs between January 1, 2013 and December 11, 2013. The author concludes that the ALJs provided stingy relief even when students prevailed, there was often unsuccessful litigation on behalf of a student following the termination of a consent decree or court order, many of the cases reflected negative attitudes towards the mothers of the student, and school districts often preferred more restrictive placements than the parent/student. Not surprisingly, students faced very unfavorable outcomes when they were not represented by a lawyer.

Resolving The Alj Quandary, Kent Barnett

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

Three competing constitutional and practical concerns surround federal administrative law judges (“ALJs”), who preside over all formal adjudications within the executive branch. First, if ALJs are “inferior Officers” (not mere employees), as five current Supreme Court Justices have suggested, the current method of selecting many ALJs likely violates the Appointments Clause. Second, a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision reserved the question whether the statutory protections that prevent ALJs from being fired at will impermissibly impinge upon the President’s supervisory power under Article II. Third, these same protections from removal may, on the other hand, be too limited to satisfy impartiality …

Simplifying The Standard Of Review In North Carolina Administrative Appeals, Sarah H. Ludington

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

The Department Of Agriculture's Rules Of Practice: Do They Still Serve Both The Department's And The Public's Needs?, Peter M. Davenport

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Administrative Adjudications In New Jersey: Why Not Let The Alj Decide?, Richard M. Hluchan

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Final Decision Authority And The Central Panel Alj, Larry J. Craddock

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Statement Of The Association Of Administrative Law Judges, Inc., Officers And Board

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Administrative Hearings: State Central Panels In The 1990s, Allen Hoberg

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

The Central Hearing Agency: Theory And Implementation In Maryland, John W. Hardwicke

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Evaluation: Where Are We? Where Are We Going?, Ronnie A. Yoder

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

The Courting Of Credibility, A Nervous Mistress, Edd Wheeler

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Louisiana Public Service Commission V. Cheathon: Error Of Alj In Not Citing A Party For Contempt For Failure To Appear At A Hearing, Kevin J. Riley

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

The Unseen Hand In Administrative Law Decisions: Organizing Principles For Findings Of Fact & (And) Conclusions Of Law, Michael Frost

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Collegiality Among Administrative Law Judges - As Well As Independence - Would Be Lost If Judges Are Evaluated By Chief Judges On Policy Correctness, Richard L. Sippel

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Maintaining The Balance Between Judicial Independence And Judicial Accountability In Administrative Law, Edwin L. Felter Jr.

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Yoder - Hardwicke Dialogue: Does Mandatory Quality Assurance Oversight Of Alj Decisions Violate Alj Decisional Independence, Due Process Or Ex Parte Prohibitions?, Ronnie A. Yoder, John Hardwicke

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.