Filtered Decisions

The Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award of workers' compensation benefits to Vincent Pebworth for a low back injury sustained on September 27, 2004, while employed at Green Horizons Garden Center. The claimant was found to have permanent and total disability with compensation beginning March 7, 2006, and ongoing benefits subject to modification as provided by law.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of workers' compensation benefits to Delbert Pruett for a low back and left leg injury sustained on August 4, 2005, when he slipped at work in Malden, Missouri. The employee was awarded permanent total disability benefits along with compensation for temporary total disability and medical expenses.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award in a workers' compensation case involving an employee's claimed fall from a ladder resulting in a right arm injury requiring surgery. This is a temporary or partial award with proceedings remaining open for final determination.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's denial of workers' compensation benefits for Lenora Washington's alleged May 16, 2007 injury, finding she failed to provide proper notice to her employer and did not sustain a compensable accident. The employee's claims for neck and upper extremity injuries were denied due to lack of notice, failure to prove an accident occurred, and insufficient medical causation evidence.

The Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's decision denying compensation in this workers' compensation case involving a low back injury sustained during propane tank lifting. The claim was settled between the employer and insurer, resulting in no compensation awarded by the primary claim.

The Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award denying all workers' compensation benefits to employee Stanley Fischer. The case was dismissed as the injury or occupational disease was determined to not be compensable under Missouri Chapter 287, with no accident or incident of occupational disease found to have occurred.

The Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award allowing workers' compensation benefits for Shawn Claspill's injury sustained from a fall off a forklift on July 31, 2006. The employee was awarded 40 weeks of permanent partial disability compensation at a weekly rate of $532.76 for a 10% permanent disability rating.

The Missouri Court of Appeals remanded the case to the Commission for reconsideration of occupational disease claims involving multiple body parts. The Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of 40% permanent partial disability for the lumbar spine in the 1999 claim while denying causation for cervical spine, hernia, and right shoulder injuries in both claims.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award finding that Thomas M. Roemisch, who fell in a courthouse parking lot while appearing for jury duty, qualifies as an employee of Greene County under Missouri workers' compensation law. The decision is temporary or partial, with proceedings remaining open for final determination pending further evidence.

The Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award of workers' compensation benefits to employee Rodney Northcross for injuries sustained in an auto accident on August 29, 2003, while employed. The award includes permanent partial disability compensation totaling $46,011.68, with 30% shoulder disability and 5% body-as-a-whole disability, plus unpaid medical expenses and Second Injury Fund liability.

The Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of workers' compensation benefits to Justin Smallwood for a hernia injury sustained on December 8, 2008, while using a tag line to steady a 55,000-pound wall during a crane operation. The employee was awarded temporary total disability compensation for 3 weeks, permanent partial disability of 10% for body as a whole, and past medical expenses totaling $40,751.86.

The Missouri LIRC affirmed the ALJ's award of workers' compensation for Richard B. Hafley's occupational disease (bilateral plantar fasciitis) arising from his employment, finding the evidence supported compensability and permanent partial disability ratings. One commissioner dissented, arguing the ALJ's disability ratings of 7-9% were inadequate compared to the medical evidence supporting 15% permanent partial disability.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of workers' compensation benefits for Richard B. Hafley's right ankle and foot injury sustained on August 4, 2009, while one member dissented, arguing for a higher permanent partial disability rating of 20% rather than the awarded 2.5%. The decision found the injury compensable and the award supported by competent and substantial evidence, though the dissenting opinion criticized the assessment of permanent partial disability benefits.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of workers' compensation benefits to Selma Lewis for a low back injury sustained while assisting a patient at KU Medical Center on October 6, 2001. The claimant was awarded 15% permanent partial disability benefits totaling $24,377.08, with the Second Injury Fund liable for $4,611.88.

The LIRC affirmed the administrative law judge's award finding the employee's work-related injury to his lumbar back and lower extremities compensable under Missouri workers' compensation law. The injury occurred when a transmission fell and the employee instinctively caught it while attempting to align it with an engine on June 10, 2009.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award finding the claimant's compensable injury to his lumbar back and lower extremities occurred when a transmission fell and he instinctively caught it on June 10, 2009. This is a temporary or partial award with the case remaining open for further proceedings to determine the nature and extent of permanent disability.

The Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's decision denying compensation to Eugene Brown for an occupational injury sustained on August 15, 2005 while moving a table at his workplace. Although the injury was deemed compensable under Missouri law, no permanent disability was found to warrant ongoing compensation beyond the temporary disability and medical benefits already paid.

The Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of workers' compensation benefits to Shirley Pioske-Schlueter for injuries sustained in a slip and fall accident on November 9, 2007. The claimant was awarded permanent partial disability benefits for her right leg and low back injuries, with lifetime weekly compensation of $163.80 from the Second Injury Fund beginning February 23, 2009.

The Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award allowing workers' compensation benefits to employee Dale Skyles, finding the award was supported by competent and substantial evidence and compliant with Missouri law. The Commission also approved the administrative law judge's allowance of attorney's fees as fair and reasonable.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of workers' compensation to David Duly for back injuries sustained on June 6, 2005, with permanent partial disability rated at 7.75% of body as a whole. A dissenting commissioner argued the award should be modified to increase the disability rating to 25% and grant past medical expenses based on more recent MRI evidence reviewed by the orthopedic surgeon.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award denying all workers' compensation benefits to employee Michael Altman for an alleged back injury sustained while picking up a concrete form. The Commission found that the injury did not arise out of and in the course of employment and therefore was not compensable under Missouri workers' compensation law.

The Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of permanent total disability benefits to employee James Wilder resulting from a 2004 work injury, finding he is permanently and totally disabled due to the combination of the work injury and preexisting disabling conditions. The Second Injury Fund is liable for permanent total disability benefits, with the employer responsible for a 40% permanent partial disability of the left shoulder and 68.7% permanent partial disability of the body as a whole referable to the cervical spine.

The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award of workers' compensation benefits to Melvin Stark for a low back injury sustained on May 10, 2005, while installing a galvanized steel laundry chute at his workplace in Pulaski County, Missouri. The injury resulted in permanent total disability, and the Commission found the award was supported by competent and substantial evidence and in accordance with Missouri Workers' Compensation Law.

The Missouri LIRC affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award of workers' compensation benefits for Robert Smyth's work-related low back injury sustained on March 29, 2005. The Commission found the ALJ's decision was supported by competent and substantial evidence and in accordance with Missouri Workers' Compensation Law, despite a dissenting opinion arguing for permanent total disability benefits.

The Missouri LIRC affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's decision denying workers' compensation benefits to Scott J. Beine, finding that his injury did not arise out of or in the course of his employment. The employee's injury, sustained during a Sheriff's Association charity golf tournament, was determined to fall outside the scope of employment coverage, and the mutual benefit doctrine was found inapplicable.