Cite as: 519 U. S. 248 (1997)
Opinion of the Court
with Shahady v. Atlas Tile & Marble Co., 673 F. 2d 479, 483-484 (CADC 1982) (Director is a proper respondent as a person "adversely affected or aggrieved" by the decision below); Goldsmith v. Director, OWCP, 838 F. 2d 1079, 1080 (CA9 1988) (same); White, supra, at 281-282 (Director may appear pursuant to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 15(a)).
We granted certiorari to resolve these splits, 517 U. S. 1186 (1996).
II
We begin our inquiry into the meaning of the phrase "person entitled to compensation" in § 33(g), as we must, with an examination of the language of the statute. Moskal v. United States, 498 U. S. 103, 108 (1990) ("In determining the scope of a statute, we look first to its language, giving the words used their ordinary meaning") (citations and internal quotation marks omitted). Section 33(g)(1) states in pertinent part:
"If the person entitled to compensation . . . enters into a settlement with a third person . . . for an amount less than the compensation to which the person . . . would be entitled under this chapter, the employer shall be liable for compensation as determined under subsection (f) of this section only if written approval of the settlement is obtained from the employer and the employer's carrier, before the settlement is executed, and by the person entitled to compensation . . . ." 33 U. S. C. § 933(g)(1) (emphasis added).
The plain language of this subsection reveals two salient points. First, the use of the present tense (i. e., "enters") indicates that the "person entitled to compensation" must be so entitled at the time of settlement. Second, the ordinary meaning of the word "entitle" indicates that the "person entitled to compensation" must at the very least be qualified to receive compensation. Black's Law Dictionary 532 (6th ed.
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