Gulf Casualty Co. v. Tucker

201 S.W.2d 81, 1947 Tex. App. LEXIS 721
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 13, 1947
DocketNo. 4435
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 201 S.W.2d 81 (Gulf Casualty Co. v. Tucker) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gulf Casualty Co. v. Tucker, 201 S.W.2d 81, 1947 Tex. App. LEXIS 721 (Tex. Ct. App. 1947).

Opinion

COE, Chief Justice.

This is a suit arising under the workmen’s compensation law of Texas. Ottice Tpcker, as plaintiff, sued Gulf Casualty Company, alleging that he sustained an injury while he was picking up a container. The usual allegations with reference to the award of the Industrial Accident Board, notice of appeal from said award, amount of weekly compensation due plaintiff and other jurisdictional matters were made in plaintiff’s original petition filed in the district court of Angelina County on February 25, 1946. Gulf Casualty Company, defendant, answered by general denial and expressly denied that Gulf Refining Company or Gulf Casualty Company had any notice of the alleged injury within 30 days after the alleged occurrence of said injury.

The case went .to trial before a jury on August 27, 1946. After the trial court had overruled defendant’s motion for an instructed verdict, the court allowed plaintiff, Ottice Tucker, to file a trial amendment alleging that he sustained the alleged injury while he was handling, lifting and putting down a five gallon paint container. After appellant’s objection to the submission of the case to the jury, and after appellant’s objection to the court’s charge were overruled, the case was submitted to the jury on special issues. The trial court entered judgment oh the jury’s verdict in favor of Ottice Tucker for the sum of $6,882.74, this on the theory that -Tucker had sustained an injury which rendered him totally and permanently disabled. Gulf Casualty Company, appellant herein, after its motion for a new trial was overruled, has perfected an appeal from said judgment. The facts necessary to a disposition of this appeal will be stated in connection with the points presented.

' By appellant’s first two points, it complains of the action of the trial court in overruling its motion for an instructed verdict on the theory, that plaintiff had failed to prove that the injury complained of, as asserted by him before the Industrial Accident Board, was the cause of his alleged present disability, contending that the proof at most showed that plaintiff’s alleged-incapacity was caused by an entirely different accident than that asserted by him before the Industrial Accident Board, for the reason that the claim- asserted by ap-pellee before the Industrial Accident Board was that he was injured when he picked up a five gallon paint can, quickly jerking and tearing the muscles, etc., whereas the proof on,the trial was to the effect that the appellee was injured, if at all, when removing a five gallon paint container from his shoulder, the rfemoval taking place in a different building some 150 or 200 yards [83]*83from the point where he originally picked up the container. For this reason appellant contends that the trial court had' no jurisdiction to determine the cause of action presented on the trial because same had not been passed upon by the Industrial Accident Board.

„ , , „ . _ We cannot agree with appellant that either of these points presents revers-i e error.

. It was shown upon the trial that appel-lee’s original claim for compensation in the blank calling the cause of injury stated, picked up five gallon paint can quickly jerking and tearing the muscles, nerves and all vital soft tissues, as well as frac-, taring right shoulder and cervical spine , stated that the place of injury was. at, Gulf Pump Station, Angelina County, Texas ; in the blank calling for. him to-state part of body injured he inserted, Right shoulder and cervical spine and other injuries, jerking, pulling and tearing the nerves, tendons, leaders, blood vessels and all vital.soft tissues, as well as fracture to the cervical spine and shoulder, losing control of head and neck, being unable to hold head up, caused paralysis of right shoulder and arm; severe pain in said region and of shoulders, neck and head.

In his original petition appellee alleged that the inju'ry which was described as substantially in his claim occurred “while he was picking up a container”.

On the trial -of the case appellee testified that he received the injury complained of after he had reached the “boilder room” some 150 yards from where he obtained the five gallon can of paint from a warehouse while he was attempting to let the can of paint roll off his shoulder, holding it by the bail with the right hand, suddenly realizing that it was going to strike the' concrete floor with such force that it would likely burst, that to break the fall “I got it in my hand this way”, indicating his move-; ments in this effort, that the can jerked him to the floor, that he immediately felt a severe pain in the region of his right shoulder and back. This testimony as to the manner in which the injury occurred was admitted without objection. Appellee’s medical testimony was to the effect that he was suffering with a fracture of the transverse processes of the fifth cervical vertebra and a fracture of the body of the last cervical vertebra, that his ability to use his arm was impaired, that he could not hold his head up and had to wear a “Thomas collar” to keep it from falling forward onto his chest. At the conclusion of ,⅛6 testi ^ after llant had moyed for ^ instructed verdict) ⅛⅛1 court permitted appellee to file a trial amendment, the effect of which was to al-leg.e that the injury occurred “while he was handiing; lifting and putting down a five g-auon pajnt container” for the allegation ^at ^e jnjury occurred “while. he was picking up the container”. Appellant made no objection to the trial amendment on ground that it constituted surprise in any way< The action of the trial court in permitting appellant to file its trial amend-men^ js basis for one of appellant’s points of error hereinafter discussed. Ap-pellet does not contend that the injury claimed in the trial court is not the identi-ca| injllry claimed before the Industrial Accident .Board, it contends only that the jnjury claimed in the trial court occurred at a different place and in a different manner ^an as claimed before the Board. In other words it contends that because the alleged injury was shown to have been received in a different manner than it was claimed to have been received in the claim before the Industrial Accident Board, that constituted a different claim from that Presented to the Board and therefore the trial court was without jurisdiction to adjudicate same. As we understand the Authorities, appellant s contentions have ,t>een consistently overruled since the SuPreme Court handed down its °P“ion in the case of Booth v. Texas Employers’ Insurance Ass'n., 132 Tex. 237, 123 S.W.2d 322; Southern Underwriters v. Boswell, 138 Tex. 255, 158 S.W.2d 280; Maryland Casualty Co. v. Jackson, Tex.Civ.App., 139 S.W.2d 631; Insurors Indemnity Co. v. Brown, Tex.Civ.App., 172 S.W.2d 174; Texas Employers Insurance Ass’n v. Grimes, Tex.Civ.App., 186 S.W.2d 280. We agree with apr pellant that the trial court is without jurisdiction to litigate the question of incapacity resulting from an injury not -presented and [84]*84passed upon by the Industrial Accident Bpard. However, the exact manner in which the injury is received is usually of little importance other than to enable the insurance company in making an investigation of the alleged injury.

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Bluebook (online)
201 S.W.2d 81, 1947 Tex. App. LEXIS 721, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gulf-casualty-co-v-tucker-texapp-1947.