LE VINESS
v.
MAUER
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The Supreme Court of Florida reversed an award of compensation for a heart attack, holding that the injury itself, without an antecedent accident, does not constitute an "accident" under the workers' compensation statute. This decision clarifies the definition of "accident" in the context of work-related injuries.
No, the court held that the injury itself, a heart attack, does not suffice to constitute an "accident" under the statute. An accident requires an antecedent event that is unexpected and unforeseen.
“Obviously there was no accident preceding the heart attack and we have unequivocally held that the injury itself will not suffice to constitute the accident.”
Establishes the core legal principle that the injury alone is not an accident.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceA 35-year-old worker experienced sudden chest pain while digging a ditch on a hot day, involving heavy work like chopping roots. He continued working …
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
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Lamar Warren, Fort Lauderdale, and Wendell C. Heaton, Tallahassee, for appellees. ADAMS, Justice.
We have a judgment awarding compensation to appellee for an injury arising out of the following facts found by the deputy commissioner: "John Vincent Mauer, 35, while digging a ditch in the course of his work for Edward LeViness, in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, suddenly experienced a sharp, shooting pain in his chest, radiating down the left arm. It was a hot day, and although claimant had done general carpentry and roofing work for years, he was not accustomed to this type of heavy work, which, in addition to shoveling earth, involved chopping palmetto roots with a mattock, an axlike tool. After digging and chopping for about 45 minutes, he experienced the chest pain, discontinued work at once, and rested for about 15 minutes. For the next few days he did only general carpentry work of a light nature, during which time he suffered intermittent attacks of chest pain, on exertion, which would require him to knock off work temporarily. On September 14, soon after beginning work, he developed a very severe chest pain, and at the suggestion of his employer, sought medical assistance at the Veterans' Administration Hospital in Coral Gables. On the day he was admitted there, after submitting to an electrocardiographic tracing which proved normal, he suffered a coronary thrombosis, and thereafter remained as a patient for 55 days. His history shows that prior to September 6, 1949, he never had any symptoms of chest pain or other indications of heart trouble."
*114 The award was upheld by the full commission and also the circuit court.
Authority for the award was based upon Alexander Orr, Jr., Inc., v. Florida Industrial Commission, 129 Fla. 369, 176 So. 172; Davis v. Artley Construction Co., 154 Fla. 481, 18 So. 2d 255. Obviously there was no accident preceding the heart attack and we have unequivocally held that the injury itself will not suffice to constitute the accident. We have often construed this statute and have distinguished the cited cases from similar facts as found here. This case is ruled by Cleary Brothers Construction Co. v. Nobles, 156 Fla. 408, 23 So. 2d 525; and Brooks-Scanlon, Inc. v. Lee, Fla., 44 So. 2d 650, and cases therein cited.
The judgment is reversed.
SEBRING, C.J., and TERRELL, CHAPMAN, THOMAS and HOBSON, JJ., concur.
ROBERTS, J., dissents.
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Victor Wine & Liquor, Inc. v. Beasley, 141 So. 2d 581 (Fla. 1961)…-Scanlon v. Lee, Fla.1950, 44 So. 2d 650 (cerebral hemorrhage while lifting hoards at a sawmill); Peterson v. City Commission, Fla.1950, 44 So. 2d 423 (left knee “snapped” when employee squatted to a deep-knee position); LeViness v. Mauer, Fla.1951, 53 So. 2d 113 (chest pains while working as a ditch digger, with a coronary thrombosis occurring several days later); and McNeill v. Thompson, Fla.1951, 53 So. 2d 868 (ruptured intervertebral disc while performing routine work of moving ladder.) This line of cas…
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Gray v. Emp'rs Mut. Liab. Ins. Co., 64 So. 2d 650 (Fla. 1952)…l or make a mis-step,” and that, therefore, the appellant’s claim was not compensable, since “the injury itself cannot suffice for, or constitute, the accident”, citing Brooks-Scanlon, Inc., v. Lee, Fla., 44 So. 2d 650, and Le Viness v. Mauer, Fla., 53 So. 2d 113. The order of the Deputy Commissioner was affirmed by the Full Commission and, in turn, by the Circuit Court in and for Dade County. The statement that “the injury itself cannot suffice for, or constitute, the. accident”, appearing in the Brooks-Sc…1 / 3
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Le Viness v. Mauer, 53 So.2d 113 (Fla. 1951)…53 So. 2d 113 (1951) LE VINESS et al. v. MAUER et al. Supreme Court of Florida, Division B. May 29, 1951. Rehearing Denied July 5, 1951. M. Dudley Burton, Miami, for appellants. Lamar Warren, Fort Lauderdale, and Wendell C. Heaton, Tallahassee, for appellees.…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Davis v. Artley Constr. Co., 154 Fla. 481 (Fla. 1944)
- Alexander Orr, Jr., Inc. v. Fla. Indus. Comm'n & Mrs. Andrew Jerome Maxwell, 129 Fla. 369 (Fla. 1937)
- Cleary Bros. Constr. Co. v. Nobles, 156 Fla. 408 (Fla. 1945)
- Brooks-Scanlon v. Lee, 44 So. 2d 650 (Fla. 1950)
- Le Viness v. Mauer, 53 So.2d 113 (Fla. 1951)