In the 1986 case of Interstate Commerce Commission v. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a federal agency has discretion to decline reopening a proceeding for new evidence unless it is shown that there was material error or new circumstances warranting such action. The dispute began when the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) approved railroad mergers without requiring labor protection provisions for employees who might be adversely affected by these changes in operations. After initial judicial review upheld ICC's decision, unions sought reconsideration based on additional data they had gathered about potential job losses from past similar mergers. However, ICC refused to reopen proceedings and this refusal was challenged before the courts. The Supreme Court held that an agency’s decision not to reopen its proceedings does not constitute final agency action subject to judicial review under Administrative Procedure Act (APA), unless legislative intent indicates otherwise or if refusing would cause irreparable harm contrary to statutory objectives of APA itself.

In the dissenting opinion for Interstate Commerce Commission v. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, Justice White disagreed with the majority's decision to allow administrative agencies to reconsider their final decisions without any temporal limitations or restrictions. He argued that this ruling could lead to uncertainty and instability in legal matters as it would permit agencies to constantly revisit and potentially overturn their previous rulings, thus undermining public confidence in these institutions. Furthermore, he contended that such a policy might encourage parties dissatisfied with an agency’s decision to continually request reconsideration until they obtain a favorable outcome rather than pursuing judicial review. This could result in unnecessary delays and inefficiencies within the administrative process. Therefore, Justice White believed there should be reasonable time limits on when an agency can reopen its proceedings after making a final decision.