What Will The Department Of Government Efficiency Do With MSHA? By Brian Hendrix A few months ago, I said I would explain what the Supreme Court’s decision this year in SEC v. Jarkesy may mean for certain types of cases under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act. Much has changed since then, so I’m going to cover Jarkesy in…
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The Mining Law of 1872
The Law Does Not Limit The Number Of Mill Sites That Claimants Can Locate. By Martin P. Stratte The Mining Law of 1872 allows people to prospect for valuable minerals on public lands. Prospectors can “locate” or “stake” mining claims. Claimants can also locate “mill sites” for milling or other mining-related activities.[1] Mill sites can be used for processing facilities…
Read MoreAn Election Primer for Private-Sector Employers
There Are Complicated Legal And Practical Issues Of Regulating Workplace Speech While Also Respecting Employee Rights. By Tyler Hibler and Delia Berrigan As the 2024 general election looms, employers can anticipate a rise in political expression from employees both inside and outside of the workplace. Political speech encompasses a broad array of activities, extending far beyond verbal or written communication…
Read MoreReigning in the Administrative State: Checking MSHA
What Does SEC v. Jarkesy and Corner Post Inc. v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Mean? By Brian Hendrix Administrative law might rival Ambien as a sedative for all but a small handful of people of the sort who practice in the area or find it interesting. As that “sort” of person, I am inflicting a second…
Read MoreRespect For Agency Authority, Not Deference
What Does Loper Bright Enterprise v. Raimondo Mean To Future Regulatory Action? By Brian Hendrix Did you see the news about Chevron and Loper Bright? “Supreme Court takes a sledgehammer to federal agency power!” Court’s decision to overrule Chevron will “paralyze federal agencies” and generate a “tsunami of lawsuits!” To borrow a phrase, “big, if true.” Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending…
Read MoreCommentary: The Mining Law of 1872
The Law Does Not Limit the Number of Mill Sites that Claimants Can Locate. By Martin P. Stratte The Mining Law of 1872 allows people to prospect for valuable minerals on public lands. Prospectors can “locate” or “stake” mining claims. Claimants can also locate “mill sites” for milling or other mining-related activities.[1] Mill sites can be used for processing facilities and…
Read MoreMSHA’s New Health Resources Locator
The Connection Between Agency’s New Tool, Shrimp Treadmills and Cocaine-Addicted Quails. By Brian Hendrix The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) isn’t a healthcare agency. It doesn’t employ doctors, nurses or healthcare professionals. It doesn’t provide healthcare or medical services. It doesn’t certify or rate healthcare providers. Information about healthcare providers isn’t hard to find. It is readily available to…
Read MoreMine Manager Pleads Guilty to Second-Degree Manslaughter
An upstate New York court accepted a mine manager’s guilty plea today to manslaughter in the second degree, a Class C felony. Anthony Valente, a mine manager at a Grafton limestone quarry, admitted to causing Darren Miller’s death in October 2022 by recklessly disregarding and overriding safety features of a crane Valente was operating, which resulted in a piece of…
Read MoreMSHA’s Silica Rule
Exploring The Depths Of Bad Rulemaking. By Brian Hendrix On April 18, MSHA published its final rule on respirable crystalline silica (Lowering Miners’ Exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica and Improving Respiratory Protection). Two days before the publication, the Acting Secretary of Labor appeared with the Assistant Secretary for Mine Safety and Health and union leaders to announce the release of…
Read MoreIn California, Are Sand And Gravel ‘Minerals’?
A New California Appellate Decision Broadly Interprets Mineral Rights Reservations In Grant Deeds To Include Sand And Gravel. By Mhare O. Mouradian, MaryBeth Heydt and Destinee Burrell As goes California, so goes the nation? When interpreting general mineral reservations in grants or deeds, California courts have not, until recently, considered sand and gravel – aggregate – a “mineral.” That changed…
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