Forfeiture Applies to Unpreserved Appointments Clause Challenges

The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a group of mine operators failed to preserve their challenge to the validity of the appointments of judges who issued black lung benefit awards to workers. Case: Joseph Forrester Trucking v. OWCP, Nos. 20-3329, 20-3331, and 20-3332, 02/04/2021, published. Facts and procedural history: Administrative law judges for the Department of Labor awarded black lung benefits to three miners in separate proceedings against their respective employers. The employers appealed. Each raised an argument that the ALJs who presided over the benefits determinati...