Bowerman v. Black Equipment Company
2008-CA-000828 10/02/09 2009 WL 3162147 Released for publication
Opinion by Judge Nickell; Judge Caperton concurred; Judge Keller dissented by separate opinion.
The Court reversed and remanded an opinion of the Workers’ Compensation Board affirming the opinion and award of an Administrative Law Judge. The Court held that the reversal of prior dispositive factual findings rendered in an interlocutory opinion – absent the introduction of new evidence, fraud or mistake – was arbitrary, unreasonable, unfair and unsupported by sound legal principles. While the abatement of the claim pending maximum medical improvement did not mandate an award of temporary total disability (TTD) benefits, the ALJ’s original factual findings mandated an award under KRS 342.0011(11)(A) during the abatement of the claim.
