United States Department of Commerce, Patent & Trademark Office v. Federal Labor Relations Authority

I write separately regarding the distinction between the collateral estoppel doctrine and the Administrative Procedure Act’s requirement, as part of the prohibition on arbitrary or capricious agency action, that if an agency departs from its precedent it must provide a reasoned explanation for its decision to do so. Traditionally, precedent binds adjudicators and collateral estoppel precludes parties, yet the Authority conflates the two doctrines. Because the Authority has not provided a reasoned explanation for its departure from its precedent in U.S. Dep’t of Commerce, Patent & Trademark…