Name
Knox v. Irving Forest Products, Inc.
Insurance Company
Liberty Mutual Insurance Co.
Date Decided
November 22, 2019
Panel Members
Elizabeth Elwin
Sue Jerome
Evelyn Knopf
Categories
Gradual InjuryTags
Gradual Injury Back Hip Notice
File Size
124 KB
DownloadSummary from the Troubh Heisler Attorneys
Ms. Knox’s job required her to grab and stack boards, “repetitively and significantly loading her right hip and low back.” In February 2015 she had hip pain that she related to her work, but she did not get medical treatment or miss work until July 22, 2015. She claimed an injury on July 22, 2015, her last day of work, and she requested payment of medical and indemnity benefits. Irving denied her claim based on late notice.
Judge Goodnough granted her petitions, finding that her date of injury was July 22, 2015, and that she gave notice then, so it was timely. He found that the gradual injury did not “manifest itself in a significant manner” until she left work, and that her pain did not “rise to a level of a compensable injury” until then. Irving appealed on the date of injury and notice. The Appellate division panel vacated Judge Goodnough’s decision and remanded the case to determine the date the gradual injury manifested itself (not “significantly”) and the date her notice obligation arose (not when it became “compensable”).