Carden v. Roane Co.

This workers' compensation appeal has been referred to the Special Workers' Compensation Appeals Panel of the Supreme Court in accordance with Tenn. Code Ann. _ 5-6-225(e)(3) for hearing and reporting to the Supreme Court of findings of fact and conclusions of law. The plaintiff was injured in July 1993 while driving a truck during the course and within the scope of his job. The occurrence of the accident is not questioned; neither does the defendant question that the plaintiff suffered a back injury as a result of the accident. The plaintiff continued his employment with intermittent medical treatment for his back complaints. On September 1, 1995, at his residence, he stooped to pick up an object and suffered another onset of pain. The complaint was filed November 2, 1995, alleging the occurrence of the traffic accident (as a result of which periodic payments of compensation were made to the plaintiff through November 15, 1995), and subsequent physical impairment. The thrust of the defense is directed to the incident of September 3, 1995, when the plaintiff allegedly suffered the non-job-related accident at home, from which his present impairment is derived. The Chancellor found a 4 percent impairment, holding that the incident at his residence was not an intervening cause, but was merely a manifestation of problems which began in 1993. The issue is whether the evidence preponderates against the finding of the Chancellor.1 1The appellant states that the Chancellor found that "the injury sustained by the plaintiff while working at home in 1995 was causally related to a work-related injury the plaintiff had suffered two years previously." As observed, the Chancellor referred to the September 1995 event as a non-intervening incident which was merely a natural progression of the plaintiff's back problems. 2