McGauvan v. Dorchester County

• Court: Court of Appeals of South Carolina
• Decided: June 9, 2010
• Docket: 2010-UP-302
• Status: Unpublished

Opinion

THIS OPINION HAS NO PRECEDENTIAL VALUE.  IT SHOULD NOT BE CITED OR RELIED ON AS PRECEDENT IN ANY PROCEEDING EXCEPT AS PROVIDED BY RULE 268(d)(2), SCACR.

THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA
In The Court of Appeals

Michelle McGauvran, Appellant,

v.

Dorchester County, Self-Insured, through the S.C. Association of Counties Workers' Compensation Trust, Respondents.

---

Appeal From Charleston County
 J. C. Buddy Nicholson, Jr., Circuit Court Judge

---

Unpublished Opinion No. 2010-UP-302
Heard May 19, 2010 – Filed June 9, 2010
Withdrawn, Submitted, and Refiled July 20, 2010   

---

AFFIRMED

---

Andrew Nathan Safran, of Columbia, for Appellant.

Roy A. Howell, III, and Kirsten L. Barr, of Charleston, for Respondents.

PER CURIAM:  Michelle McGauvran (McGauvran) appeals an order of the circuit court affirming the finding of the South Carolina Workers' Compensation Commission (the Commission) that she is not entitled to benefits for an injury sustained while employed by Respondent Dorchester County.  On appeal, McGauvran argues the Commission erred in finding her injury was not a compensable injury by accident arising out of her employment and in failing to give proper weight to conflicting testimony. 

We affirm pursuant to Rule 220(b), SCACR, and the following authorities:  Tennant v. Beaufort County Sch. Dist., 381 S.C. 617, 620, 674 S.E.2d 488, 490 (2009) (stating the appellate court must affirm the findings of fact by the Commission if its findings are supported by substantial evidence); Crosby v. Wal-Mart Store, Inc., 330 S.C. 489, 494-96, 499 S.E.2d 253, 256-57 (Ct. App. 1998) (finding when substantial evidence supports the conclusion that the cause of a fall is an internal breakdown of the knee, it is appropriate to deny workers' compensation benefits because of the lack of a causal connection between the injury and employment); Miller v. Springs Cotton Mills, 225 S.C. 326, 330, 82 S.E.2d 458, 459 (1954) (concluding that an award of compensation because of the failure of claimant's knee "would necessitate opening the floodgates and holding that every internal failure suffered by an employee in the course of his employment becomes an accident just because it happens."); Pack v. State Dep't of Transp., 381 S.C. 526, 536, 673 S.E.2d 461, 466 (Ct. App. 2009) (holding where there are conflicts in the evidence, the findings of the Commission are conclusive).

AFFIRMED.

FEW, C.J., THOMAS and PIEPER, JJ., concur.