Opinion ID: 2322020
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Date of a Gradual Injury

Text: [¶ 12] We have defined a gradual injury as a single injury caused by repeated, cumulative trauma without any sudden incapacitating event. Derrig v. Fels Co., 1999 ME 162, ¶ 7, 747 A.2d 580, 582. Gradual injuries have been covered under the Workers' Compensation Act since 1973, when the Act was amended to include personal injury arising out of or in the course of employment. P.L.1973, ch. 389, as amended by P.L.1975, ch. 480 (codified at 39 M.R.S.A. § 51 (Supp.1975)); see also Ross v. Oxford Paper Co., 363 A.2d 712, 713-14 n. 1 (Me.1976). Before the amendment, coverage was limited to personal injuries incurred by accident, which restricted compensation to those injuries caused by sudden, traumatic precipitating events. Ross, 363 A.2d at 713 n. 1. [¶ 13] Although establishing a specific date of injury for a gradual injury may be a medical fiction, establishing a date is legally important because the date of injury triggers the running of the ninety-day notice period and the two-year statute of limitations. 39-A M.R.S. §§ 301, 306. The date of injury is also relevant when (1) determining whether a statutory amendment is applicable, see Ross, 363 A.2d at 713 n. 1; (2) deciding which employer or insurer is responsible for the injury, see Derrig, 1999 ME 162, 747 A.2d 580; and (3) establishing the applicable average weekly wage, 39-A M.R.S. § 102(4) (2008). [¶ 14] Because of the indefinite nature of their starting points, gradual injuries present special problems for deciding when the limitations and notice periods begin to run. We have defined the date a gradual injury occurs for all purposes as the date the employee is aware of the injury and aware of its compensable nature. Wilson v. Bath Iron Works, 2008 ME 47, ¶ 4 n. 2, 942 A.2d 1237, 1238 (quoting Derrig, 1999 ME 162, ¶ 7, 747 A.2d at 582).