Bates v. Dedicated Mgmt. Group, LLC, et al.
| Docket Number: | 2010-WC-00792-COA | |
| Court of Appeals: |
Opinion Link Opinion Date: 08-02-2011 Opinion Author: Myers, J. Holding: Affirmed |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Workers' compensation - Sufficiency of evidence - Corroborating witnesses - Medical records Judge(s) Concurring: Lee, C.J., Griffis, P.J., Barnes, Ishee, Roberts, Carlton and Russell, JJ. Non Participating Judge(s): Maxwell, J. Nature of the Case: CIVIL - WORKERS' COMPENSATION |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 02-26-2010 Appealed from: LINCOLN COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT Judge: David H. Strong Disposition: AFFIRMED COMMISSION’S DECISION TO DENY BENEFITS Case Number: 2009-205LS |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | Brief(s) Available: | ||
| Appellant: | Terrience Bates |
CARLOS EUGENE MOORE, TANGALA LANIECE HOLLIS |
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| Appellee: | Dedicated Management Group, LLC and Employers Insurance of Wausau, A Mutual Company | TARA STRICKLAND CLIFFORD | ||
Synopsis provided by:  If you are interested in subscribing to the weekly synopses of all Mississippi Supreme Court and Court of Appeals hand downs please contact Tammy Upton in the MLI Press office. |
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| Topic: | Workers' compensation - Sufficiency of evidence - Corroborating witnesses - Medical records |
| Summary of the Facts: | Terrience Bates began working for Dedicated Management Group, LLC in April 2005. His job primarily entailed unloading cargo laden pallets from tractor trailers with the use of a pallet jack. In March 2006, Bates filed a petition to controvert, in which he claimed he injured his back while working for DMG. DMG and its insurance carrier, Employers Insurance of Wausau, disputed compensability. According to DMG, Bates never reported his injury, and his medical records did not corroborate a work injury. The administrative judge found that Bates proved by a preponderance of evidence that he had suffered a work-related injury to his back while working for DMG. The Commission disagreed and reversed the AJ’s decision. The circuit court affirmed. Bates appeals. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Bates argues that the Commission denied his claim because he had mistakenly asserted in his petition to controvert that his injury occurred on August 26, 2005. Bates submits that the Commission failed to take into consideration the fact that he stated later in his deposition that he was not sure of the exact date when his injury occurred and that his medical records would reveal the correct date. Bates further contends that the Commission ignored the fact that in his deposition he had testified that he reported the accident to his supervisors, “Randy and Jeff.” Bates submits that DMG failed to present any evidence to contradict the existence of a supervisor named Jeff and that the accident was reported to him. The claimant, not the employer or its insurance carrier, has the burden of proving by a fair preponderance of the evidence that an injury occurred that has a causal connection with the claimant's employment. That Bates could not recall the exact dates he allegedly injured his back, or remember the names of the DMG supervisors he allegedly notified about his injury, presented factual questions for the Commission. The evidence on which the Commission based its decision is sufficient. Bates presented no corroborating witnesses with respect to his alleged injury. Even though Bates claimed they existed in the case, no one testified that he or she contemporaneously observed Bates exhibit signs, or express complaints, of a disability. Aside from the fact that Bates could not remember the date when his alleged injury occurred, or recall exactly who he had reported it to, Bates consistently maintained throughout the case that his first visit to the emergency room at King’s Daughters Medical Center coincided with his last day of work. Bates’s medical records and employment records contradicted his accounts. According to the medical records, Bates’s first visit to the emergency room occurred on August 22. Bates’s employment records, however, disclosed that August 19 was the last date Bates actually worked at the warehouse. Bates made no attempt whatever at the hearing to explain this discrepancy. Bates also had no explanation for the fact that his August 22 medical records indicated that the back pain he claimed he was then experiencing had been ongoing for a month prior. When a patient gives a history to a physician which is inconsistent with allegations in a workers’ compensation case, this is a significant factor in support of denial of a claim. |
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