James Cooley v. Island Creek Coal Co. Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, United States Department of Labor

A former coal miner appeals from the Benefit Review Board’s decision affirming an administrative law judge’s denial of black lung benefits. The ALJ found that the claimant, James Cooley, was entitled to a presumption of disability due to coal workers’ pneumoconiosis on the basis of a November 17, 1980, X-ray which had been read as positive by three of six B-readers who interpreted the film. 20 C.F.R. § 727.203(a)(1). The AU also found that the claimant had approximately twenty-five years of coal mine employment. Neither the employer nor the Director of the Office of Workers’ Compensation…