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Access over workers' compensation decisions, including En Banc, Significant Panel Decisions, and writ-denied cases.

Case No. NO. 03-06-00631-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Mar 26, 2009

What Happened in Felix vs. Weber Metals Reconsideration?

Samuel Campos, an employee, was injured on the job, leading to disputes over his impairment rating and reimbursement for travel expenses. The Texas Workers’ Compensation Commission affirmed a designated doctor's 6% impairment rating and denied travel expenses, which Campos challenged in court. The case involved the Texas Property & Casualty Insurance Guaranty Association (TPCIGA) because Campos's employer's insurer became impaired. Initially filed in Winkler County, the case was transferred to Travis County, where TPCIGA was granted summary judgment. The Third District Court of Appeals reversed the summary judgment, ruling that the Workers' Compensation Act's specific mandatory venue provision, which places venue in the county of the employee's residence at the time of injury (Winkler County), overrides the Guaranty Act's general venue provision, which would place it in Travis County. The court remanded the case with instructions to transfer it to Winkler County.

Workers' CompensationVenue DisputeMandatory VenueStatutory ConstructionTexas Labor CodeTexas Insurance CodeImpairment RatingTravel Expenses ReimbursementJudicial ReviewAppellate Procedure
References
12
Case No. 03-06-00404-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Mar 06, 2007

How Did the WCAB Rule in Hardgrove vs. Intercon Security?

This case involves a restricted appeal filed by Johnnie M. Charles from a trial court's order dismissing her cause without prejudice. Charles initially appealed a Texas Workers' Compensation Commission decision regarding her impairment rating. After a venue transfer to Travis County, her case was dismissed for failure to pay filing fees. A nunc pro tunc order was later issued to correct a clerical error in the cause number of the original dismissal order. Charles appealed, citing errors in the dismissal, the lack of a court reporter, and the original hearing. The appellate court affirmed the dismissal, ruling that Charles's challenges to the original dismissal were untimely and that no error occurred in the nunc pro tunc order, which merely corrected a clerical error without altering the original judgment's substance.

restricted appealdismissal without prejudicenunc pro tunc orderclerical errorwant of prosecutionappellate jurisdictiontimeliness of appealTexas Rules of Civil ProcedureTexas Rules of Appellate Procedureworkers' compensation
References
13
Case No. 03-08-00483-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Mar 19, 2010

What Did the WCAB Decide in Cuadra vs. Community Home Care?

Doris J. Toberny, an exhibit decorator, injured her back on the job in May 2000, leading to spinal-fusion surgery that also corrected pre-existing scoliosis. Initially, her employer's insurer, Texas Property and Casualty Insurance Guaranty Association for Reliance National Insurance Company ('the Company'), paid for the surgery. However, in December 2001, the Company disputed the claim, asserting the injury was only a lower back strain and not the cause of her scoliosis. After a designated doctor assigned Toberny a 25-percent impairment rating in 2002, the Company paid supplemental income benefits for eight quarters. Three years later, in September 2005, the Company sought to dispute her impairment rating and discontinue benefits, claiming her pre-existing conditions were not compensable. The Division of Workers’ Compensation and the district court found that the Company had waived its right to contest the impairment rating under former rule 130.102(g) due to late dispute filing, and affirmed Toberny's 25-percent impairment rating and entitlement to benefits. The Texas Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court's judgment, upholding the validity of rule 130.102(g) and the finding of waiver, thus confirming Toberny's impairment rating and attorney's fees.

Workers' CompensationImpairment Rating DisputeSupplemental Income BenefitsWaiver DoctrineCompensability of InjuryExtent of InjuryJudicial Review of Agency DecisionTexas Appeals CourtAdministrative Rule ValidityMaximum Medical Improvement
References
12
Case No. ADJ4397000
Regular
Jun 10, 2011

How Were Death Benefits Handled in Bocanegra vs. Sun-Gro Commodities?

The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board denied reconsideration, upholding the finding that applicant Maria Mercedes Felix has 0% whole person impairment for her back injury and requires no further medical treatment. This decision was based on the opinion of a qualified medical evaluator (PQME) whose findings were consistent with a prior medical report. The PQME's report concluded that various diagnostic tests were normal and revealed no significant clinical findings, structural alterations, or neurological impairment. Crucially, the Appeals Board clarified that a 3% pain add-on for whole person impairment is legally permissible only to increase an already established impairment rating, which was not the case here as the initial rating was zero.

Workers' Compensation Appeals BoardReconsideration deniedExpert medical evidencePanel Qualified Medical Evaluator (PQME)American Medical Association Guides (AMA Guides)Permanent ImpairmentWhole Person Impairment (WPI)DRE Lumbar Category IMedical treatmentPain add-on
References
2
Case No. 13-99-746-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Aug 31, 2001

Can a WCJ Be Disqualified for Appearance of Bias?

Osler G. Garcia, an employee, sustained a compensable injury to his cervical spine and back while working. His workers' compensation claim resulted in a dispute over his impairment rating. The hearing officer and TWCC Appeals Panel found his impairment rating to be seventeen percent as determined by the designated doctor, Dr. Rodney Simonsen. Colonial Casualty Insurance Company, the employer's insurer, sought judicial review, challenging the finding of a cervical spine injury and the seventeen percent impairment rating. The trial court affirmed the commission's findings, and on appeal, the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court's judgment, finding sufficient evidence to support both the cervical injury and the impairment rating based on Dr. Simonsen's reports.

Workers' CompensationImpairment RatingCervical Spine InjuryBench TrialMedical EvidenceAMA GuidesAppellate ReviewSubstantial EvidenceTrial Court AffirmanceDesignated Doctor
References
7
Case No. 08-04-00018-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Jun 30, 2005

What Were the Key Rulings in Torrez vs. SuperShuttle?

This appeal concerns a jury verdict in a workers’ compensation case regarding William Ragsdale's impairment rating. William Ragsdale, an employee of MR Drilling or MR Oil, suffered a fall in 2001 and filed a workers' compensation claim. While his treating physician assigned a 0% impairment rating, the designated doctor, Dr. Steven Ellsworth, initially indicated 10% on a form but stated a 'whole person impairment' of 67% in his report. The Texas Workers’ Compensation Commission Appeals Panel subsequently determined the impairment rating to be 67%. Financial Insurance Company, the employer’s carrier, appealed the trial court's judgment affirming this 67% rating and the award of attorney's fees. The Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment of the trial court.

Workers' CompensationImpairment RatingAppellate ReviewJury VerdictMedical EvidenceDesignated DoctorTreating PhysicianAttorney's FeesTexas Labor CodeJudicial Review
References
18
Case No. 08-06-00170-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Jun 30, 2008

Why Was Removal Denied in Rush vs. California Correctional Institution?

This case concerns an appeal by Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company against a district court's judgment favoring workers' compensation claimant, Weldon Weeks. The core dispute revolved around the legal sufficiency of evidence for Weeks' impairment rating and maximum medical improvement (MMI) date, following an on-the-job spinal injury and subsequent fusion surgery. The district court had adopted a 25 percent impairment rating and April 17, 2002 MMI date, based on Dr. Chapman's report, which considered the spinal fusion surgery in violation of AMA Guides for impairment ratings. The Court of Appeals, affirming that surgery is not a permissible factor under the AMA Guides' Injury Model, found Dr. Chapman's reliance on the spinal fusion legally insufficient. Consequently, the appellate court reversed the district court’s judgment and rendered judgment for Fireman’s Fund, effectively upholding the Division's original decision of a 10 percent impairment rating and January 28, 2002 MMI date.

Impairment RatingMaximum Medical Improvement (MMI)Spinal Fusion SurgeryAMA GuidesLegal SufficiencyAppellate ReviewTrial Court JudgmentDesignated DoctorTexas Labor CodeDiagnosis-Related Estimate (DRE)
References
13
Case No. 03-06-00002-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Jul 20, 2007

What Did the WCAB Clarify in Ontiveros vs. Savers Stores?

The Texas Court Reporters Certification Board (Board) initiated disciplinary proceedings against Esquire Deposition Services, L.L.C. (Esquire) for alleged violations concerning long-term volume discount arrangements for court reporting services. Esquire subsequently filed suit against the Board and its director, Michele Henricks, challenging the Board's statutory authority to regulate or prohibit such discounts and seeking declaratory and injunctive relief. The district court denied the Board's plea to the jurisdiction, prompting an appeal. The Court of Appeals held that the Board possesses exclusive jurisdiction over disciplinary claims and determined that Esquire's claims, which broadly questioned the Board's general authority over long-term discounts, were not ripe for judicial review as they depended on contingent facts and agency expertise. Consequently, the appellate court reversed the district court's order, dismissing Esquire's suit due to lack of jurisdiction.

Administrative LawJurisdictionPlea to the JurisdictionRipeness DoctrineExclusive JurisdictionStatutory InterpretationDeclaratory Judgment ActCourt Reporters Certification BoardCourt Reporting FirmsLong-term Volume Discounts
References
15
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Sep 28, 2010

Why Was Reconsideration Denied in Gomez vs. Dorothy Stevens?

The employee, Steven Williams, sustained a compensable left knee injury in 2006 and subsequently sought workers' compensation benefits for an alleged additional injury to his right knee caused by over-reliance on it. The employer, United Parcel Service, Inc., denied liability and attempted to introduce a Medical Impairment Registry (MIR) report, which the trial court excluded. The trial court found the right knee injury compensable and awarded Mr. Williams 27% permanent partial impairment to each leg. On appeal, the employer contested the exclusion of the MIR report, the finding of a new compensable injury to the right knee, and the impairment rating. The Special Workers' Compensation Appeals Panel affirmed the trial court's judgment, concluding that the MIR report was properly excluded due to timeliness and potential unfairness, and that the evidence supported the trial court's findings regarding causation and impairment.

Workers' CompensationKnee InjuryMedical Impairment RegistryCausationPermanent Partial DisabilityMedical EvidenceAdmissibility of EvidenceOveruse InjuryAppeals PanelTennessee Law
References
27
Case No. M2012-02394-WC-R3-WC
Regular Panel Decision
Aug 20, 2013

Why Was Reconsideration Dismissed in Sabino vs. Johnson Pump Company?

Employee William Mansell suffered a right shoulder injury while working for Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire, LLC. After a benefit review conference failed to settle the claim, Mansell sued for workers’ compensation benefits. The trial court initially denied the employer's request for an independent medical examination (IME) and questioned the constitutionality of the Medical Impairment Rating (MIR) process, awarding Mansell a 10% impairment rating. The Supreme Court vacated the judgment and remanded the case for further proceedings. On remand, the trial court again ruled that the MIR statute was an unconstitutional infringement on judicial powers, or alternatively, that its presumptive accuracy was overcome, reinstating the 10% rating. The employer and the Attorney General appealed. The Supreme Court held that the MIR process (Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-204(d)(5)) does not violate constitutional principles of separation of powers or due process and that the evidence did not clearly and convincingly rebut the statutory presumption of the MIR report. The Court reversed the trial court's judgment in part, affirmed and modified in part, awarding benefits based on a 7% impairment rating from the MIR physician and remanded the case.

Independent Medical ExaminationMIR ProcessConstitutional LawSeparation of PowersDue ProcessJudicial ReviewImpairment RatingMedical EvidenceRebuttable PresumptionTennessee Supreme Court
References
58
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