Shannopin Mining Company v. WCAB (Sereg), No. 1185 CD 2010 (Pa. Cmwlth. January 6, 2011); Opinion by Judge Butler

Minimal findings identifying the basis of a workers' compensation judge’s decision on the credibility of a treating physician and a claimant’s disability are sufficient to uphold a claim petition.

The claimant, who received 500 weeks of partial disability benefits for coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, petitioned for total disability benefits, which were granted by the workers' compensation judge on the basis of the claimant’s medical evidence. On appeal, the employer argued that the workers' compensation judge did not issue a reasoned decision and that the claimant had voluntarily removed himself from the work force by retiring. The Commonwealth Court dismissed the argument involving a reasoned decision, finding that the workers' compensation judge – after several remands – cited the results of a treadmill test in concluding that there was an objective basis for crediting the treating physician’s testimony and noted that the workers' compensation judge had appropriately considered the employer’s medical testimony. Without directly addressing the voluntary retirement issue, the workers' compensation judge found that the claimant was totally disabled from his employment when he retired, which the court found sufficient.

Case Law Alert, 2nd Qtr 2011