Wasatch Electric v. Labor Commission, 460 P.3d 1049

On July 23, 2012, Wendell Benward was electrocuted at work; both feet were amputated the same day and he suffered other injuries.
Wasatch paid temporary total, temporary partial, and permanent partial disability benefits, totaling $130,818.68, and also employed Benward post-accident as a safety manager (part‑time, then full‑time through 2017).
After being laid off in 2017, Benward claimed permanent total disability benefits under Utah Code § 34A-2-413(9) (loss of both feet), seeking continuing lifetime benefits despite his post‑accident employment.
An ALJ held the subsection (9) presumption rebutted by Benward’s return to work and denied permanent total benefits for periods of gainful employment.
The Labor Commission reversed, ruling subsection (9) creates a final conclusive presumption of permanent total disability that is not negated by later employability, remanding only to determine whether post‑accident wages were paid as bona fide wages or in lieu of disability compensation.
On remand the ALJ found the post‑accident job and wages were legitimate; the Commission affirmed and ordered continuing permanent total disability benefits, disallowing an offset for wages earned post‑accident.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether loss-of-limbs provision (§ 34A-2-413(9)) is negated by claimant’s later ability to work	Benward: § 34A-2-413(9) creates a conclusive, final presumption of permanent total disability for listed losses, regardless of later employment	Wasatch: subsection (9) is a rebuttable presumption; return to gainful employment defeats entitlement for those periods	Court: Affirms Commission; subsection (9) creates a final presumption not overcome by later employability (followed Intermountain Slurry Seal)
Whether employer may offset post-accident wages against permanent total disability benefits	Benward: Post‑accident wages were earned for real work and should not offset disability benefits	Wasatch: Wages paid after accident should offset disability obligation (or were paid in lieu of benefits)	Court: Employer may offset only if wages were intended as a substitute for disability; ALJ found wages were bona fide, so no offset allowed

Intermountain Slurry Seal v. Labor Comm'n, 48 P.3d 252 (Utah Ct. App. 2002) (subsection enumerating loss of two members creates conclusive presumption of permanent total disability)
Oliver v. Labor Comm'n, 424 P.3d 22 (Utah 2017) (sets six-part test for permanent total disability under § 34A-2-413(1))
Esquivel v. Labor Comm'n, 7 P.3d 777 (Utah 2000) (legal questions of statutory construction reviewed for correctness)
State v. Legg, 417 P.3d 592 (Utah 2018) (panel-to-panel stare decisis principle applies to Utah Court of Appeals decisions)
Rutherford v. Talisker Canyons Fin. Co., 445 P.3d 474 (Utah 2019) (legislative inaction may imply acquiescence to judicial interpretation)