1 TENNESSEE BUREAU OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION IN THE COURT OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION CLAIMS AT MEMPHIS

CECILIA HOPSON , ) Docket No. 20 21

- 08

- 0074 Employee, )

v. TRAVELERS PROPERTY CAS. CORP. , ) ) ) State File No. 76850

- 201 4 Employer, And NEW HAMPSHIRE INS

. CO. , ) ) ) Carri er
. ) Judge Deana Seymour

COMPENSATION ORDER GRANTING SUMMARY JUDGMENT

The Court he ard Travelers ’ Motion for Summary Judgment on May 9 , 202 2. Travelers contend s Ms. Hopson filed her Petition for Benefit Determination outside the

one

- year statute of limitations. For the reasons below, the Court grants the motion.

Facts

M s. Hopson claim ed injuries after an automobile accident at work on September 24, 2014. After reporting the accident, she received authorized treatment for headaches and neck and back pain from multiple physicians

.

These physician s treated Ms. Hopson conservatively and placed her at maximum medical improvement from an orthopedic, neurologic, and neurosurgical standpoint

. Dr. Bola Adamolekun
, one of Ms. Hopson’s neurologist s , noted that h e could not relate her symptoms to her work ac cident

.

After her release from Dr. Adamolekun on December 6, 2018 , Ms. Hopson requested additional medical treatment. However, Travelers denied the request based on Dr. Adamolekun’s causation opinion. The last payment on the claim was made on December 21, 2018 , and a Notice of Controversy was issued in February 2019

. Ms. Hopson did not file a Petition for Benefit Determinatio n until January 20, 2021. 

### FILED May 11, 2022 07:09 AM(CT)
TENNESSEE COURT OF WORKERS' COMPENSATION

CLAIMS2 Travelers’ Motion

Travelers filed a M otion for Summary Judgment, along with a statement of undisputed material facts

. The Court summarizes the material facts as follows:

• Ms. Hopson seeks benefits arising out of an incident at work on September 24, 2014;

• Travelers’ last payment on the claim was made on December 21, 2018; and

• Ms. Hopson filed her petition on January 20, 2021

.

Travelers contend s it i s entitled to summary judgment because Ms. Hopson waited more than one year after Travelers’ last payment before filing her petit i on, thus falling outside the one

- year statute of limitations in Tennessee Code Annotated section 50

- 6

- 203(b)( 2 ) (201 4 ).

Alth ough Ms. Hopson filed medical records, medical bills, and emails related to her claim, she did not respond to the motion as required by Tennessee Rule of Civil Procedure 56.03.

Analysis

Summary judgment is appropriate “if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” Tenn. R. Civ. P. 56.04.

As the moving party, Travelers must do one of two things to prevail on its motion: (1) submit affirmative evidence that negates an essential element of Ms. Hopson ’s claim, or (2) demonstrate that her evidence is insufficient to establish an essential element of her claim. Tenn. Code An n. § 20

- 16

- 101; see also Rye v. Women’s Care Ctr. of Memphis, MPLLC , 477 S.W.3d 235, 264 (Tenn. 2015). If Travelers is successful in meeting this burden, Ms. Hopson must then establish that the record contains specific facts upon which the Court could base a decision in her favor. Id. at 265.

Since Ms. Hopson did not respond to Travelers’ statement of undisputed facts
, the Court finds the motion and the facts undisputed. The issue then is whether summary judgment is “appropriate” under Rule 56.06

.

Under Tennessee Code Annotated section 50

- 6

- 203, an employee’s right to recover compensation is forever barred unless the employee files a petition within one year after the accident resulting in injury. The statute of limitations can be extended by paymen ts made on the claim. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 50

- 6

- 203(b)(2). According to Tennessee Code Annotated section 50

- 6

- 203(c), “the issuing date of the last payment of compensation by the employer, not the date of its receipt, shall constitute the time the employe r ceased making payments.”3 In a similar case , the Appeals Board affirmed the trial court’s order for summary judgment where the employee filed her Petition for Benefit Determination more than one year following the last voluntary payment on the claim. Hancock v. Vanderbilt Univ

. Med

. Ctr

. , 2022 TN Wrk. Comp. App. Bd. LEXIS 1, at *7

- 8 (Jan. 5, 2022). The Board concluded th at the employer negate d an essential element of the employee ’s claim and demonstrate d that the employee’s evidence wa s insufficient to establish an essential element of her claim

. Id

.
Here, the undisputed facts conclusively show that a petition was not filed until J anuary 20 , 20 21 , which wa s more than one year from Travelers’ last payment on December 2 1, 2018. Thus, Travelers met its burden of negating an essential element of the claim

– filing within a year of the last paid benefit

.

The burde n shifts to M s. Hopson to show that the record contains specific facts upon which the Court could find a factual dispute on that issue

. Since M s. Hopson did not provide these facts
, the Court holds that Travelers is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law.

IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED as follows:

1. Traveler’s Motion for Summary Judgment is granted, and Ms. Hopson’s claim is dismissed with prejudice to its refiling.

2. Unless appeal ed , this order shall become final thirty days after entry.

3. The Court taxes the $150.00 filing fee to Travelers under Tennessee Compilation Rules and Regulations 0800

- 02

- 21

- .06 ( February, 20 22 )
, payable to the Clerk within five days of this order becoming final.

4. T r avelers shall prepare and submit the SD

- 2 with the Clerk within ten days of the date of judgment.

ENTERED May 11 , 202 2

.

____________ ___________________________ Judge Deana C. Seymour Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims4 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I certify that a copy of this Order was sent as indicated on May 11
, 20 22.

Name Certified Mail First Class Mail Email Service sent to:

Cecilia Hopson , Employee X X X 9432 Mary Tucker Cove Memphis, TN 38133 chopson21@comcast.net Emily Faulkner , Employer’s Attorney X emily.faulkner@mgclaw.com

_____________________________ Penny Shrum, Court Clerk Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims WC.CourtClerk@tn.govFor self

- represented litigants: Help from an Ombudsman is available at 800

- 332

- 2667. Compensation Hearing Order Right to Appeal : If you disagree with this Compensation Hearing Order, you may appeal to the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board or the Tennessee Supreme Court. To appeal to the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board, you must:

1. Complete the enclosed form entitled: “Notice of Appeal,” and f ile the form with the Clerk of the Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims within thirty calendar days of the date the compensation hearing order was filed . When filing the Notice of Appeal, you must serve a copy upon the opposing party (or attorney

, if represented).

2. You must pay, via check, money order, or credit card, a $75.00 filing fee within ten calendar days after filing of the Notice of Appeal. Payments can be made in

- person at any Bureau office or by U.S. mail, hand

- delivery, or other delivery service. In the alternative, you may file an Affidavit of Indigency (form available on the Bureau’s website or an y Bureau office) seeking a waiver of the filing fee. You must file the fully

completed Affidavit of Indigency within ten calendar days of filing the Notice of Appeal. Failure to timely pay the filing fee or file the Affidavit of Indigency will result in dismissal of your appeal.

3. You bear the responsibility of ensuring a complete record on appeal. You may request from the court clerk the audio recording of the hearing for a $25.00 fee. A licensed court reporter must prepare a transcript and file it with the court clerk within fifteen calendar days of the filing the Notice of Appeal. Alternatively, you may file a statement of the evidence prepared jointly by both parties within fifteen calendar days of the filing of the Notice of Appeal. The statement o f the evidence must convey a complete and accurate account of the hearing. The Workers’ Compensation Judge must approve the statement of the evidence before the record is submitted to the Appeals Board. If the Appeals Board is called upon to review testi mony or other proof concerning factual matters, the absence of a transcript or statement of the evidence can be a significant obstacle to meaningful appellate review.

4. After the Workers’ Compensation Judge approves the record and the court clerk transmi ts it to the Appeals Board, a docketing notice will be sent to the parties. The appealing party has fifteen calendar days after the date of that notice to submit a brief to the Appeals Board. See the Practices and Procedures of the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board.
To appeal your case directly to the Tennessee Supreme Court, the Compensation Hearing Order must be final and you must comply with the Tennessee Rules of Appellate Procedure. If neither party timely files an appeal with the Appeals Board, the trial court’s Order will become final by operation of law thirty calendar days after entry. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 50

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- 239(c)(7).LB -1099 rev. 01/20 Page 1 of 2 RDA 11082 NOTICE OF APPEAL Tennessee Bureau of Workers’ Compensation www.tn.gov/workforce/injuries- at -work/ wc.courtclerk@tn.gov | 1- 800

- 332 -2667

Docket No. :

________________________ State File No.:

______________________ Date of Injury: _____________________

___________________________________________________________________________ Employee

v.

___________________________________________________________________________ Employer

Notice is given that ____________________________________________________________________

[List name(s) of all appealing party(ies). Use separate sheet if necessary.]

appeals the following order(s) of the Tennessee Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims to the
Workers’ Co mpensation Appeals Board (check one or more applicable boxes and include the date filestamped on the first page of the order(s) being appealed):



### □ Expedited Hearing Order fil ed on

_______________ 

### □ Motion Order filed on ___________________



### □ Compensation Order filed on

__________________ 

### □ Other Order filed on

_____________________ issued by Judge _____________________________________________________________________

____ .

Statement of the Issues on Appeal Provide a short and plain statement of the issues on appeal or basis for relief on appeal:

______________________________________________________________________________________ __

______________________________________________________________________________________ __

______________________________________________________________________________________ __

______________________________________________________________________________________ __
Parties Appellant(s) (Requesting Party): _________________________________________ ☐ Employer ☐ Employee Address: _______________________________________________________

_ Ph one: ___________________ Email: __________________________________________________________ Attorney’s Na me:

_____________________________________________ _ BPR#: _______________________ Attorney’s E mail: _____________________________________________

_ Phone: _______________________ Attorney’s Ad dress:

_________________________________________________________________________ * Attach an additional sheet for each additional Appellant *LB -1099 rev. 01/20 Page 2 of 2 RDA 11082

Employee Name: _______________________________________ Docket No.: __________________

__ _ Date of Inj.:

____

___________

Appellee(s) (Opposing Party): ___________________________________________ ☐ Employer ☐ Employee App ellee’s Address:

_____________________________________________ _ Phone:

_ ___________________ Email: _________________________________________________________ Attorney’s Na me:

_____________________________________________ B PR#: ________________________ Attorney’s E mail: _____________________________________________ Phone:

_______________________ Attorney’s Ad dress:

_________________________________________________________________________ * Attach an additional sheet for each additional Appellee *

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I, _____________________________________________________________, certify that I have forwarded a true and exact copy of this Notice of Appeal by First Class mail, postage prepaid, or in any manner as described in Tennessee Compilation Rules & Regulations, Chapter 0800- 02

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, to all parties and/or their attorneys in this case on this the __________ day of ___________________________________, 20 ____.

__ ____________________________________________ [Signature of appellant or attorney for appellant]