Meva Corporation v. Industrial Commission

485 P.2d 844, 15 Ariz. App. 20, 1971 Ariz. App. LEXIS 661
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arizona
DecidedJune 10, 1971
Docket1 CA-IC 516
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 485 P.2d 844 (Meva Corporation v. Industrial Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arizona primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Meva Corporation v. Industrial Commission, 485 P.2d 844, 15 Ariz. App. 20, 1971 Ariz. App. LEXIS 661 (Ark. Ct. App. 1971).

Opinion

STEVENS, Presiding Judge.

On 9 July 1965 James C. Jonas was injured in an industrial accident. He was then 45 years of age. The industrial claim was promptly processed. In May 1967 there was an award pending the determination of the loss of earning capacity. In early 1969 The Industrial Commission entered an award which established that the Jonas injuries resulted in an unscheduled permanent partial disability and established a $409.69 monthly loss of earning capacity. The last-mentioned award provided for medical benefits to a fixed date. The award became final. After the award was entered Jonas moved to Benson, North Carolina.

Shortly thereafter the carrier commenced its efforts to have Jonas submit to the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation of the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Appointments were made which Jonas did not keep.

On 18 March 1970 the carrier filed a petition ■ with The Industrial Commission seeking “an order relative to the refusal of the Applicant James C. Jonas to return to Arizona and submit to a rehabilitation evaluation.” The petition pointed out that at the time the carrier contacted Jonas in North Carolina in September 1969 “Mr. Jonas complained of further physical problems and agreed to come back to Arizona for further physical treatment, as well as vocational re-evaluation for rehabilitation.” In the petition it was pointed out that “arrangements were made to fly Mr. Jonas at your petitioner’s expense to Phoenix and for him to enter Good Samaritan Hospital under the care of Dr. John Young on December 8, 1969. Arrangements were also made for Mr. Jonas to be evaluated while at the hospital for vocational rehabilitation.” In the petition it was asserted that “Medical reports in the file indicate that Mr. Jonas could be successfully retrained.” There were letters attached to the petition as exhibits but no medical reports were attached thereto. The petition concluded:

“WHEREFORE, your petitioner prays that the Applicant James C. Jonas be ordered to return to Phoenix at his own-expense for vocational re-evaluation and' then make honest attempts to comply with the evaluation which is made, and if the order is not complied with, that the award previously made to the Applicant be amended to suspend any further payments until compliance with the order.”

One of the letters attached to the petition was a letter from the carrier to Attorney Gorey wherein it was stated that the claimant “has indicated that he is again having trouble with his back as well as his leg.” The letter made reference to Dr. Young as follows:

“I have in mind that if we do return him to the Phoenix area that we would arrange for him to be hospitalized at the Good Samaritan Hospital where he could be examined by Dr. John Young, who is probably one of the foremost physiatrist (sic) in the country. We believe that by doing this we can answer all of the questions pertaining to surgery, and help Mr. Jonas in any way we can towards the Rehabilitation Program.”

Blakiston’s New Gould Medical Dictionary, 2nd Ed., defines a physiatrist as follows :

“A physician specializing in physical medicine.” (p. 911)

and defines physical medicine as follows:

“A consultative, diagnostic, and therapeutic service coordinating and integrating the employment of physical and occupational therapy, and physical reconditioning on the professional management of the diseased and injured.” (p. 706)

It appears that the main thrust of the carrier’s request was an attempt to require Jonas to return to Arizona for testing relative to possible vocational rehabilitation.

The proceeding instituted by the carrier by the aforesaid petition was a proceeding *23 pursuant to the Workmen’s Compensation Act, as amended, effective 1 January 1969. A.R.S. § 23-1270.

On 14 April 1970 the Commission ruled as follows:

“ORDER
“IT IS ORDERED that the Respondent Carrier’s Petition filed March 18, 1970, is denied on the grounds that there is no authority for such Petition.”

Thereafter the carrier filed a petition and a request for hearing, again seeking an order requiring Jonas to return to Arizona. On 3 July 1970 the Commission took the following action.

“This Commission having reconsidered the file and all reports now issues Order Denying Petition for Rehearing as follows:
FINDINGS
1. That the Commission lacks jurisdiction in the premises to grant the relief prayed for in the Petition filed on May 1, 1970.
AWARD
IT IS ORDERED that the Request for Hearing be, and the same is hereby denied.”

The foregoing actions which were taken by The Industrial Commission are now before this Court for review.

THIS COURT’S JURISDICTION

As heretofore stated these proceedings are reviewed under the Workmen’s Compensation Act, as amended, effective 1 January 1969. All of the references in this opinion to the Arizona Revised Statutes will be to the. statutes which were in effect on and after 1 January 1969 unless otherwise specified. Earlier statutes will be identified as “pre-1969.”

At the oral argument before this Court Jonas urged a lack of jurisdiction in the Court of Appeals. Jonas urged that the 1970 actions by The Industrial Commission were “orders” and were therefore reviewable only pursuant to A.R.S. § 23-948 by a review in the Superior Court and that the Commission actions above-referred to were not “awards” reviewable by this Court by certiorari pursuant to A.R.S. § 23-951. We do not agree.

An “order” reviewable pursuant to A.R. S. § 23-948 was defined in A.R.S. § 23-901 (7) [pre-1969] as follows:

“7. ‘Order’ means and includes any rule, regulation, direction, requirement, standard, determination or decision of the commission.”

And these orders are now defined in A.R. S. §23-901(8) as follows:

“8. ‘Order’ means and includes any rule, regulation, direction, requirement, standard, determination or decision other than an award or a directive by the commission or a hearing officer relative to any entitlement to compensation benefits, or to the amount thereof, and any procedural ruling relative to the processing or adjudicating of a compensation matter.”

We find no difference in the definition as amended, merely an enlargement and a clarification thereof.

The pre-1969 definition of an “award” is found in A.R.S. § 23-901(1) and is as follows:

“1.

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Bluebook (online)
485 P.2d 844, 15 Ariz. App. 20, 1971 Ariz. App. LEXIS 661, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/meva-corporation-v-industrial-commission-arizctapp-1971.