Cowlitz Stud Co. v. Clevenger

141 P.3d 1
Washington Supreme Court·Decided August 17, 2006·No. 77267-3·Published·Cited by 29 cases

Opinion

141 P.3d 1 (2006)

COWLITZ STUD COMPANY, Respondent,
v.
Dana CLEVENGER and the Department of Labor and Industries, Petitioners.

No. 77267-3.

Supreme Court of Washington, En Banc.

Argued March 16, 2006.
Decided August 17, 2006.

*2 Robert R. Hall, Attorney at Law, Longview, John R. Wasberg, Attorney General's office, Seattle, Steve Vinyard, Attorney General's Office, Department of Labor & Industries, Jay Douglas Geck, Office of the Attorney General, Olympia, for Petitioners.

Craig A. Staples, Attorney at Law, Vancouver, for Respondent.

Bryan P. Harnetiaux, Debra L. Stephens, Michael J. Pontarolo, Spokane, for Amicus Curiae Wash. State Trial Lawyers Ass'n Foundation.

OWENS, J.

¶ 1 We must determine whether the last injurious exposure rule applies to petitioner Dana Clevenger's industrial injury claim brought under the Industrial Insurance Act (IIA), Title 51 RCW. Clevenger's injury claim was initially filed in response to a low back injury she sustained while working for respondent Cowlitz Stud Company. Pursuant to the claim, the Department of Labor and Industries (Department) ordered Cowlitz Stud to pay time loss benefits. The superior court reversed, holding, as a matter of law, that the last injurious exposure rule barred liability of Cowlitz Stud because Clevenger's condition worsened when she subsequently worked for Hampton Lumber, a nonparty employer. The Court of Appeals, Division Two, affirmed the superior court. We reverse and hold that the superior court erred in applying the last injurious exposure rule, which is inapplicable to industrial injury claims.

FACTS

¶ 2 On May 2, 1997, Clevenger sustained a low back injury while working at Cowlitz Stud's lumber mill. Shortly thereafter, Clevenger filed an industrial injury claim with Cowlitz Stud for benefits under the IIA. On July 2, 1997, Cowlitz Stud paid Clevenger medical benefits and closed her claim. Clevenger continued working for Cowlitz Stud until May 1999.

¶ 3 In November 1999, Clevenger began working for Hampton, a nonparty that purchased the lumber mill from Cowlitz Stud. Clevenger experienced increased pain in her back during her employment with Hampton. Due to this pain, Clevenger stopped working for Hampton on July 5, 2000. Thereafter, Clevenger filed to reopen the May 1997 injury claim. On December 20, 2000, the Department ordered reopening of the claim. Subsequently, on May 30, 2001, the Department ordered that Cowlitz Stud "pay time loss compensation benefits from January 16, 2001 through April 4, 2001 and continue within the facts of the law." Clerk's Papers (CP) at 125. Cowlitz Stud appealed the Department's May 2001 order.

¶ 4 On January 11, 2002, the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals (Board) held a hearing. At the hearing, four physicians testified. Three of the physicians, including Clevenger's treating physician, opined that Clevenger's inability to work was proximately caused by the May 2, 1997, injury she sustained while working for Cowlitz Stud. A fourth physician testified that he did not believe that the May 1997 injury proximately caused Clevenger's disability. The Board found that "Ms. Clevenger has not sustained any new injury to her low back since the industrial injury of May 2, 1997." CP at 81. The Board further found that "[c]onsistent with the nature of the disease, the claimant's lumbar degenerative condition has progressively worsened through May 30, 2001." Id. Thus, the Board affirmed the Department's May 2001 order.

¶ 5 Cowlitz Stud appealed the Board's decision to Lewis County Superior Court. On February 7, 2003, the superior court granted summary judgment in favor of Cowlitz Stud. The trial judge found that Clevenger's work for Hampton "was a proximate cause of her worsened low back condition and disability" and held that, under the last injurious exposure rule, Cowlitz Stud is "not liable for Ms. Clevenger's low back condition." CP at 6. Division Two affirmed, finding the last injurious exposure rule applicable. Cowlitz Stud Co. v. Clevenger, 127 Wash.App. 542, 547, 112 P.3d 516 (2005). Both Clevenger and the Department appealed and we granted review on January 11, 2006.

ISSUES

¶ 6 (1) Did the superior court have jurisdiction to consider the last injurious exposure rule?

*3 ¶ 7 (2) Does the last injurious exposure rule apply to industrial injury claims?

¶ 8 (3) Is Clevenger entitled to attorney fees?

ANALYSIS

¶ 9 The IIA is the product of a compromise between employers and workers. Under the IIA, employers accepted limited liability for claims that might not have been compensable under the common law. Dennis v. Dep't of Labor & Indus., 109 Wash.2d 467, 469, 745 P.2d 1295 (1987). In exchange, workers forfeited common law remedies. Id. This compromise is reflected in RCW 51.04.010, which states that "sure and certain relief for workers, injured in their work, and their families and dependents is hereby provided regardless of questions of fault and to the exclusion of every other remedy." In furtherance of this policy, the IIA is to "be liberally construed for the purpose of reducing to a minimum the suffering and economic loss arising from injuries and/or death occurring in the course of employment." RCW 51.12.010; see also Cockle v. Dep't of Labor & Indus., 142 Wash.2d 801, 811, 16 P.3d 583 (2001) ("[W]here reasonable minds can differ over what Title 51 RCW provisions mean ... the benefit of doubt belongs to the injured worker.").

¶ 10 Standard of Review. In reviewing an order of summary judgment, "this court engages in the same inquiry as the trial court." Tollycraft Yachts Corp. v. McCoy, 122 Wash.2d 426, 431, 858 P.2d 503 (1993) (citing RAP 9.12; Harris v. Ski Park Farms, Inc., 120 Wash.2d 727, 737, 844 P.2d 1006 (1993)). A trial court may grant summary judgment only "if there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law." Dep't of Labor & Indus. v. Fankhauser, 121 Wash.2d 304, 308, 849 P.2d 1209 (1993) (citing CR 56(c)). In reviewing a summary judgment, "all facts and reasonable inferences are considered in a light most favorable to the nonmoving party, while all questions of law are reviewed de novo." Coppernoll v. Reed, 155 Wash.2d 290, 296, 119 P.3d 318 (2005) (citing Berger v. Sonneland, 144 Wash.2d 91, [102-03,] 26 P.3d 257 (2001)). The Board's interpretation of the IIA, while not binding, "is entitled to great deference." Weyerhaeuser Co. v. Tri, 117 Wash.2d 128, 138, 814 P.2d 629 (1991).

¶ 11 Jurisdiction. The Board and the superior court are limited to appellate review of IIA issues. Lenk v. Dep't of Labor & Indus., 3 Wash.App.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Cowlitz Stud Co. v. Clevenger, 141 P.3d 1 (Wash. 2006).

141 P.3d 1 (Cowlitz Stud Co. v. Clevenger) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

State v. Montano
New Mexico Supreme Court, 2024
Valerie Strout, V. Vicki Mcgee
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2024
Michael Conklin, V. Boeing Co.
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2023
Matthew Hink, V. Melody Rude
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2021
Ronald v. Ma'ae, V State Of Wa Dept Of Labor And Industries
438 P.3d 148 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2019)
Masco Corporation v. Alfredo Suarez
433 P.3d 824 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2019)
State v. Porter
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2018
Brandon Apela Afoa v. Department Of Labor & Industries
418 P.3d 190 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2018)
State v. Deleon
New Mexico Supreme Court, 2017
State v. Erwin
2016 NMCA 32 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2016)
Fonseca v. Dole fresh/dole Food
Court of Appeals of Arizona, 2014
Target Corp. v. Patrisia Vowels
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2014
Venie v. Velasquez
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2014
State v. Cain
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2014
State v. Jaure
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2013
Afoa v. Port of Seattle
296 P.3d 800 (Washington Supreme Court, 2013)