Island Operating Company, Incorporated v. Director, Office of Worker’s Compensation Programs, U.S. Department of Labor; Martin B. Taylor, Jr.

Summary

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed a Benefits Review Board decision modifying an award under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. The court held that a mistake in a determination of fact under section 22 is not limited to newly discovered or previously unattainable evidence. The court also concluded that substantial evidence supported the award of permanent partial disability benefits based on physicians’ impairment ratings.

Holdings

1. A prior benefits award may be modified under section 22 for a mistake in a determination of fact even when the evidence supporting modification was available before the original hearing; the evidence need not be newly discovered or previously unattainable.
2. Substantial evidence supported the ALJ’s modification of Taylor’s award to include permanent partial disability benefits based on a 25-percent impairment rating in each knee.

Questions Presented

1. Whether section 22 of the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act permits modification of a prior benefits award based on a mistake in a determination of fact when the evidence supporting modification was available at the time of the original hearing.
2. Whether substantial evidence supported the ALJ’s modified award of permanent partial disability benefits based on the medical evidence of a 25-percent impairment in each knee.

Disposition

affirmed