Name
William Havey v. Maine Administrative & Financial Services
Insurance Company
Maine Workers' Compensation Division
Date Decided
December 20, 2021
Panel Members
Bryan Chabot
Tom Pelletier
Mike Stovall
Categories
Apportionment Medical Expenses Subsequent Non-Work Injury Apportionment Medical Expenses Subsequent Non-Work InjuryTags
File Size
119 KB
DownloadSummary from the Troubh Heisler Attorneys
William Havey v. MAFS (21-34) - Havey injured his left ankle at work, requiring surgery and ongoing pain medication. He also had unrelated knee problems requiring replacement surgery and a temporary increase in his pain medication. Dr. Donovan’s §312 IME apportioned 85% the pain medication to his unrelated knees and only 15% to his ankle. Judge Knopf adopted that apportionment in her decree, and Havey appealed.
The Appellate Division panel granted his appeal and vacated the decision, remanding it back to Judge Knopf for additional proceedings. They agreed with Havey that §354 apportionment applies only between two insurers, and the knee injury may be a subsequent nonwork condition requiring analysis under §201 (5) and the Law Court's 2008 Roy decision, to separate out the nonwork injury and view the work injury in isolation.