Graham v. J. W. Wells Brick Co.

150 Tenn. 660
CourtTennessee Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 15, 1924
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 150 Tenn. 660 (Graham v. J. W. Wells Brick Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Tennessee Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Graham v. J. W. Wells Brick Co., 150 Tenn. 660 (Tenn. 1924).

Opinion

Mr. Justice Haul

delivered the opinion of the Court.

The petition in this case was filed by J. L. Graham, who will hereinafter he referred to as petitioner, against J. W. Wells Brick Company, who will hereinafter he referred to as defendant, seeking compensation under the Workmen’s Compensation Act (chapter 123, Acts of 1919).

Defendant demurred to the petition, which demurrer was sustained by the trial judge, and petitioner’s suit dismissed. From this judgment he has appealed to this court and assigns errors.

The petition alleged:

That on and prior to November 14,1921, petitioner was an employee of the defendant, and while in the regular course of his employment he suffered an injury on the date above named, which arose out of his employment, being struck in his right eye. That he immediately reported the injury to defendant, and was sent by defendant to a surgeon for the purpose of having the injury treated; the surgeon being employed by defendant, or by the insurance company carrying liability of defendant under the Workmen’s Compensation Act.

That but one of petitioner’s eyes was affected at the time, and he was able to continue in the employ of defendant, receiving full pay, working regularly, and being frequently treated by the physician employed at the expense of defendant.

That petitioner was not advised that his eye was in a serious condition, and that it would probably be lost, and had suffered no disability from his work other than impaired vision, but had received his full wage, and had [662]*662everything apparently possible done for Ms relief by defendant.

That the treatment heretofore referred to continued until the latter part of the month of December, 1922, when the surgeon, who had been treating petitioner, advised him that he had discovered that petitioner had entirely, completely, and permanently lost the sight of the injured eye, and petitioner was advised by the surgeon that no further treatment would be given, as no relief could be had.

That petitioner, therefore, requested that defendant pay him the indemnity provided by the statute for the complete loss of an eye, or one hundred weeks at the rate of $9 per week, his average weekly wage having previously amounted to $18 per week, but defendant company refused and failed to compensate petitioner because the insurance company carrying defendant’s insurance had refused to recognize liability.

It will be observed from the averments of the petition that the accident happened November 14, 1921, and petitioner did not bring this action until May 9, 1923, a period of eighteen months after the accident.

It will also be noted that injury and impairment of vision resulted to his eye as soon as the accident happened, and he reported said injury to defendant and was treated by defendant’s physician or surgeon until December, 1922, a period of thirteen months. At this time it was discovered by the surgeon that petitioner had totally and permanently lost the sight of the injured eye, but he still did not institute suit for five months thereafter.

The grounds of the demurrer were:

[663]*663(1) That the petition failed to allege that petitioner gave defendant the written notice required by sections 22 and 23 of the Workmen’s Compensation Act, and within the time therein provided.

(2) That the petition showed on its face that.it was filed more than one year after the accident resulting in the injury for which compensation is claimed.

The circuit judge overruled the first ground of the demurrer, hut sustained the second ground. It is to this áction of the trial judge that petitioner’s assignments of error are directed.

It is insisted that the action of the trial judge is erroneous because it was not an equitable construction of the act upon -yhich the petition was based. That section 47 of the act provides:

“That the rule of common law requiring strict construction of statutes in derogation of. common law shall not be applicable to the provisions of this act, but the same is hereby declared to be a remedial act which shall be given an equitable construction by the courts to the end that the objects and purposes of this act may be realized and attained.”

The averments of the petition showed that immediate injury resulted to petitioner from the accident; that the injury was known to petitioner because he was being treated for it. It consisted of an impairment of vision which was itself compensable under section 28c of the act, whether he was able to continue work or not (Hartford Hosiery Mills v. Jernigan, 149 Tenn., 241, 259 S. W., 546), and he could have brought suit at any time. It is insisted, therefore, that, giving the act the construction counsel for petitioner claims should be given it, his suit [664]*664is still barred by tbe one-year limitation, because tbe injury or impairment of tbe vision of bis eye developed long before tbe expiration of one year.

Section 2d provides that “injury” and “personal injury” shall mean only injury by accident arising out of and in tbe course of employment. Tbe word “accident” is not defined.

Section 24 of tbe act reads as follows: “Be it further enacted, that tbe right to compensation under this act shall be forever barred unless within one year after tbe accident resulting in injury or death occurred tbe notice required by section 23 is given tbe employer and a claim for compensation under tbe provisions of this act is filed with tbe tribunal having jurisdiction to bear and determine tbe matter.”

Section 31, among other things, provides:

“That tbe time within which tbe following acts shall be performed under this act shall be limited to tbe following periods respectively:
“ (1) Actions or proceedings by an injured employee to determine or recover compensation, one (1) year after tbe occurrence of the, injury.”

These three sections of tbe act, when read and considered together, show that tbe word “injury,” as used in section 31, is synonymous with tbe word “accident,” as used in section 24, and that tbe legislature intended to forever bar tbe right to compensation where suit is not brought within one year after tbe occurrence of tbe accident which results in tbe injury.

"We think this intention is clear from tbe use of tbe word “ocurrence,” because an accident occurs and an injury results.

[665]*665Mr. Schneider, in his hook on Workmen’s Compensation'Law (volume 2, section 578, p. 1642), says:

“It is not for the conrt to say, where the language of a statute leads to a logical conclusion, that the literal meaning will not he followed, simply because hy its wording it does not embrace cases which, as to the question of policy, seem, for no good reason, to have been excluded. ’ ’

The same author, at section 545, says: “Where the time is prescribed in the act within which the claim must be filed and there is no qualification, such time limit is mandatory, and unless claim is made for compensation within the statutory limit the claim is barred. . . .

The statute provision-referred to is a limitation affecting not only the remedy, but the right of an injured employee.” ■

In Cooke v. Holland Furnace Co., 200 Mich., 192, 166 N. W., 1013, L. R.

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Bluebook (online)
150 Tenn. 660, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/graham-v-j-w-wells-brick-co-tenn-1924.