Texas ABM Ruling Threatens Future of Labor Agency Law Judges

The US Labor Department’s ability to use in-house judges to resolve claims under more than 80 statutes may have to be ironed out by the US Supreme Court, attorneys say, as circuit splits threaten to limit the judges’ power.

Businesses have filed at least three lawsuits attempting to rein in administrative law judges at the agency, arguing that they are unconstitutional under both US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and Supreme Court precedent in Jarkesy v. SEC. All three challenges suggest that DOL ALJs are illegally insulated from removal by the president, and that the issues they are ...