After a Regional Director issues a complaint in an unfair labor practice case, an NLRB Administrative Law Judge hears the case and issues a decision and recommended order, which can then be appealed to the Board in Washington. If no exceptions are filed, the judge's order becomes the order of the Board. An administrative law judge's decision is not binding legal precedent in other cases unless it has been adopted by the Board on review of exceptions; these judges function much like trial court judges hearing a case without a jury.

After the Board issues a decision and final order in a contested unfair labor practice case, any person aggrieved may seek review of the final order, and the Board may seek enforcement of its order, in an appropriate United States Court of Appeals. The General Counsel represents the Board in the Court of Appeals.

Online NLRB decisions are offered in PDF format. Slip opinions are subject to revision before publication in bound volumes.

The Contempt, Compliance, and Special Litigation Branch (CCSLB) represents the Board and the General Counsel in all suits not statutorily based on Sections 10(e) and (f) of the Act, and conducts civil and criminal contempt litigation to obtain compliance with Board orders.

On January 4, 2012, three individuals were named as recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board. On June 26, 2014, the United States Supreme Court ruled in NLRB v. Noel Canning, 134 S. Ct. 2550 (2014), that these appointments to the Board were not valid. Below is a list of contested cases in which one or more of these appointees participated in the issuance of a decision.

The Office of the Executive Secretary has identified the following Notable Board Decisions that may be of special interest to the labor-management community.  

These decision summaries are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended to substitute for the opinions of the National Labor Relations Board. 

Three types of Regional election Decisions are available here:

• Decisions and Directions of Elections (D&DEs) - the Regional Director concludes that the prerequisites to an election have been satisfied and directs that an election be conducted.
• Decisions and Orders (D&Os) - the Regional Director determines that an election should not be conducted and the petition is dismissed.
• Regional Director Supplemental Decision on Objections and Challenges - a post-election decision resolving objections and/or challenges with or without a post-election hearing.

The Board decisions listed below are not intended or appropriate for publication and are not binding precedent, except with respect to the parties in the specific case. The Board began posting all unpublished decisions here on February 4, 2011. Please note that this page does not contain a complete collection of all unpublished Board decisions dated prior to February 4, 2011.