§ 2200.120 Settlement procedure.
(a) Voluntary settlement—(1) Applicability and duration. (i) Voluntary settlement applies only to notices of contests by employers and to applications for fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act and 29 CFR part 2204.
(ii) Upon motion of any party conforming to § 2200.40 after the docketing of the notice of contest, or with the consent of the parties at any time in the proceedings, the Chief Administrative Law Judge may assign a case to a Settlement Judge for proceedings under this section. In the event either the Secretary or the employer objects to the use of a Settlement Judge procedure, such procedure shall not be imposed.
(2) Length of voluntary settlement procedures. Voluntary settlement procedures shall be for a period not to exceed 75 days, unless extended with the concurrence of the Chief Administrative Law Judge.
(b) Mandatory settlement—(1) Applicability. Mandatory settlement applies only to notices of contest by employers in which the aggregate amount of the penalties sought by the Secretary is $205,000 or greater. Periodically, the aggregate amount of penalties for case referral to Mandatory Settlement Proceedings may be adjusted proportionately upon consideration of the penalty increases required by the Inflation Adjustment Act of 2015. The adjusted aggregate penalty amount for case referral to Mandatory Settlement will be posted on the Commission's website (www.oshrc.gov).
(2) Assignment of case and appointment of Settlement Judge. Notwithstanding any other provisions of these rules, upon the docketing of the notice of contest, the Chief Administrative Law Judge shall assign to the Settlement Part any case which satisfies the criteria set forth in paragraph (b)(1) of this section. The Chief Administrative Law Judge shall appoint a Settlement Judge, who shall be a Judge other than the one assigned to hear and decide the case, except as provided in paragraph (f)(2) of this section.
(3) Mandatory settlement proceedings. (i) The Settlement Judge may consult all attorneys, non-attorney representatives, and self-represented parties by any suitable means to schedule the Settlement Conference and to facilitate preparation for the conference.