On April 17, 2003, a Department of Labor Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) issued a Recommended Decision and Order in this case arising under the employee protection provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, P.L. 107-204, Section 806, 18 U.S.C. § 1514A. The Department has not yet enacted regulations governing the procedures to be followed to obtain Administrative Review Board review of Recommended Decisions and Orders. Consequently the ALJ, who issued the Recommended Decision and Order, referred the case to the Board for review.¹

   The parties are hereby notified that if a party wishes the Board to review the ALJ's Recommended Decision and Order, the party shall file a petition for review with the Board no later than ten business days from the date of this order, requesting the Board to review the Recommended Decision and Order. If the Board receives one or more petitions for review, the Board will establish a schedule for submitting briefs. If no petitions for review are received within the 10-day period, the Board will issue an order closing the case, and the ALJ's Recommended Decision and Order will become the Secretary of Labor's final order as provided in 18 U.S.C. § 1514A(b)(1)(B).

FOR THE ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW BOARD:

Janet R. Dunlop
General Counsel

¹ We note that pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 1514A(b)(2)(A), an action under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act is governed "under the rules and procedures set forth in section 42121(b) of title 49, United States Code [the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act (AIR 21)]. Recently adopted procedures for the handling of discrimination complaints under AIR 21 provide that an administrative law judge's recommended decision becomes the Secretary's final decision if no timely petition for review is filed with the Board within ten business days of the administrative law judge's decision. 29 C.F.R. § 1978.110.