No one knows more than Brian Krier about the deadly dangers posed by dust.
Accumulating on the floor of mines and the heavy equipment used for mining, dust creates a serious safety hazard for the tens of thousands of miners who make their living coaxing coal out of the ground.
“Ignition sources abound in the machinery,” said Krier, ’12, a trial attorney at the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of the Solicitor in Philadelphia.
The presence of methane gas creates a virtual tinderbox in the mines, unless safety measures are followed closely and complex machinery is properly maintained, said Krier, who enforces the federal regulations that lay out sound mining practices.
“We have inspectors inspecting every coal mine in the country, four times a year,” he said. “They are extremely dangerous environments. There are all sorts of violations.”
When mine operators balk at penalties that commonly reach $20-$30 million, Krier goes to court on behalf of the miners.
Most often, Krier winds up traveling to courtrooms in West Virginia, Ohio and Western Pennsylvania, representing miners born and bred in Central Appalachia.
“It’s a whole different culture compared to the legal community in Philadelphia,” Krier said. “It’s been very interesting learning that culture and trying to fit into that atmosphere.”
The cultural change was especially acute for Krier, who spent three years representing criminal defendants through the Defender Association of Philadelphia before joining the federal agency in 2015.
As an assistant defender, Krier logged many hours in courtrooms that gave him tremendous preparation to walk into administrative courtrooms and advocate for miners’ safety.
Although the coal industry is in decline, Krier manages about 40 cases at any time, with some $500,000 to $750,000 in penalties typically on the line.
Even smaller cases – like a recent $29,613 penalty levied against a West Virginia mine – represent important victories, since the range of violations found was significant and the verdict ensures that the mine will face closer scrutiny.
Krier credits the Trial Advocacy courses he took as well as Professor Alex Geisinger’s Environmental Law course and practicum for preparing him for a career in government pursuing law in the public interest.
“I never expected to become a trial attorney, but it’s been a great experience for me,” he said. “It’s good to learn how to think and argue on your feet. You’re never more a lawyer than you are in court, representing a client and making arguments on their behalf.”