Escaping the Labyrinth: Cutting Through the Maze of Federal Sector Employment Laws to Streamline Appeals, Allow Faster and More Consistent Decisions, and Level the Playing Field Between Agencies and Employees

Authors

• Christopher Ligatti, United States Department of Housing and Urban Development

Abstract

Federal employees and their job protections have gained increased media attention due to the current presidential administration. Criticism has long been aimed primarily at the property interest and accompanying due process protections that federal employees have in their employment. However, this Article argues that while the federal sector employment law system is badly in need of reform, the issue is not the constitutionally required due process protections afforded to employees, but rather the additional statutory and regulatory protections Congress has granted employees. Currently, federal employees have multiple overlapping forums in which they can bring employment actions, may cross-appeal negative decisions in one forum to another, and, in discrimination matters, have the right to a full and complete “do-over” before a federal court jury if unsuccessful in the administrative process. These procedures go well beyond the requirements of procedural due process. They create a lengthy and confusing process that takes years to navigate, confuses even experienced practitioners, contributes to government inefficiencies, and results in splits of law between executive agencies, such as the EEOC, and the federal courts.

This Article sets forth the intricacies of these procedures and the flaws in the system, before reviewing a series of proposed reforms, including the constitutional and practical issues that could arise from these reforms. As part of this analysis, the Article considers whether elimination of the right to a de novo hearing and the option for a jury trial in federal court in discrimination matters would violate the Seventh Amendment under current Supreme Court jurisprudence. Ultimately, the Article concludes that the best reforms would be to make an employee’s choice of forum more final, eliminate cross-appeals between forums, equalize the existing appellate options so that agencies and employees are on equal footing, and use appeals to the Federal Circuit to ensure consistency in law. The Article also suggests eliminating the right to a hearing in federal court in discrimination matters as most case law indicates that this is not required under the Seventh Amendment. The Article concludes that these reforms can make the system of federal sector employment law fairer and easier to navigate for both employees and management, while also creating a more efficient process that can provide the parties resolution in a reasonable timeframe.

Recommended Citation

Christopher Ligatti, Escaping the Labyrinth: Cutting Through the Maze of Federal Sector Employment Laws to Streamline Appeals, Allow Faster and More Consistent Decisions, and Level the Playing Field Between Agencies and Employees, 29 Chap. L. Rev. 283 (2026).
Available at: https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/chapman-law-review/vol29/iss2/2