254 N.C. App. 374
N.C. Ct. App.2017Background
- Decedent Donald L. Brown, a correctional officer, suffered a workplace accident on August 25, 2005 and consistently claimed a compensable low‑back injury; Defendant (the Dept. of Public Safety) admitted compensability for a low back strain via Form 60 and paid related benefits.
- Brown later underwent surgery for his back, received ongoing TTD and medical benefits, was found MMI with a 15% PPI to the back, and remained out of work; no final determination of disability for the back was ever made.
- Brown first asserted a left hip/leg injury in an amended Form 18 dated October 7, 2010 and later pursued hearing; the employer never admitted compensability for the hip, and the hip claim remained denied at the time of Brown’s death.
- Brown died January 1, 2014; death certificate listed alcoholic cirrhosis and chronic infected left hip/psoas abscess (related to a 2008 hip replacement) as causes/contributors.
- Brown’s next of kin (Plaintiff) filed for death benefits under N.C.G.S. § 97‑38 on August 21, 2014. A deputy commissioner initially awarded death benefits, but the Industrial Commission reversed and dismissed Plaintiff’s § 97‑38 claim as time‑barred.
- The Court of Appeals considered whether the two‑year limitations period in § 97‑38 (measured from the “final determination of disability”) was tolled by the absence of a final disability determination for the compensable back injury even though the death benefit claim was based on an alleged, non‑compensable hip injury.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Plaintiff’s § 97‑38 death‑benefit claim based on the denied hip injury was timely despite death occurring more than six years after the accident | Because there was no final determination of disability for Decedent’s admitted compensable back injury, the two‑year limitations period under § 97‑38 never began to run and Plaintiff’s death claim (filed within two years of death) is timely | The two‑year tolling in § 97‑38 applies only to the final determination of disability for the compensable injury that proximately caused death; a different, never‑found‑compensable injury (hip) is not revived by the lack of a disability determination for the back | Court affirmed Commission: § 97‑38’s two‑year period applies to the injury alleged to have proximately caused death; Plaintiff’s claim based on the denied hip injury was time‑barred |
Key Cases Cited
- Shaw v. U.S. Airways, 217 N.C. App. 539 (N.C. Ct. App.) (absence of a final determination of disability for a compensable injury can prevent § 97‑38’s two‑year limitation from running when that compensable injury proximately causes death)
- Pait v. SE Gen. Hosp., 219 N.C. App. 403 (N.C. Ct. App.) (death‑benefits claims are distinct beneficiary claims that arise only upon the employee’s death)
- Booker v. Duke Med. Ctr., 297 N.C. 458 (N.C.) (beneficiaries’ right to compensation is an original right enforceable only after the employee’s death)
- Clark v. Wal‑Mart, 360 N.C. 41 (N.C.) (compensability and disability are distinct concepts; admission of compensability does not establish disability)
- Trexler v. Pollock, 135 N.C. App. 601 (N.C. Ct. App.) (statutes of limitation exist to bar stale claims; court will avoid interpretations leading to virtually unlimited limitations)