| Mathews v. Eldridge
(No. 74-204)
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| Syllabus
| Opinion
[ Powell ] | Dissent
[ Brennan ] |
| HTML version
PDF version | HTML version
PDF version | HTML version
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Mathews v. Eldridge
CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
MR. JUSTICE BRENNAN, with whom MR. JUSTICE MARSHALL concurs, dissenting.
For the reasons stated in my dissenting opinion in Richardson v. Wright, 405 U.S. 208, 212 (1972), I agree with the District Court and the Court of Appeals that, prior to termination of benefits, Eldridge must be afforded [p350] an evidentiary hearing of the type required for welfare beneficiaries under Title IV of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq. See Goldberg v. Kelly, 397 U.S. 254 (1970). I would add that the Court's consideration that a discontinuance of disability benefits may cause the recipient to suffer only a limited deprivation is no argument. It is speculative. Moreover, the very legislative determination to provide disability benefits, without any prerequisite determination of need in fact, presumes a need by the recipient which is not this Court's function to denigrate. Indeed, in the present case, it is indicated that, because disability benefits were terminated, there was a foreclosure upon the Eldridge home and the family's furniture was repossessed, forcing Eldridge, his wife, and their children to sleep in one bed. Tr. of Oral Arg. 39, 47-48. Finally, it is also no argument that a worker, who has been placed in the untenable position of having been denied disability benefits may still seek other forms of public assistance.