Tazco, Inc. v. Director, Office of Workers Compensation Program

WILKINSON, Circuit Judge;

The issue before us is whether a default award on a claim for black lung benefits entered by the Department of Labor against a coal mine operator may stand, where the insurance carrier liable for the claim received no notice of the pending adjudication. The Benefits Review Board held that the Department of Labor was only required to notify the responsible operator because the operator and the carrier are one entity for the purpose of notification.

We reverse.

I

On June 7, 1979, Franklin Osborne filed a claim for black lung benefits under the Black Lung Benefits Act, as…