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WILLIAM DAVIS, Employee v. HARRAH'S CHEROKEE CASINO, Employer, LEGION INSURANCE COMPANY (Now assigned to the NORTH CAROLINA INSURANCE GUARANTY ASSOCIATION), Carrier No. 456A06 FILED: 25 JANUARY 2008 1. Workers' Compensation--findings of fact--sufficiency of evidence

The Industrial Commission did not err in a workers' compensation case by its findings of fact 14 and 15 supporting the conclusion that plaintiff's ongoing disability and medical treatment were the result of a compensable injury, and that plaintiff's fall at home in November 2001 did not amount to an intervening event that broke the chain of causation from the original injury, because: (1) with regard to finding of fact 14, the surgical note quoted within the finding itself supports the final sentence, which determines that plaintiff's second surgery involved removal of scar tissue from the first surgery; (2) with regard to finding of fact 15, there was evidence in the record to support the Commission's more specific finding as to plaintiff's propensity to develop degenerative changes; and (3) the evidence recited above, as well as the portion of plaintiff's surgeon's testimony and records quoted in finding 14 itself, supports findings 14 and 15.

Supreme Court Slip Opinion

2.

Workers' Compensation--conclusions of law--causation--intervening cause

The Industrial Commission did not err in a workers' compensation case by its conclusions of law numbers 3, 4 and 6 that plaintiff's ongoing disability and medical treatment were the result of a compensable injury, and that plaintiff's fall at home in November 2001 did not amount to an intervening event that broke the chain of causation from the original injury, because: (1) the finding that plaintiff injured his back moving a monitor from a slot machine at work, and required surgery in September 2001 as a result, support the Commission's conclusions; (2) the finding that the original injury and surgery led to scar tissue and made him more prone to degenerative changes, which in turn necessitated the second surgery in April 2002, supports conclusions 3 and 4; (3) in light of these conclusions that plaintiff's medical treatments for his back, including both surgeries, as well as his ongoing disability resulted from his May 2001 injury at work, the award of benefits including all compensation for medical treatment and ongoing total disability is entirely appropriate; and (4) although defendants contend the Commission misapplied the legal principles of causation in conclusion number 6, the Commission addressed the issue of intervening cause since defendants raised it, but given conclusions 1, 3 and 4, conclusion 6 is simply unnecessary when the Commission properly found and concluded that plaintiff's injury in May 2001 is compensable and that all of plaintiff's medical treatments and ongoing disability have resulted therefrom. Appeal pursuant to N.C.G.S.

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South Carolina Law