Miracle v. Celebrezze’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

83 federal appellate · 3 district · 1 state decisions

Most-quoted passages

The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 156 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “The review of cases for disability benefits under the Social Security Act is onerous from many aspects. The case before the Hearing Examiner is heard informally. This means that there is practically no examination or cross-examination of any witnesses, except the claimant himself, usually a man whose life has been one of hard labor, and with little education; and, sometimes, a Vocational Counselor. The record, for the most part, consists of letters and written statements regarding the disability claimed, the extent of it, or the lack of it. Many of these statements consist of official printed forms of applications and reports filled in, in the handwriting of various individuals; and their reproduction in the record often requires laborious decipherment. These records call for searching investigation by the district courts, and further searching investigation by appellate courts.”

   4 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Flack v. Cohen · Jenkins v. Gardner

2. “The record gives no appreciable support to a finding that appellant was able to engage in a substantial gainful activity. Quite the contrary, it gives overwhelming support to a finding that appellant could not do hard or moderate manual labor, and, indeed, that he could not maintain even slight exertion for any length of time.”

   4 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Donald M. Rhinehart v. Robert H. Rinch, Etc. (Wilbur J. Cohen, Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare) · Seiber v. Weinberger

3. “If a person is unable except under great pain to engage in any substantial gainful activity in which he might be employable, taking into consideration his age, training, work experience and physical and mental capacities, he is deemed disabled for purposes of the Social Security Act. Smith v. Celebrezze, 229 F.Supp. 827 (D.C.N.C.). Even pain unaccompanied by any objectively observable symptoms, which is nevertheless real to the sufferer and so intense as to be disabling, will support a claim for disability benefits. Ber v. Celebrezze, 332 F.2d 293 (C.A. 2). * * * The notion that pain must be endured, that pain, no matter how severe or overpowering, is not disabling unless it will substantially aggravate a condition, is contrary to law under disability provisions of the Social Security Act which were intended to ameliorate some of the rigors that life imposes. Page v. Celebrezze, 311 F.2d 757 (C.A. 5). The criteria to be considered in determining a claimant's ability or inability to engage in substantial gainful activity, for purposes of determining his right to social security disability benefits, are objective medical facts, diagnoses, and expert medical opinions on subsidiary questions of fact, subjective evidence of pain and disability testified to by claimant, and claimant's educational background, work history and present age. Helton v. Celebrezze, 220 F.Supp. 759 (W.D.N.C.); affirmed 331 F.2d 342 (C.A. 4).”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Rhines v. Harris · Bradley v. Barnhart