The opinion
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD
VELLOGIE MCDONNELL, DOCKET NUMBER
Appellant, CH-0752-14-0612-X-1
v.
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS DATE: July 21, 2022
AFFAIRS,
Agency.
THIS FINAL ORDER IS NONPRECEDENTIAL 1
Kurt Cummiskey, Esquire, St. Louis, Missouri, for the appellant.
Michael K. Brown, Esquire, Cincinnati, Ohio, for the appellant.
Kent E. Duncan, Esquire, St. Louis, Missouri, for the agency.
BEFORE
Cathy A. Harris, Vice Chairman
Raymond A. Limon, Member
Tristan L. Leavitt, Member
FINAL ORDER
¶1 The administrative judge issued a January 21, 2016 compliance initial
decision granting the appellant’s petition for enforcement and finding the agency
in noncompliance with the Board’s final decision in MSPB Docket No. CH -0752-
1
A nonprecedential order is one that the Board has determined does not add
significantly to the body of MSPB case law. Parties may cite nonprecedential orders,
but such orders have no precedential value; the Board and administrative judges are not
required to follow or distinguish them in any future decisions. In contrast, a
precedential decision issued as an Opinion and Order has been identified by the Board
as significantly contributing to the Board’s case law. See 5 C.F.R. § 1201.117(c).
2
14-0612-I-1. McDonnell v. Department of Veterans Affairs, MSPB Docket
No. CH-0752-14-0612-C-1, Compliance File, Tab 11, Compliance Initial
Decision; McDonnell v. Department of Veterans Affairs, MSPB Docket
No. CH-0752-14-0612-C-1, Initial Appeal File, Tab 61, Initial Decision (ID).
The appellant’s petition for enforcement was then referred to the Board for a
final decision on issues of compliance pursuant to 5 C.F.R. § 1201.183(b)-(c).
McDonnell v. Department of Veterans Affairs, MSPB Docket No. CH-0752-14-
0612-X-1, Compliance Referral File (CRF), Tab 1. For the reasons set forth
below, we DISMISS the appellant’s petition for enforcement as settled.
¶2 After referral of the referenced compliance matter to the Board, the parties
submitted a document entitled “SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT” signed and dated
by the appellant on March 1, 2019, and by the agency on March 4, 2019. CRF,
Tab 8. The document provides, among other things, that the appellant agreed to
withdraw the above-captioned appeal in exchange for the promises made by the
agency. Id. at 4.
¶3 Before dismissing a matter as settled, the Board must decide whether the
parties have entered into a settlement agreement, whether they understand its
terms, and whether they intend to have the agreement entered into the record for
enforcement by the Board. See Mahoney v. U.S. Postal Service, 37 M.S.P.R.
146, 149 (1988). In addition, before accepting a settlement agreement into the
record for enforcement purposes, the Board must determine whether the
agreement is lawful on its face and whether the parties freely ente red into it. See
Massey v. Office of Personnel Management, 91 M.S.P.R. 289, ¶ 4 (2002),
overruled on other grounds by Delorme v. Department of the Interior,
124 M.S.P.R. 123, ¶¶ 11-21 (2017) (holding that the Board may enforce
settlement agreements that have been entered into the record, independent of any
prior finding of Board jurisdiction over the underlying matter being settled).
¶4 Here, we find here that the parties have, in fact, entered into a settlement
agreement, that they understand the terms of the agreement, and that they want
3
the Board to enforce those terms. CRF, Tab 8 at 7. In addition, we find that the
agreement is lawful on its face and that the parties freely entered into it. Id.
at 4-7. Accordingly, we find that dismissing the appellant’s petition for
enforcement “with prejudice to refiling” (i.e., the parties normally may not refile
this appeal) is appropriate under these circumstances, and we accept the
settlement agreement into the record for enforcement purposes. 2
¶5 This is the final decision of the Merit Systems Protection Board in this
appeal. Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 1201.113 (5 C.F.R.
§ 1201.113).
NOTICE TO THE PARTIES OF THEIR
ENFORCEMENT RIGHTS
If the agency or the appellant has not fully carried out the terms of the
agreement, either party may ask the Board to enforce the settlement agreement by
promptly filing a petition for enforcement with the office that issued the initia l
decision on this appeal. The petition should contain specific reasons why the
petitioning party believes that the terms of the settlement agreement have not
been fully carried out, and should include the dates and results of any
communications between the parties. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.182(a).
2
The settlement agreement also provides for the withdrawal of the appeal underlying
this enforcement proceeding, MSPB Docket Number, CH-0752-14-0612-I-1. CRF,
Tab 8 at 4. However, the underlying appeal is separate from this enforcement
proceeding, and the matter has been closed since the administrative judge’s initial
decision became the final decision of the Board on May 1, 2015, after neither party
filed a petition for review. ID at 2. If the parties would like the Board to reopen the
underlying appeal, vacate the initial decision, and dismiss that appeal as settled, they
may file such a request under MSPB Docket Number CH-0752-14-0612-I-1.
4
NOTICE OF APPEAL RIGHTS 3
You may obtain review of this final decision. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(a)(1). By
statute, the nature of your claims determines the time limit for seeking such
review and the appropriate forum with which to file. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(b).
Although we offer the following summary of available appeal rights, the Merit
Systems Protection Board does not provide legal advice on which option is most
appropriate for your situation and the rights described below do not represent a
statement of how courts will rule regarding which cases fall within their
jurisdiction. If you wish to seek review of this final decision, you should
immediately review the law applicable to your claims and carefully follow all
filing time limits and requirements. Failure to file within the applicable ti me
limit may result in the dismissal of your case by your chosen forum.
Please read carefully each of the three main possible choices of review
below to decide which one applies to your particular case. If you have questions
about whether a particular forum is the appropriate one to review your case, you
should contact that forum for more information.
(1) Judicial review in general. As a general rule, an appellant seeking
judicial review of a final Board order must file a petition for review with the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which must be received by the court
within 60 calendar days of the date of issuance of this decision. 5 U.S.C.
§ 7703(b)(1)(A).
If you submit a petition for review to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
Federal Circuit, you must submit your petition to the court at the
following address:
3
Since the issuance of the initial decision in this matter, the Board may have updated
the notice of review rights included in final decisions. As indicated in the notice, the
Board cannot advise which option is most appropriate in any matter.
5
U.S. Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit
717 Madison Place, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20439
Additional information about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit is available at the court’s website, www.cafc.uscourts.gov. Of particular
relevance is the court’s “Guide for Pro Se Petitioners and Appellants,” which is
contained within the court’s Rules of Practice, and Forms 5, 6, 10, and 11.
If you are interested in securing pro bono representation for an appeal to
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, you may visit our website at
http://www.mspb.gov/probono for information regarding pro bono representation
for Merit Systems Protection Board appellants before the Federal Circuit. The
Board neither endorses the services provided by any attorney nor warrants that
any attorney will accept representation in a given case.
(2) Judicial or EEOC review of cases involving a claim of
discrimination. This option applies to you only if you have claimed that you
were affected by an action that is appealable to the Board and that such action
was based, in whole or in part, on unlawful discrimination. If so, you may obtain
judicial review of this decision—including a disposition of your discrimination
claims—by filing a civil action with an appropriate U.S. district court ( not the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit), within 30 calendar days after you
receive this decision. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(b)(2); see Perry v. Merit Systems
Protection Board, 582 U.S. ____ , 137 S. Ct. 1975 (2017). If you have a
representative in this case, and your representative receives this decision before
you do, then you must file with the district court no later than 30 calendar days
after your representative receives this decision. If the action involves a claim of
discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or a disabling
condition, you may be entitled to representation by a court-appointed lawyer and
6
to waiver of any requirement of prepayment of fees, costs, or other security. See
42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f) and 29 U.S.C. § 794a.
Contact information for U.S. district courts can be found at their respective
websites, which can be accessed through the link below:
http://www.uscourts.gov/Court_Locator/CourtWebsites.aspx.
Alternatively, you may request review by the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC) of your discrimination claims only, excluding
all other issues. 5 U.S.C. § 7702(b)(1). You must file any such request with the
EEOC’s Office of Federal Operations within 30 calendar days after you receive
this decision. 5 U.S.C. § 7702(b)(1). If you have a representative in this case,
and your representative receives this decision before you do, then you must file
with the EEOC no later than 30 calendar days after your representative receives
this decision.
If you submit a request for review to the EEOC by regular U.S. mail, the
address of the EEOC is:
Office of Federal Operations
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
P.O. Box 77960
Washington, D.C. 20013
If you submit a request for review to the EEOC via commercial delivery or
by a method requiring a signature, it must be addressed to:
Office of Federal Operations
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
131 M Street, N.E.
Suite 5SW12G
Washington, D.C. 20507
(3) Judicial review pursuant to the Whistleblower Protection
Enhancement Act of 2012. This option applies to you only if you have raised
claims of reprisal for whistleblowing disclosures under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(8) or
other protected activities listed in 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D).
If so, and your judicial petition for review “raises no challenge to the Board’s
7
disposition of allegations of a prohibited personnel practice described in
section 2302(b) other than practices described in section 2302(b)(8), or
2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D),” then you may file a petition for judicial
review either with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit or any court
of appeals of competent jurisdiction. 4 The court of appeals must receive your
petition for review within 60 days of the date of issuance of this decision.
5 U.S.C. § 7703(b)(1)(B).
If you submit a petition for judicial review to the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Federal Circuit, you must submit your petition to the court at the
following address:
U.S. Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit
717 Madison Place, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20439
Additional information about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit is available at the court’s website, www.cafc.uscourts.gov. Of particular
relevance is the court’s “Guide for Pro Se Petitioners and Appellants,” which is
contained within the court’s Rules of Practice, and Forms 5, 6, 10, and 11.
If you are interested in securing pro bono representation for an appeal to
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, you may visit our w ebsite at
http://www.mspb.gov/probono for information regarding pro bono representation
for Merit Systems Protection Board appellants before the Federal Circuit. The
4
The original statutory provision that provided for judicial r eview of certain
whistleblower claims by any court of appeals of competent jurisdiction expired on
December 27, 2017. The All Circuit Review Act, signed into law by the President on
July 7, 2018, permanently allows appellants to file petitions for judicia l review of
MSPB decisions in certain whistleblower reprisal cases with the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit or any other circuit court of appeals of competent jurisdiction.
The All Circuit Review Act is retroactive to November 26, 2017. Pub . L. No. 115-195,
132 Stat. 1510.
8
Board neither endorses the services provided by any attorney nor warrants that
any attorney will accept representation in a given case.
Contact information for the courts of appeals can be found at their
respective websites, which can be accessed through the link below:
http://www.uscourts.gov/Court_Locator/CourtWebsites.aspx.
FOR THE BOARD: /s/ for
Jennifer Everling
Acting Clerk of the Board
Washington, D.C.