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TENNESSEE BUREAU OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

IN THE COURT OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION CLAIMS

AT NASHVILLE 

Carlton Roach, ) Docket No. 2023-06-4294

Employee, )

v. )

Grouper Holdings, LLC, a/k/a Aludyne

North America,

)

) State File No. 8189-2022

 Employer, )

And )

Travelers Indemnity Co., )

 Carrier. ) Judge Kenneth M. Switzer

COMPENSATION ORDER GRANTING SUMMARY JUDGMENT

The Court heard Grouper Holdings’s motion for summary judgment on July 16, 

2024. The issue is whether Grouper Holdings is entitled to summary judgment because 

the statute of limitations bars Mr. Roach’s claim. For the reasons below, the Court holds 

Grouper Holdings is entitled to summary judgment. 

Claim History

Grouper Holdings filed a statement of undisputed material facts with citations to the 

record in compliance with Rule 56.03 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure (2023). 

They are summarized as follows:

• Mr. Roach was an employee of Grouper Holdings on September 13, 2021, when 

he allegedly sustained an injury in the course and scope of his employment.

• Mr. Roach filed his petition for benefit determination on June 20, 2023.

• Mr. Roach was aware of the denial of his claim for workers’ compensation 

benefits.

• Neither Grouper Holdings nor its carrier, Travelers, paid benefits of any type to 

or on behalf of Mr. Roach for the alleged September 13, 2021 injury.

FILED

Jul 17, 2024

10:54 AM(CT)

TENNESSEE COURT OF

WORKERS' COMPENSATION

CLAIMS
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Grouper Holdings supported these facts with the Petition for Benefit Determination 

and two affidavits. Brian Green, chief human resources officer for Grouper Holdings, and 

Schuyler Crowe, a claims professional for Travelers, testified that no benefits were paid on 

Mr. Roach’s claim.

Mr. Roach did not file a response, nor did he appear at the hearing.

Law and 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, Grouper Holdings must do one of two things to prevail on its 

motion: (1) submit affirmative evidence that negates an essential element of Mr. Roach’s

claim, or (2) demonstrate that his evidence is insufficient to establish an essential element 

of his claim. Tenn. Code Ann. § 20-16-101 (2023); see also Rye v. Women’s Care Ctr. of 

Memphis, MPLLC, 477 S.W.3d 235, 264 (Tenn. 2015).

If Grouper Holdings successfully meets one of those burdens, Mr. Roach must

respond by producing specific facts showing a genuine issue for trial. Id.; Tenn. R. Civ. 

P. 56.06. Rule 56.03 states, “Each disputed fact must be supported by specific citations to 

the record.” As to the record, Rule 56.04 allows a court to consider “pleadings, depositions, 

answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any.”

Grouper Holdings argues that the Court should grant summary judgment because it 

affirmatively negated an essential element of Mr. Roach’s claim – that he timely filed his 

petition. Grouper Holdings relies on Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-203(b)(1), 

which states that when an employer has not paid workers’ compensation benefits to or on

behalf of an employee, “the right to compensation under this chapter shall be forever

barred, unless . . . a petition for benefit determination is filed . . . within one (1) year after

the accident resulting in injury.”

Here, the undisputed, properly supported facts show that Mr. Roach alleged a work 

injury occurring on September 13, 2021, and Grouper Holdings and Travelers paid no 

benefits. Mr. Roach did not file his petition until June 20, 2023, past the one-year postaccident deadline for filing his lawsuit. Therefore, Grouper Holdings successfully negated 

an essential element of Mr. Roach’s claim ̶that he timely filed the petition ̶and showed 

that his facts are insufficient to prove this element.
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Because Grouper Holdings met its burden, the Court considers whether Mr. Roach 

produced pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, admissions on file, or 

affidavits setting forth specific facts showing a genuine issue for trial. He did not. 

Specifically, Mr. Roach filed no response to Grouper Holdings’s statement of 

undisputed material facts. He also did not appear to make any argument in support of 

denying the motion. Because Mr. Roach did not point to any specific facts or present any 

admissible countervailing evidence regarding Grouper Holdings’s statute of limitations 

defense, he did not show a genuine issue of material fact for trial. The Court holds Grouper 

Holdings is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law.

IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED as follows:

1. Grouper Holdings’s motion for summary judgment is granted, and Mr. Roach’s 

claim is dismissed with prejudice to its refiling.

2. Unless appealed, this order shall become final 30 days after entry.

3. The Court taxes the $150.00 filing fee to Grouper Holdings under Tennessee 

Compilation Rules and Regulations 0800-02-21-.06 (2023), payable to the Clerk 

within five days of this order becoming final.

ENTERED July 17, 2024.

________________________________________

JUDGE KENNETH M. SWITZER

Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims
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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I certify that a copy of this Order was sent as indicated on July 17, 2024.

Name Certified 

Mail

Regular 

mail

Email Sent to

Carlton Roach, 

employee

X X Carltonroach76@gmail.com

701 Gracey Ave. #105A

Clarksville TN 37040

Chip Storey,

employer’s attorney

X cstoreyj@travelers.com

dbest@travelers.com

_______________________________________

PENNY SHRUM

Clerk, Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims

WC.CourtClerk@tn.gov
For self-represented litigants: Help from an Ombudsman is available at 800-332-2667.

Right to Appeal:

If you disagree with the Court’s Order, you may appeal to the Workers’ Compensation 

Appeals Board. To do so, you must:

1. Complete the enclosed form entitled “Notice of Appeal” and file it with the Clerk of the 

Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims before the expiration of the deadline.

 If the order being appealed is “expedited” (also called “interlocutory”), or if the 

order does not dispose of the case in its entirety, the notice of appeal must be filed 

within seven (7) business days of the date the order was filed.

 If the order being appealed is a “Compensation Order,” or if it resolves all issues 

in the case, the notice of appeal must be filed within thirty (30) calendar days of 

the date the Compensation Order was filed.

When filing the Notice of Appeal, you must serve a copy on 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 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 any 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 are responsible for ensuring a complete record is presented on appeal. If no court 

reporter was present at the hearing, you may request from the Court Clerk the audio 

recording of the hearing for a $25.00 fee. If you choose to submit a transcript as part of your 

appeal, which the Appeals Board has emphasized is important for a meaningful review of 

the case, a licensed court reporter must prepare the transcript, and you must file it with the 

Court Clerk. The Court Clerk will prepare the record for submission to the Appeals Board, 

and you will receive notice once it has been submitted. For deadlines related to the filing of 

transcripts, statements of the evidence, and briefs on appeal, see the applicable rules on the 

Bureau’s website at https://www.tn.gov/wcappealsboard. (Click the “Read Rules” button.)

4. After the Workers’ Compensation Judge approves the record and the Court Clerk transmits 

it to the Appeals Board, a docketing notice will be sent to the parties.

If neither party timely files an appeal with the Appeals Board, the Court Order 

becomes enforceable. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-239(d)(3) (expedited/interlocutory 

orders) and Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-239(c)(7) (compensation orders).
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’ Compensation 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 filed 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: ________________________________________________________ Phone: ___________________ 

Email: __________________________________________________________ 

Attorney’s Name: ______________________________________________ BPR#: _______________________ 

Attorney’s Email: ______________________________________________ Phone: _______________________ 

Attorney’s Address: _________________________________________________________________________ 

* 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 

Appellee’s Address: ______________________________________________ Phone: ____________________ 

Email: _________________________________________________________ 

Attorney’s Name: _____________________________________________ BPR#: ________________________ 

Attorney’s Email: _____________________________________________ Phone: _______________________ 

Attorney’s Address: _________________________________________________________________________ 

* 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 0800-02-21, to all parties and/or their attorneys in this 

case on this the __________ day of ___________________________________, 20 ____. 

 ______________________________________________ 

[Signature of appellant or attorney for appellant]