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Bright v. Sheehan Pipeline6/11/1998
W.R.A.P. 12.09(b) Certification from the District Court of Natrona County:
The Honorable W. Thomas Sullins, Judge
The hearing examiner denied the claim submitted by Appellant Robert Bright (the employee) for worker's compensation benefits. The employee filed a petition for review with the district court, and the district court certified the case to the Wyoming Supreme Court pursuant to W.R.A.P. 12.09(b).
We affirm the hearing examiner's decision.
ISSUE
The employee requests our review of the following issue:
1. Whether Appellant is barred from recovery of benefit because of a pre-existing condition under W. S. 1977 Section27-14-102(a)(xi)(F).
FACTS
Before going to work for Appellee Sheehan Pipeline (the employer), the employee worked as a professional rodeo bull rider. In 1994, the employee suffered a dislocation of his right shoulder when a bull stepped on him. He underwent surgery on the right shoulder to repair the dislocation. In 1995, while he was working for a previous employer, the employee again dislocated his right shoulder when a desk fell over on him. The employee underwent a second surgery on his right shoulder. Both surgeries were conducted to correct a congenital defect. People with this defect have shallow sockets which make them more prone to having shoulder dislocations.
In May of 1996, the employee dislocated his left shoulder when the bull he was riding jumped into the air and fell onto its side, landing on the employee's leg. The employee's body was thrown to the ground with his left arm extending upward. The shoulder was treated with physical therapy.
The employee began working for the employer on September 15, 1996, as a welder's helper. On October 30, 1996, the employee slipped in some mud and fell against a pipe, dislocating his left shoulder. The shoulder was dislocated for a couple of seconds, but it popped back into place by itself. The following day, the employee saw a doctor who recommended that ice be put on the shoulder, that the employee take medication, and that his duty for the next day be light. The employee's shoulder dislocated again that evening during his sleep, and the employee quit his job the next day. On November 7, 1996, the employee visited Boyd Maxfield Iverson, M.D., the surgeon who had performed his right shoulder surgeries. Dr. Iverson diagnosed a post traumatic dislocation with recurrent subluxation of the left shoulder and prescribed two weeks of physical therapy. When the shoulder did not improve with physical therapy, Dr. Iverson performed surgery on it.
The employee filed an injury report and requested medical and temporary total disability benefits. The employer and the Workers' Compensation Division objected, claiming that the employee had previously injured his shoulder in a bull riding accident and that, therefore, the employee's shoulder condition was not work related. A hearing was held, and the hearing examiner denied benefits after finding that the employee's injury was the result of a pre-existing condition and that he had not demonstrated his fall against the pipe was a material aggravation of the pre-existing condition. The employee petitioned the district court for a review of the case, and the district court certified the case to this Court.
Discussion
The hearing examiner found that the employee's shoulder injury was not a material aggravation of a pre-existing condition which had been caused by his employment. The employee claims that substantial evidence did not support that finding. Because the employee does not contest that he had a pre-existing condition, we only
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