Opinion ID: 2623443
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Review of Record

Text: [¶ 17] The hearing examiner did not believe that Iverson was injured on May 14, 1998, while working for the employer. Iverson contends that this finding is not supported by substantial evidence and is against the great weight of the evidence. The record shows that Iverson testified he injured himself on May 14, while chopping asphalt from a belly-dump truck, and he specifically described his actions when the injury occurred. Frost had a witness testify that it was not possible to clear asphalt from a belly-dump truck in that manner. A hearing examiner is entitled to reject claimant's testimony about events and dates if other evidence indicates that it is not credible. Kuntz-Dexter, ¶ 12. However, an inconsistency applies to propositions that cannot both be true, and that term is inappropriate to characterize propositions of differing degrees of completeness. Ikenberry v. State ex rel. Wyo. Workers' Comp. Div., 5 P.3d 799, 803 (Wyo.2000). Our review of the record shows that the testimony of these two witnesses were inconsistent, and the hearing examiner was entitled to reject Iverson's version. [¶ 18] The hearing examiner decided that Iverson had been injured in a work-related accident on April 3, 1998. We find that substantial evidence supports this finding. The driver of the road grader, Wayne Allshousen, testified that he had impacted Iverson's truck from behind and, at the time the incident occurred, Iverson had commented to Allshousen that the contact had hurt his back. Allshousen noted Iverson had continued to work. The hearing examiner specifically found that Allshousen was a credible witness. The record shows Iverson testified similarly about the incident. [¶ 19] Having established that a work-related injury occurred, the hearing examiner then relied upon Iverson's girlfriend's testimony as to when Iverson began to experience leg pain to establish the date of compensability. The hearing examiner believed that her evidence showed that Iverson experienced leg pain in April and contradicted Iverson's contention that he did not experience leg pain until he was injured in May. As discussed in the facts, however, the girlfriend's testimony did not specify dates nor did she indicate that the leg pain happened before Iverson began seeking medical treatment. She recollected that she took Iverson to several doctors for medical treatment when he experienced back and leg pain. The record shows that Iverson sought no medical treatment until late May. Our review of the record shows that the testimony of these two witnesses were not inconsistent, only different if not viewed completely, and the hearing examiner was not entitled to reject Iverson's version. [¶ 20] Having accepted the hearing examiner's conclusion that Iverson suffered a work-related injury on April 3, 1998, we must review the entire record to determine when Iverson knew the nature and full extent of his injury. The parties do not dispute that Iverson did not mention that the road grader contact in April hurt his back, or that Iverson continued to work all shifts and overtime until May 18, 1998, when he called and reported an injury and sought medical treatment. Legally, Iverson had no obligation to report a trivial incident to avoid a timeliness issue. Rice, ¶ 14; Big Horn, 502 P.2d at 188. [¶ 21] If, as the hearing examiner found, Iverson did not injure himself on May 14, the evidence remains that by May 18, Iverson claimed that he was beginning to experience back and leg pain significant enough to discontinue working. Iverson immediately sought medical treatment and ultimately received a medical diagnosis that he had a herniated disc. Both Iverson and his girlfriend testified that he sought medical treatment because of back and leg pain. Although the hearing examiner did not find Iverson a credible witness, the girlfriend was specifically found to be credible and the record shows that nothing contradicted the testimony on this point. Accordingly, the weight of the evidence shows that Iverson injured himself in April, but did not know the nature of and the full extent of his injury until May 18, 1998, when he notified his employer of injury, discontinued working, and sought medical treatment. [¶ 22] We hold that the hearing examiner erred in determining the date of compensable injury was April 3, 1998, and the claim was untimely filed. The date of compensable injury is May 18, 1998, the date it became apparent to Iverson that his injury had resulted in compensable disability. Mitchell v. State Recreation Comm'n Snowmobile Trails, 968 P.2d 37, 40 (Wyo.1998). Iverson notified his employer of injury on an earlier date and filed his injury report on May 22, 1998, based upon his inability to work. His claim for benefits was not untimely filed. [¶ 23] The order upholding the denial of benefits is reversed, and this case is remanded with directions that an order be entered granting the claimant benefits.