281 A.3d 171
Md.2022Background:
- Patrick Spevak, a Montgomery County firefighter, retired in 2010 after a 2007 service-related back injury and began receiving service‑connected total disability retirement benefits of $1,859.07/week.
- Several years after retirement he developed occupational hearing loss from workplace noise; the Workers’ Compensation Commission awarded permanent partial disability (PPD) benefits of $322/week for 26.25 weeks.
- The Commission offset the entire PPD award under Md. Code, Lab. & Empl. § 9-610 because Spevak’s weekly retirement exceeded the workers’ compensation rate.
- Spevak petitioned for judicial review; the Circuit Court for Montgomery County granted summary judgment for Montgomery County and the Court of Special Appeals affirmed.
- The Maryland Court of Appeals granted certiorari to decide whether service‑connected total disability retirement benefits are “similar benefits” to workers’ compensation benefits under § 9-610 and therefore subject to offset.
- The Court of Appeals affirmed the lower courts: it held that service‑connected total disability retirement benefits (which compensate for all service‑related injuries and pay at least 70% of final earnings under the County code) are similar to the PPD award and subject to offset when the retirement payments exceed the workers’ compensation benefits; Justice Watts dissented.
Issues:
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether service‑connected total disability retirement benefits are “similar benefits” to permanent partial workers’ compensation benefits under LE § 9‑610 and thus subject to offset | Spevak: apply the long‑standing “same injury” test; his hearing loss is a different injury from his earlier back injury, so the PPD award should not be offset | County: service‑connected total disability retirement compensates for all service‑related injuries and therefore duplicates workers’ compensation; offset prevents double recovery | Court: affirmed — although the same‑injury test governs § 9‑610 generally, service‑connected total disability retirement compensates for all service injuries and is therefore similar to the PPD award; offset applies when retirement exceeds the workers’ compensation benefit |
Key Cases Cited
- Reger v. Washington Cnty. Bd. of Educ., 455 Md. 68 (Md. 2017) (explained legislative history and reaffirmed same‑injury approach to § 9‑610)
- Newman v. Subsequent Injury Fund, 311 Md. 721 (Md. 1988) (established that offset applies to benefits accruing from the same injury)
- Blevins v. Baltimore Cnty., 352 Md. 620 (Md. 1999) (interpreted recodification and the role of the word “similar” in § 9‑610)
- Fikar v. Montgomery Cnty., 333 Md. 430 (Md. 1994) (applied single‑injury test to compare pension and rehabilitation benefits)
- Frank v. Baltimore Cnty., 284 Md. 655 (Md. 1979) (recognized legislative intent to avoid duplicate payments to public employees)