Yesterday, the Tennessee Supreme Court affirmed an award of permanent partial disability benefits in Batey v. Deliver This, Inc. 

The high court reviewed an opinion from the Tennessee Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board holding that the trial court erred when it held that the employee’s “pre-injury occupation” on the Physician Certification Form to mean the employee’s pre-injury job rather than the type of work performed. The justices held oral argument last fall but ultimately adopted the opinion from the Appeals Board.

The opinion represents the first time the full Supreme Court heard argument and issued an opinion in a post-Reform Act case. It additionally is the second occasion that an Appeals Board opinion was adopted as the Court’s own; the first time was a Special Workers’ Compensation Panel opinion last year in  Thysavathdy v. Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations.

The Supreme Court’s opinion is available here.