GRACIE MAE PETERMAN, BOBBIE JEAN PETERMAN, EBECCA PETERMAN, ELIJAH PETERMAN, MARGARET REE PETERMAN, PETITIONERS,
v.
FLORILAND FARMS, INC., AND THE FLORIDA INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION, RESPONDENTS

Fla. | 1961-06-21
No. 30966
THOMAS, C. J., and TERRELL, HOBSON, ROBERTS, DREW, THOR-NAL and O’CONNELL, JJ., concur.
131 So. 2d 479 Florida Supreme Court (1961) Positive Treatment
Cited by 8 cases

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Synopsis

The Florida Supreme Court held that the provision of Florida's Workers' Compensation Act allowing consideration of expected wage increases for injured minors does not apply to death benefits. The court rejected petitioners' argument that a deceased minor's death benefits should account for wages the minor would have earned had he lived, because the statute's text and legislative omission limited this provision to periods of disability, which cannot occur after death.


Holding

The court held that § 440.14(4) does not apply to death benefits. Because the statute operates only during a "period of disability" and no period of disability exists after death, the provision does not authorize increased death benefits based on anticipated wage growth.


Key Quotes

“That section has no application to death cases. Because of the finality of death, there is no opportunity for one's wages to be increased subsequently thereto, as one's wages might be normally expected to increase during a period of disability following an injury, as distinguished from death.”

Deputy commissioner's reasoning for denying the wage increase claim, emphasizing the logical distinction between disability (which may be temporary) and death (which is final and precludes future earnings)

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Facts & Procedural History

Gracie Mae Peterman and other family members of a deceased minor employee sought an increase in death benefits based on expected wage increases the de…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

This is a companion case to Floriland Farms, Inc., and Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Co. v. Peterman et al., Fla., 131 So.2d 477. A succinct statement of the facts will be found in the companion case. June 9, 1960, at the instance of the parties, the deputy commissioner held a hearing after which he entered an order, paragraph 16 of which, the only part involved in this appeal, is as follows:

“Claimants contend that employee’s weekly wage and the death benefits based thereon should be increased because of the provisions of F.S. 440.14 (4) which provides as follows:
“ ‘If it be established that the injured employee was a minor when injured, and that under normal conditions his wages should be expected to increase during the period of disability, that fact may be considered in arriving at his average weekly wages.’
“That section has no application to death cases. Because of the finality of death, there is no opportunity for one’s wages to be increased subsequently thereto, as one’s wages might be normally expected to increase during a period of disability following an injury, as distinguished from death.”

Petitioners filed cross-application for review of paragraph 16 by the full commis*480sion. December IS, 1960, the full commission affirmed the ruling of the deputy commissioner. We are confronted with an appeal by certiorari from the order of the full commission.

The sole point presented for our determination is whether or not the provisions of § 440.14(4), Florida Statutes, F.S.A., as above quoted, are applicable to the determination of the average weekly wages of the deceased minor in this case.

Petitioners offer what they call a “logic argument,” a “statutory argument” and a “law argument,” wherein they come up with the contention that this question requires an affirmative answer. They support this contention with Schneider’s Workmen’s Compensation Law, Vol. 4, g 1177, p. 197, and what they call the landmark case on the point, Kilberg v. Vitch, 171 App.Div. 89, 156 N.Y.S. 971.

It is true that the last cited case affirmed the New York Commission’s finding of probable increase in the wages of a deceased minor employee, but Section 14 of New York Workmen’s Compensation Act on which the opinion was based is as follows :

“Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the average weekly wages of the injured employee, at the time of the injury, shall be taken as the basis upon which to compute compensation or death benefits, and shall be determined as follows * * * ”

It will be seen by inspection of the two acts that the Florida and New York acts are very similar except that the New York act includes the words “or death benefits” which are omitted from the Florida act. A reading of the full opinion in the Kilberg case shows that it was bottomed on this difference in verbiage.

The fact that the Florida statute did not include “death benefits” would seem to be very strong evidence that they were not intended to be included in our statute, § 440.-14(4), Florida Statutes 1959, F.S.A. Under the Florida statute operation is limited to “period of disability” and there is no period of disability after death. There can be no stronger presumption of legislative intent than the omission from the act of words to include compensation for death benefits. In Florida Industrial Commission v. National Trucking Co., Fla.App.1958, 107 So.2d 397, the First District Court of Appeal recognized this interpretation; the Florida Industrial Commission has given a like interpretation to the Florida act and petitioners have not carried the burden of showing that any of these rulings are clearly erroneous.

For the reasons so stated, the ruling of the Florida Industrial Commission was free from error so the petition for certiorari is denied.

THOMAS, C. J., and TERRELL, HOBSON, ROBERTS, DREW, THOR-NAL and O’CONNELL, JJ., concur.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • Floriland Farms, Inc. v. Peterman, 131 So. 2d 477 (Fla. 1961)
    …of deceased were increased because of § 440.14(4), Florida Statutes 1959, F.S.A., is not treated or decided in this case but is considered and disposed of in the companion case entitled Peterman et al. v. [*479] Floriland Farms, Inc., et al., Fla., 131 So. 2d 479. Petition for certiorari is accordingly denied. TERRELL, HOBSON, ROBERTS, DREW and THORNAL, JJ., concur. THOMAS, C. J., and O’CONNELL, J., dissent.…
  • Nat'l CAR Rental & Travelers Ins. Co. v. Sanchez, 349 So. 2d 829 (Fla. 3d DCA 1977)
    …ts ordinarily construe this to be a deliberate omission and we so hold in the instant matter. In this connection, see: Florida Industrial Commission v. National Trucking Company, 107 So. 2d 397 (Fla. 1st DCA 1958); Peterman v. Floriland Farms, Inc., 131 So. 2d 479 (Fla.1961). Therefore, for the reasons above stated, the order of the trial judge here under review be and the same is hereby affirmed. Affirmed. . Poling v. Petroleum Corporation, 194 So. 2d 925 (Fla. 1st DCA 1967); Camer v. Ratner, 207 So. 2d 3…
  • Fla. Ins. Guar. Ass'n v. Valez, 514 So. 2d 395 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987)
    …ne at bar. Although we have found no Florida cases directly on point construing Section 440.-14(l)(e), the statute is very similar to the corresponding statute found in the New York Workmen’s Compensation Act. See Peterman v. Floriland Farms, Inc., 131 So. 2d 479 (Fla.1961). Subdivision five of Section 14 of the New York Workmen’s [*397] Compensation Law provides: “If it be established that the injured employee was a minor when injured, and that under normal conditions his wages would be expected to increase…

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