The Supreme Court granted cert in New Process Steel v. NLRB to decide whether the NLRB is authorized to act when only two of its five positions are filled. Indian law observers may recall when Peter Schaumber spoke at the FBA Indian Law Conference a few years back, he revealed that he was only one of two members of the Board, and that their practice was to decide cases unanimously — or not at all. Presumably, the New Process Steel case will determine if any of the Board’s decisions in the last several years are valid.
Here are the petition stage briefs (from SCOTUSblog):
Docket: 08-1457
Title: New Process Steel v. National Labor Relations Board…
Issue: Whether Section 3(b) of the National Labor Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. § 153(b), authorizes the NLRB to act when only two of its five positions are filled, if the Board has previously delegated its full powers to a three-member group of the Board that includes the two remaining members; does the NLRB have authority to decide cases with only two sitting members, where 29 U.S.C. § 153(b) provides that “three members of the Board shall, at all times, constitute a quorum of the Board”?
For 08-1457:
Turtle Talk 