Prior injury no problem for workers' comp
Dupuis v. Picard Steel Erectors Inc., 883 So.2d 1092 (La.App. 2004), Louisiana Court of Appeal, Sept. 29, 2004.
When Edwin Dupuis began work at Picard Steel Erectors Inc. in August 2000, he checked the "no" box for every medical condition listed on his signed medical questionnaire. However, in 1982, while working for another company, Dupuis had fallen 24 ft from a building, seriously injuring his back. For 16 years he received workers'-comp benefits for that injury.
On April 16, 2001, while working for Picard, Dupuis injured his back again. He said the injury occurred while he was pulling a 150 to 200-lb joist up a flight of stairs. Dupuis continued to work the remainder of the week, but on April 23, after he complained of back pain, Picard sent him to the emergency room. Even after seeing several doctors, he was not able to return to work. He received workers'-comp benefits until June 12, 2002, when they were terminated.
Dupuis sued Picard to have his workers'-comp benefits restored. The judge denied his request, ruling Dupuis had forfeited his right to benefits under Louisiana's workers'-comp law by failing to disclose his prior back injury on his medical form.
On appeal, the Louisiana Court of Appeal noted that in January 2001, three months before the new injury, Jeff Picard, the owner of Picard Steel Erectors, had learned of Dupuis's previous injury after a former coworker told Dupuis's supervisor at Picard about it. When asked about the injury, Dupuis told Picard he was currently free from pain. According to the appellate court, the fact that Picard knew about Dupuis's prior injury meant the company was not prejudiced by Dupuis's failure to disclose it on his medical questionnaire. Thus, Dupuis was entitled to the reinstatement of his workers'-comp benefits.
