By Elizabeth K. Vines, Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board staff attorney, Cookeville When speaking on behalf of the Appeals Board to any audience, I always stress the importance of reading our rules. They’re our “how-to” manual and can help practitioners and self-represented litigants alike avoid losing an appeal on technical grounds. It’s safe to say that … Continue reading Appeals Board Rules: Revisions!
Author: tncourtofwcclaims
December Clarksville Settlements to be Reset
Due to the tornadoes, the Montgomery County Courthouse is closed Tuesday, December 12. If you are scheduled for a settlement tomorrow, please contact Sarah McMahan immediately at Sarah.McMahan@tn.gov
Mark Your Calendars: 2024 Approval Dates in Clarksville and Columbia
By Sarah McMahan, administrative assistant, Nashville Have you thought about the new adventures that await you in the upcoming new year? If not, I have a delightful suggestion. Begin your new year on an audacious note by heading to Clarksville and Columbia for your settlement approvals in 2024. Clarksville and Columbia are the correct locations … Continue reading Mark Your Calendars: 2024 Approval Dates in Clarksville and Columbia
Board Defines “Underlying” for Temporary Disability Benefits
By Traci Haynes, staff attorney, Gray Last month, the Appeals Board heard oral arguments in Basham v. SPB Hospitality. The Board has now issued its opinion and explained the meaning of an “underlying physical injury” in the context of temporary total disability benefits. In the case, Basham requested an expedited hearing to reinstate temporary total … Continue reading Board Defines “Underlying” for Temporary Disability Benefits
Opinion Instructs on Fees for a Wrongful Denial
By Sarah Byrne, staff attorney, Nashville This past summer, the Appeals Board affirmed a denial of attorney’s fees on an alleged wrongful denial. It’s a cautionary tale about what can perish between expedited and compensation hearings, as “the lack of the expedited hearing transcript in the record on appeal prove[d] fatal.” In Ruggieri v. Amazon.com, … Continue reading Opinion Instructs on Fees for a Wrongful Denial
Board Reverses Summary Judgment When Disputed Facts Exist
By Traci Haynes, staff attorney, Gray Summary judgment wasn’t appropriate in a case involving too many disputed facts, where the trial court didn’t explain why certain disputed facts were immaterial. An earlier article discussed the oral arguments in Timothy Burke v. Steve Towers Enterprises. Burke was managing an automobile repair store, when he and a … Continue reading Board Reverses Summary Judgment When Disputed Facts Exist
Board Clarifies “Disputed Issues’ and Affirms Extraordinary Relief
By Sarah Byrne, staff attorney, Nashville The Appeals Board recently released its opinion in Satterfield v. Smoky Mountain Home Health & Hospice, affirming an award of extraordinary relief and deciding Kimberly Satterfield didn’t waive additional permanent disability benefits by leaving a box unchecked on the first of two dispute certification notices filed in her claim. … Continue reading Board Clarifies “Disputed Issues’ and Affirms Extraordinary Relief
Welcome, New Lawyers
By Judge Brian Addington, Gray I was honored to sponsor Delanie Williams at her admission ceremony before the Tennessee Supreme Court in Knoxville on October 6. I’ve known Delanie’s grandmother for years, so it was a pleasure to have Delanie intern for the Court in the Gray office in 2021. During her time here, she … Continue reading Welcome, New Lawyers
Board Mulls whether Shooting Relates to Work
By Traci Haynes, staff attorney, Gray Last month, the Appeals Board heard oral arguments in a case where an auto repair shop manager was accidentally shot by another worker, who was trying to sell him a handgun. In Timothy Burke v. Steve Towers Enterprises, the trial court granted summary judgment, concluding that the injury didn’t … Continue reading Board Mulls whether Shooting Relates to Work
“Disclose” an expert means “Identify”
By Jane Salem, staff attorney, Nashville Yesterday, the Appeals Board reversed a trial court order excluding an expert’s testimony as a sanction for failure to meet a deadline to “disclose.” In Ariel Taylor v. Coca Cola Bottling Company, the trial court held that the employer failed to comply with a scheduling order and excluded its … Continue reading “Disclose” an expert means “Identify”
Reading a Box in a Vacuum
By Sarah Byrne, staff attorney, Nashville The Appeals Board heard oral arguments recently in Satterfield v. Smoky Mountain Home Health & Hospice to decide if Kimberly Satterfield waived a claim for increased benefits by not ensuring a “permanent disability benefits” box was marked on one of two dispute certification notices filed in the claim. “You … Continue reading Reading a Box in a Vacuum
Board Affirms in Chemical Exposure Case
By Taylor Skees, staff attorney, Memphis Last week, I wrote about oral arguments earlier this month involving competing expert opinions in a complicated chemical exposure claim. The Appeals Board has since affirmed. In Randall v. Food Lion, Wilma Randall asserted that the trial court erred in denying her request for medical benefits. The trial court … Continue reading Board Affirms in Chemical Exposure Case
Board Dissects the Meaning of “Underlying”
By Traci Haynes, staff attorney, Gray We use homonyms or multiple-meaning words every day. For example, left as in “Joe left the room,” or “hand me the book to the left.” We begin learning the distinctions at an early age. Spend a day with an inquisitive toddler, and you’ll quickly know what I mean. Earlier … Continue reading Board Dissects the Meaning of “Underlying”
Did COVID or Chemicals Cause Injuries?
By Taylor Skees, staff attorney, Memphis Last week, the Appeals Board held oral arguments on Randall v. Food Lion, where the trial court weighed expert opinions. Wilma Randall’s unauthorized treating physician tied her condition to chemical exposure at work, while a physician who reviewed Randall’s records attributed her condition to an infectious disease such as … Continue reading Did COVID or Chemicals Cause Injuries?
Judges Hash Out the Meaning of Expert “Disclosure”
By Jane Salem, staff attorney, Nashville An employer’s vocational expert won’t be allowed to testify in an increased benefits case—unless the Appeals Board reverses that call by the trial judge. The decision will turn on what the appellate judges decide the word “disclose” means. Counsel gave sharply disparate opinions on that question at oral arguments … Continue reading Judges Hash Out the Meaning of Expert “Disclosure”
Oral Arguments Announced for October
The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board recently set cases for live oral argument in Knoxville next week, and a virtual oral argument later in the month. Interestingly, the cases represent a wide variety of procedural postures. On October 5, the Board will start by considering an order granting a motion to exclude in Taylor v. Coca … Continue reading Oral Arguments Announced for October
Songs about Working
By Judge Thomas Wyatt, Chattanooga A while ago, I searched the internet for songs about workers’ compensation. I found a few about work accidents, like Big John, the Wreck of the Edmond Fitzgerald, and a song professing the universal truth that the worker always loses in the battle between steel and flesh. Recently, I broadened … Continue reading Songs about Working
On This Day In History…
By Judge Brian Addington, Gray As a child and even until today, I love to read historical reminders. I used to read them in newspapers or magazines growing up, but now they abound in articles on the Web and on social media. As I write today, September 20, on this day in history… In 1946, … Continue reading On This Day In History…
Talking to Strangers
By Judge Dale Tipps, Murfreesboro I read a couple of news articles recently about something called “relational diversity.” Researchers have noticed a correlation between the number of social interactions with strangers and levels of satisfaction, happiness, and well-being. They found that, in addition to our regular contact with friends, family, and colleagues, conversations with strangers … Continue reading Talking to Strangers
Honoring All Who Labor
By Judge Allen Phillips, Jackson “Work is not man’s punishment. It is his reward and his strength and his pleasure.” ---George Sand, a/k/a Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin de Francueil, a French novelist, memoirist and journalist. She was one of the most popular writers in Europe in her lifetime, being more renowned than either Victor Hugo … Continue reading Honoring All Who Labor
From the Bench 