§3805 Judicial Review

Summary

A person who is found liable under the agency’s process can ask a U.S. district court to review and change that decision, but only after finishing all administrative steps and by filing a written petition within 60 days after the agency head sends the decision. The petition can be filed in the district where the person lives or does business, where the claim was made, or in the District of Columbia. The court clerk must send the petition to the agency and the Attorney General, and the agency must send the case record to the Attorney General. The court can uphold, change, send the case back for more review, cancel all or part of the decision, or enforce the parts it keeps. The agency’s factual findings are final unless the court finds they lack substantial evidence after reviewing the record. The court normally will not hear issues that were not raised at the agency hearing unless there are extraordinary reasons. If new evidence is shown to be important and there was a good reason it was not presented earlier, the court must send the case back so the agency can consider it. If the court finally finds the person liable, it will enter a judgment ordering the proper amount to be paid to the United States.