Seals v. England/Corsair Upholstery Mfg Co., Inc. and 2nd Injury Fund ( 1999 )

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF TENNESSEE
AT KNOXVILLE
FILED
January 11, 1999
LINDA S. SEALS, )
) Cecil W. Crowson
Plaintiff/Appellee, ) Appellate Court Clerk
)
v. ) NO. 03S01-9704-CH-00044
)
ENGLAND/CORSAIR UPHOLSTERY )
MANUFACTURING COMPANY, INC., )
)
Defendant/Appellant, )
)
DINA TOBIN, DIRECTOR OF )
THE DIVISION OF WORKERS’ )
COMPENSATION, TENNESSEE )
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR, )
SECOND INJURY FUND, )
)
Defendant/Appellee. )
CONCURRING OPINION
I concur in the majority's decision to remand this case to the trial court for
a determination as to the extent of the worker's vocational disability attributable
to the worker's subsequent physical and mental disabilities. I continue to adhere
to my dissent in Bomely v. Mid America Corp., 970 S.W.2d 929 (Tenn. 1998), in
which I concluded that Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-208(a) is applicable when there
is a subsequent injury and the employee is rendered permanently and totally
disabled. Subsection (b), however, should apply only when the employee is still
able to earn a wage or be gainfully employed but has received compensable
vocational disabilities that exceed 100 percent or 400 weeks of compensation.
Janice M. Holder, Justice