Court Opinion

ID: 9850025
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 04:51:09.934731+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:20:30.514533
License: Public Domain

Townsend,, Judge,
concurring specially. While I remain of the opinion that my views as expressed in Hoffman v. National Surety Corp., 91 Ga. App. 414 (85 S. E. 2d 784) and Refrigerated Transport Co. v. Shirley, 93 Ga. App. 334 (92 S. E. 2d 26) are in conformity with Hartford Accident &c. Co. v. Waters, 87 Ga. App. 117 (73 S. E. 2d 70) and like cases, and are also in conformity with each other, I have experienced great difficulty applying the quantum of evidence rule to- this case, for the reason that both the amount of exertion shown and the quality of medical testimony are at most at a bare minimum from the claimant’s point *785of view. I am of the opinion that when employment is shown, and even very slight exertion is shown, that it is still not absolutely necessary to have the positive testimony of a medical witness that the exertion did contribute to, or would contribute to the attack, but, -as shown in U. S. Casualty Co. v. Richardson, 75 Ga. App. 496, 503 (43 S. E. 2d 793), testimony of a medical witness that a particular state of facts could have contributed to the injury is sufficient to allow the fact-finding tribunal to' determine in its own discretion whether in fact the state of facts shown did so contribute.
The only exertion shown here is that the decedent climbed 12 steps before reporting to work, and, after reporting, walked about 400 feet while giving directions to other employees. I think, applying the rule in the Hoffman case, supra, that if a medical witness simply stated this could have contributed to the attack, the question of whether it did would then be for the hearing director and neither this court nor the superior court should reverse. The medical witness here did say that exertion generally could contribute to an attack; he then said the question as to the particular exertion shown in this case would have to be answered in a negative way, that “I can not say it could not have contributed. I can not fully say that it can if you want me to answer this question as such could it have and I will have to say it could have.” All of this doctor’s testimony indicates that he had no real opinion as to whether the exertion shown could or could not have contributed. I would have been inclined to affirm this case; nevertheless, the only medical testimony on which the award can be based, in view of the very slight amount of exertion shown, is in fact the equivalent of no evidence at all. I accordingly agree to a reversal of this case for the purpose of obtaining further medical testimony on this point.