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TUCKER v. ROBERTS-MCNUTT11/2/2000
Appellant Kevin Tucker appeals an adverse decision of the Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission. This case is before us on petition for review from the Arkansas Court of Appeals; therefore, our jurisdiction is pursuant to Ark.Sup.Ct.R. 1-2(e). When we grant review following a decision by the court of appeals, we review the case as though it had been originally filed with this court. Fowler v. State, 339 Ark. 207, 5 S.W.3d 10 (1999); Travis v. State, 331 Ark. 7, 959 S.W.2d 32 (1998).
On June 17, 1997, Mr. Tucker filed a claim with the Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission alleging that he sustained a compensable injury on May 23, 1997, while he was in the employ of appellee, Roberts-McNutt. Specifically, he alleged that he is entitled to medical benefits and permanent disability benefits based upon an impairment rating of 8% to the body as a whole, as well as temporary total disability benefits for the period beginning July 8, 1997, and ending July 31, 1997. Roberts-McNutt controverted Mr. Tucker's claim in its entirety, arguing that Mr. Tucker failed to make a timely report of a work-related injury, that he did not sustain an injury in the course and scope of his employment, and that, even if Mr. Tucker did sustain a compensable injury, Roberts-McNutt would be entitled to an offset for the amount of any unemployment benefits Mr. Tucker drew between July 8, 1997, and July 31, 1997.
A hearing took place on March 13, 1998, before an administrative law judge. In an opinion filed on May 20, 1998, the law judge held that Mr. Tucker sustained a compensable injury , that he was entitled to all of the benefits sought, and that Roberts-McNutt was entitled to an offset for unemployment benefits drawn by Mr. Tucker during the period July 8 through July 31, 1997. Roberts-McNutt appealed the law judge's decision to the full Workers' Compensation Commission. In an opinion filed on March 23, 1999, the Commission reversed the law judge's decision and held that Mr. Tucker was not entitled to compensation because he failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that he sustained a compensable injury on May 23, 1997. Mr. Tucker appealed the Commission's decision to the Arkansas Court of Appeals. In Tucker
v. Roberts-McNutt, 69 Ark. App. 150, 12 S.W.3d 640 (2000), the court of appeals reversed the Commission's decision and remanded the case for the award of benefits, holding that the Commission's opinion "did not display a substantial basis for denying Mr. Tucker's claim."
Roberts-McNutt petitioned this court to review the decision of the court of appeals. In its petition, Roberts-McNutt argues that the court of appeals went beyond the substantial-evidence standard of review and engaged in the assessment of the credibility of witnesses. We conclude that the Commission expressly relied upon erroneous factual findings in reaching its decision. Accordingly, we must reverse its decision and remand to the Commission for its full examination of the relevant evidence presented in this cause.
The evidence presented to the Commission consisted of the testimony of Mr. Tucker and two of his supervisors, Mr. Wayne Lavender and Mr. Tom Bordeaux, Mr. Tucker's medical records, the deposition testimony of Dr. Scott Schlesinger, and a safety incentive form signed by Mr. Tucker. The parties stipulated that an employer/employee relationship existed and that, if the injury was deemed compensable, Mr. Tucker would be entitled to the maximum rate of compensation.
Roberts-McNutt is a construction company specializing in waterproofing and roofing. On May 23, 1997, Mr. Tucker was employed by Roberts-McNutt as a job foreman and was working on the restoration of the Argenta Dep
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