A trial judge and lower appeals court improperly found that an injured Whirlpool Corp. employee’s workers compensation claim had expired because a jurisdictional limitation placed on the state’s Industrial Commission affects trial court cases, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.
Brian Caldwell filed for workers comp after being injured while working for Whirlpool in 2015. He was awarded permanent partial disability but sought additional coverage in December 2019 for other medical conditions he claimed arose from the work injury.
The additional claim was denied administratively, and Mr. Caldwell appealed. The Industrial Commission refused to hear the case, citing a state law that limits its jurisdiction to five years from the date of the last compensation payment.
In April 2022, Mr. Caldwell invoked another state statute to revive his case and filed a lawsuit, again contending his additional injuries qualify for benefits in the state’s workers compensation fund.
The trial judge and the Third District Court of Appeals determined that the claim for additional compensation had expired, and the court complaint was dismissed.
The high court ruled that Mr. Caldwell’s claim for additional benefits had not expired when it passed the five-year mark because the statute cited by Whirlpool only pertains to administrative workers comp claims and not pending trial court cases.
The justices reversed the lower decisions and remanded the case to the trial court for further proceedings.