BakerHostetler Secures Precedent-Setting OSHA Victory for ExxonMobil

In a precedent-setting appellate victory with nationwide implications for employers, BakerHostetler secured a complete win for ExxonMobil in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on July 21, 2026. The court not only vacated an OSHA citation and penalty issued against ExxonMobil, but also struck down OSHA's mental illness recordkeeping rule, concluding that the agency exceeded the authority Congress granted it under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. The appeal required the court to address a significant question of administrative and regulatory law: whether OSHA could require employers to record employee-reported work-related mental illnesses through its recordkeeping regulations. In a published opinion, the Fifth Circuit held that the statute authorizes OSHA to regulate physical workplace injuries and illnesses, not mental illnesses, and therefore vacated both the rule and the enforcement action against ExxonMobil. The decision is notable well beyond the immediate dispute. Applying the Supreme Court's post-Loper Bright framework, the Fifth Circuit emphasized that federal agencies must identify clear congressional authorization for the regulations they promulgate and cannot expand their authority beyond statutory limits. The ruling provides important guidance on the scope of OSHA's rulemaking authority and represents a significant development in administrative law, workplace safety regulation and employer compliance obligations nationwide.

By obtaining vacatur of both the citation and the underlying regulation, BakerHostetler achieved a rare appellate result that reshaped the regulatory framework governing OSHA recordkeeping requirements. The victory highlights the firm's ability to prevail in sophisticated, high stakes appeals involving federal
agencies and issues of national significance.

The BakerHostetler team was Partner Richard Raile and Counsel Micah Smith, with support from Partners Andrew Grossman, Mark DeLaquil and Greg Dillard and Associate Benjamin Janacek.