Hardy v. Office of Personnel Management

NOTE: Pursuant to Fed. Cir. R. 47.6, this disposition is
not citable as precedent. It is a public record.
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
05-3185
VANESSA R. HARDY,
Petitioner,
v.
OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT,
Respondent.
__________________________
DECIDED: December 9, 2005
__________________________
Before MAYER, RADER, and LINN, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM.
Vanessa R. Hardy (“Hardy”) appeals the final decision of the Merit Systems
Protection Board, disallowing Hardy’s claim for disability retirement under the Federal
Employees’ Retirement System (“FERS”), reversing the initial decision of the board, and
affirming the June 16, 2003, reconsideration decision by the Office of Personnel
Management (“OPM”). Hardy v. Office of Pers. Mgmt., AT844E030739-I-1 (MSPB Mar.
17, 2005). We affirm.
This court reviews final decisions of the board for “‘a substantial departure from
important procedural rights, a misconstruction of the governing legislation, or some like
error going to the heart of the administrative determination,’” and cannot review the
factual underpinnings of the decision. Anthony v. Office of Pers. Mgmt., 58 F.3d 620,
624-26 (Fed. Cir. 1995)(citations omitted). In making its decision, the board properly
considered only that evidence pertaining to Hardy’s disability during the period of her
employment when determining whether she was eligible for disability retirement. The
disability she suffered in the year subsequent to her separation from federal service was
only relevant in establishing her right to a waiver of the statutory filing deadline, which
she was granted, and not entitlement to disability retirement itself. The board did not
substantially depart from important procedural rights in considering Hardy’s disability
retirement eligibility and in concluding that the evidence was insufficient to support an
award of disability retirement.
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