Key legal question
Whether a refusal to enter a reconsideration request under Art. 53(2) ATSG is judicially reviewable as a merits decision.
Extracted holding
A court may not entertain an appeal against a mere refusal to enter a reconsideration request; only if the administration actually reopens and issues a new substantive decision is judicial review available.
Extracted reasoning
Reconsideration is discretionary under Art. 53(2) ATSG. The office here expressly refused to enter, did no further investigations, and only gave general reasons; therefore no substantive reconsideration occurred.