LAZARO ROJAS, APPELLANT,
v.
MEDLEY HARDWOODS, INC., AND COMP OPTIONS INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLEES

Fla. 1st DCA | 2009-11-02
No. 1D08-6359
VAN NORTWICK and PADOVANO, JJ., and BROWNING, JR., EDWIN B„ Senior Judge, concur.
23 So. 3d 188 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (2009) Positive Treatment
Cited by 2 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

In this workers' compensation appeal, the Florida District Court of Appeal reversed portions of a compensation judge's order regarding the claimant's permanent impairment rating and authorization for gastroenterologist treatment, finding insufficient evidence supported the judge's calculations and conclusions.


Holding

The court reversed both findings. First, the proper combined rating under the 1996 Florida Uniform Permanent Impairment Rating Schedule for a five percent psychiatric rating and seven percent physical rating is twelve percent, not eleven percent. Second, the record contained uncontradicted evidence that Claimant continued taking authorized medications after the date the judge relied upon, which could have caused the gastric symptoms, so the denial of gastroenterologist treatment lacked competent substantial evidence.


Headnotes

[1] A permanent impairment rating must be calculated according to the applicable statutory schedule, and a finding deviating from that schedule without competent substantial…

[2] A Judge of Compensation Claims may overlook uncontradicted evidence, which constitutes reversible error.

Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Key Quotes

“The combined total of these PIRs, under the 1996 Florida Uniform Permanent Impairment Rating Schedule, is not eleven; rather, according to the schedule, it is twelve percent.”

Establishes the mathematical error in the compensation judge's permanent impairment rating calculation

Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Facts & Procedural History

Claimant Lazaro Rojas sustained a compensable work injury and was evaluated by multiple authorized physicians (Drs. Ballweg and Amadeo) who prescribed…

The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.


Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

In this workers’ compensation case, Claimant raises six points on appeal. Four lack merit (compensability of a “back condition,” exclusion of hospital records and bills, compensability of the second date of accident, and date of maximum medical improvement) and will not be addressed further. The other two, however, warrant reversal.

First, no competent substantial evidence supports the Judge of Compensation Claims’ (JCC’s) finding that Claimant had an eleven percent permanent impairment rating (PIR). The record supports the JCC’s findings that Claimant had a five percent psychiatric PIR and a seven percent physical PIR. The combined total of these PIRs, under the 1996 Florida Uniform Permanent Impairment Rating Schedule, is not eleven; rather, according to the schedule, it is twelve percent. See 1996 Fla. Unif. Permanent Impairment Rating Schedule, § 15, at 116. Accordingly, we reverse this portion of the JCC’s order. See Atlas Van Lines v. Jackson, 642 So.2d 603, 605 (Fla. 1st DCA 1994) (reversing finding of PIR where not supported by CSE).

Second, the JCC found a gastroen-terologist was authorized but denied further gastroenterologist treatment because the JCC found Claimant’s accident is no longer the major contributing cause of his gastric condition. No competent substantial evidence supports the JCC’s finding that, after August 16, 2002, Claimant was no longer taking any authorized medicine for compensable injuries that could have caused his gastric symptoms. The JCC found that Drs. Ballweg and Amadeo provided authorized care. The record shows they prescribed certain medications after that date. The gastroenterologist testified that Claimant advised him of at least two *190of those medications; that if, hypothetically, those medications were related to the work accident, the gastric symptoms would not be related to the work accident; and that if, hypothetically, Claimant were no longer taking medication or were taking medication prescribed by unauthorized doctors, the gastric symptoms would not be related to the work accident. It appears the JCC overlooked, rather than rejected, this uncontradicted evidence. Accordingly, we reverse this point and remand for the JCC to authorize a gastroen-terologist.

We note the Employer/Carrier has moved to stay these proceedings on the ground that, in subsequent proceedings below (on the same injury), Claimant was found to have committed fraud with respect to those (different) benefits, in violation of sections 440.09 and 440.105, Florida Statutes. We deny the motion because to do otherwise would defeat the interest in finality shared by the parties and the courts. The purpose of an appeal is solely to review an order of the lower tribunal based on the record made before that tribunal. See Altchiler v. State, Dep’t of Prof'l Regulation, 442 So.2d 349, 350 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983). Accordingly, we need not make a decision at this time whether the fraud defense divests Claimant of the potential benefits awarded herein.

Consequently, we AFFIRM in part, REVERSE in part, and REMAND for further proceedings.

VAN NORTWICK and PADOVANO, JJ., and BROWNING, JR., EDWIN B„ Senior Judge, concur.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • Gonzalez v. Fla. Unemployment Appeals Comm'n, 80 So. 3d 335 (Fla. 3d DCA 2010)
    …s not a part of the record before the Commission. Rather, it is an attachment to Ms. Gonzalez's Notice of Appeal to this court. It is, of course, improper for it to be considered in support of the panel reversal. See Rojas v. Medley Hardwoods, Inc., 23 So. 3d 188, 190 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009) (citing Altchiler v. State, 442 So. 2d 349, 350 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983) (“It is fundamental that an appellate court reviews determinations of lower tribunals based on the records established in the lower tribunals.”)). . For th…

Authorities Cited

Full citator, related cases, and AI research tools

Open in FLexlaw