In the case Usery, Secretary of Labor, et al. v. Turner Elkhorn Mining Co. et al., 1975, the U.S Supreme Court upheld a federal law that required coal mine operators to compensate former employees who had contracted black lung disease during their employment in mines owned by these companies. The court ruled that this requirement did not violate due process rights under the Fifth Amendment and was within Congress's power under the Commerce Clause of Constitution. The mining companies argued against retroactive compensation as they believed it was unfair for them to pay for conditions developed before regulations were established; however, Justice Thurgood Marshall writing for majority stated that legislation readjusting rights and burdens is not unlawful solely because it upsets otherwise settled expectations.

In the dissenting opinion for Usery v. Turner Elkhorn Mining Co., Justice William Rehnquist argued that the Black Lung Benefits Act of 1972, which required coal mine operators to compensate former employees who had contracted pneumoconiosis (black lung disease), was unconstitutional. He believed it violated due process by imposing retroactive liability on employers for a condition that could have developed over many years and might not be directly attributable to specific employment periods or conditions. Furthermore, he contended that Congress exceeded its powers under the Commerce Clause by regulating non-economic aspects of a purely local activity - namely, workers' compensation within individual states. Justice Rehnquist also criticized the majority's reliance on previous cases upholding social welfare legislation as precedent because those cases involved prospective rather than retrospective regulation.