CAN ONE CHALLENGE A FEDERAL AGENCY JUDGE FOR BIAS OR FOR
  BEING
 INCOMPETENT?

What can you do to protect yourself if in your claim before a federal agency you find the federal judge to be biased, or, even worse, simply incompetent?

The answer is....little to nothing.

Most federal agency judge's are appointed for life with lifetime compensation benefits. Short of their own death or their felony imprisonment, they are there to stay and pretty much free to act as desired on any claim before them.
One all to well recalls the recent case of Administrative Law Judge Roy L. Pearson who sued a family owned dry cleaner for $54 million for losing a $10 pair of his pants.

Supposedly under the Judicial Conduct and Disability Act of 1980  anyone can file a complaint for judicial misconduct with the clerk of the federal court of appeals for the circuit in which a given judge sits. However a Congressional Subcommittee of the House overlooking the Act and examining the law was told of one study from "fiscal years 1996 and 1997" that showed that "more than 1000 formal complaints were filed against federal judges nationwide. The chief judges decided that not one of these cases required official discipline." In addition, "[i]n more that 450 cases, complainants appealed the dismissal of their complaint to the judicial council of an appellate court. These councils rejected every appeal."

The US Supreme Court has exempted itself from review under the Act.

Unless the Congress decides to amend or change the Constitution, the answer as to what can be done with biased or incompetent federal agency judges remains pretty clear; not much other than to look the other way and hope the judge retires early.
 
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Law Office Notes of James R. Linehan PC
Greetings!

Another day brings fresh challenges to the current government's increasing attempts to delay and deny injured and disabled persons claims for much needed compensation. Nonetheless, despite warnings and sanctions to back away, the fight continues.  Read on for more detail.
 
Challenge to Federal Efforts to Deprive Social Security Claimants of Equal Access Results in Sanction and Warning
Prior to 1980 few people were able to challenge the federal government on issues such as the government denying them social security benefits, civil rights, etc.  The reason was simple: challenging the United States in court required large amounts of money to pay attorneys fees and costs; something unemployed disabled persons and minorities had little of at hand. 
In 1980 to correct this inequality, and to provide the little guy equal access to court, the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) was created and made into federal law.  Under EAJA, the little guy,  (for example; minorities, the disabled, or the unemployed) who was denied his social security benefits could now file a claim in federal court against the United States.  If the little guy won his claim against the US, then under EAJA, the US would be required to pay his attorneys fees.  Finally the little guy could stand in equal footing with the US in open court...until now. 
Under the current Administration, there has apparently been a directive issued to the United States federal attorneys offices that from now on essentially any and all EAJA claims are to be challenged and objected to by the US Attorneys office.  Furthermore, the Administration is demanding that if the EAJA fee is still successfully awarded by the Court over their objections, the attorneys fees are not to be paid or provided to the attorney who successfully represented the little guy. 
The apparent intended result of this Administrative push is obvious; to once again drive out and deprive the disabled, the unemployed, the poor, and the minorities back out of the courts and away from challenging the current government on issues of civil rights and liberty.  As the little guy can no longer pay for attorneys fees, only the well-financed claimant will once again have access to the court system.
This office was handed this direct challenge by the US Government in its own recent victories for disabled persons in their Social Security claims against the United States.  After winning the claims, we filed for attorneys fees under EAJA only to be openly challenged and objected, and then finding our attorneys fees ordered not to be paid to us. In direct fight for the rights of the little guy, we openly challenged this alleged deprivation of rightful EAJA fees, only to find ourselves being ordered into court,  fined and sanctioned and warned against raising such challenges in the future.
One can trust that unless significant changes occur with current government, "equal access" to courts will quickly become less and less equal for the little guy and perhaps even a thing of the past; nonetheless we will continue in our struggle and fight for the little guy.
Challenge to USDOL Assistant Director on Depriving Compensation to Injured Workers Results in Advisory to Cease High Level Contacts
  Continued challenges by this office to the US Department of Labor for failing to provide due compensation benefits to injured, dying and sickened federal employees has also resulted in a receipt of a veiled advisory from Shelby Hallmark; US DOL Assistant Secretary of Labor. 
In direct response to our past and continuing battles for injured and dying federal workers who are being wrongfully deprived their federal compensation benefits, the Assistant Secretary Hallmark submitted a personal email to this office advising that our continued  contacts with "high-ranking Executive Branch officials", "Members of Congress, or members of the press" serves no purpose and "wastes those individuals' time". 
Surprisingly in the personal email the Assistant Secretary also remarked on the mental capacity of such Members of Congress and the USDOL to understand theses issues as those "high-ranking" persons being contacted on these claims "generally have no knowledge" of the issues.

Notably the Assistant Secretary of Labor Hallmark currently stands accused in the past months of participating in a scheme with the White House to knowingly deprive and withhold federal compensation benefits to thousands of sick, ill and dying federal workers.  The outcome of that investigation of the Assistant Secretary remains unknown at this time.

In the meantime we will continue in our battles on behalf of those injured and dying federal workers  regardless of being advised to do otherwise.
 
Trying to understand the laws and regulations surrounding disability benefits can be incredibly confusing for the layman. It's almost impossible unless you have devoted your education and career to understanding this specific niche. If you want to cut through the all the confusing obstacles that stand in your way, give the offices of James R. Linehan a call as soon as possible. If too much time passes, you could miss out on your Social Security Disability, Federal Workers Compensation OWCP, or OPM medical retirement benefits.
 
Sincerely,
 

Jim Linehan