Douglas Richardson v. Lil River Harvesting

STATE OF LOUISIANA
COURT OF APPEAL, THIRD CIRCUIT

WCA 09-1090

DOUGLAS RICHARDSON

VERSUS

LIL’ RIVER HARVESTING

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APPEAL FROM THE
OFFICE OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION -NUMBER TWO
PARISH OF RAPIDES, NO. 08-01318
JAMES L. BRADDOCK, WORKERS’ COMPENSATION JUDGE

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BILLY HOWARD EZELL
JUDGE

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Court composed of Sylvia R. Cooks, Jimmie C. Peters, and Billy Howard Ezell,
Judges.

AFFIRMED.

Kathryn Fowler Van Hoof
VanHoof & Associates
P. O. Box 339
LeCompte, LA 71346
(318) 776-4836
Counsel for Defendant/Appellant:
Lil’ River Harvesting

Russell Louis Sylvester
Brittain and Sylvester
P. O. Box 2059
Natchitoches, LA 71458-2059
(318) 352-9588
Counsel for Plaintiff/Appellee:
Douglas Richardson

EZELL, JUDGE.

In this matter, Lil’ River Harvesting appeals the decision of the workers’

compensation judge finding that Douglas Richardson required back surgery. For the

following reasons, we affirm the decision of the workers’ compensation judge.

On November 16, 2006, Mr. Richardson was struck by a falling tree while in

the course and scope of his job duties with Lil’ River. He developed severe back

pain, eventually going to see Dr. Marcos Ramos, who felt a “minimally invasive

laminectomy and microdiskectomy at L3-4” was required to alleviate the problem.

Lil’ River requested Mr. Richardson see another physician, Dr. Donald Smith. Dr.

Smith felt surgery was not needed. An independent medical expert (IME), Dr. Jorge

Martinez, was appointed and also felt Mr. Richardson would not require surgery. Lil’

River did not dispute that the injury was compensable and paid disability and medical

benefits except for the challenged surgery. At trial, the workers’ compensation judge

found that Mr. Richardson had shown he needed surgery by a preponderance of the

evidence and that he was entitled to the surgery recommended by Dr. Ramos. From

that decision, Lil’ River appeals.

Lil’ River asserts as its sole assignment of error that the workers’ compensation

judge erred in awarding Mr. Richardson the back surgery as recommended by Dr.

Ramos.

The appropriate standard of review for workers’ compensation cases was set

forth by our supreme court as follows:

In worker’s compensation cases, the appropriate standard of
review to be applied by the appellate court to the OWC’s [Office of
Workers’ Compensation] findings of fact is the “manifest error-clearly
wrong” standard. Accordingly, the findings of the OWC will not be set
aside by a reviewing court unless they are found to be clearly wrong in
light of the record viewed in its entirety. Where there is conflict in the
testimony, reasonable evaluations of credibility and reasonable
inferences of fact should not be disturbed upon review, even though the

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appellate court may feel that its own evaluations and inferences are as
reasonable. The court of appeal may not reverse the findings of the
lower court even when convinced that had it been sitting as the trier of
fact, it would have weighed the evidence differently.

Dean v. Southmark Const., 03-1051, p. 7 (La. 7/6/04), 879 So.2d 112, 117 (citations

omitted).

Lil’ River believes that because its doctor and the IME felt that Mr. Richardson

did not need surgery for his back, the workers’ compensation judge’s finding was

clearly wrong. We disagree. An IME’s medical conclusions should be given

significant weight because the IME is an objective party. Scott v. Wal-Mart Stores,

Inc., 03-858 (La.App. 1 Cir. 2/23/04), 873 So.2d 664; see also La.R.S. 23:1123.

However, the opinion of the IME is not conclusive, and the workers’ compensation

judge must evaluate all of the evidence presented in making a decision as to a

claimant’s medical condition. Mosley v. Pennzoil Quaker State, 37,199 (La.App. 2

Cir. 7/23/03), 850 So.2d 1100, writ denied, 03-2412 (La. 11/21/03), 860 So.2d 553.

As a general rule, while the trier of fact is required to weigh the testimony of all

medical witnesses, the testimony of the treating physician should be accorded greater

weight than that of a physician who examines a patient only once or twice. Scott, 873

So.2d 664.

The workers’ compensation judge gave extensive reasons for judgment wherein

he weighed the findings of Lil’ River’s doctor and the IME against Dr. Ramos and

Mr. Richardson’s social security disability examining physician, Dr. John Sandifer,

who also felt Mr. Richardson would require surgery. The workers’ compensation

judge gave more weight to Dr. Ramos, Mr. Richardson’s treating physician, and his

belief that there were positive signs of abnormalities in Mr. Richardson’s back that

would require surgical repair. He clearly took into consideration the testimonies of

Mr. Richardson as well as his wife, both of whom testified as to the pain he suffered

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and of his desire to simply feel better. Simply put, the workers’ compensation judge

weighed the evidence before him and chose between two permissible views of the

evidence. Where there are two permissible views of the evidence, a fact finder’s

choice between them can never be manifestly erroneous or clearly wrong. Stobart v.

State, Through Dept. of Transp. and Dev., 617 So.2d 880 (La.1993). Considering the

foregoing and the record as a whole, we can find no manifest error in the workers’

compensation judge’s finding that Mr. Richardson requires surgery to correct his back

injury.

For the above reasons, the decision of the workers’ compensation judge is

hereby affirmed. Costs of this appeal are assessed against Lil’ River Harvesting.

AFFIRMED.

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