DocketNumber: No. CA79-02-0017
Citation Numbers: 434 N.E.2d 1103, 70 Ohio App. 2d 78
Judges: BETTMAN, P. J.
Filed Date: 9/17/1980
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 1/13/2023
This cause came on to be heard upon an appeal from the Court of Common Pleas of Butler County.
The issues concern the entitlement of plaintiff-appellee, Russell E. Banta, to compensation under the Workers' Compensation Act of Ohio for injuries received, within the scope of his employment, on March 14, 1975, in Hamilton, Ohio, while in the employ of defendant-appellant, Brada Miller Freight System, Inc. (Brada Freight or appellant). *Page 79
Banta was employed as an over-the-road driver operating in various states, including Indiana, but principally in Ohio. Brada Freight, an interstate carrier with its principal office in Indiana, was covered by the Workers' Compensation Acts of Ohio and Indiana, among others. In Indiana it was a self-insurer. Banta is a resident of Dayton, Ohio.
Banta's Ohio claim was allowed at all administrative levels, and Brada Freight's appeal from these rulings was refused by the Industrial Commission. Its appeal to the Court of Common Pleas of Butler County was overruled and judgment entered in favor of Banta.
In its appeal from that judgment, appellant assigns three errors. We shall consider the first two assignments of error together. The thrust of these two assignments of error is that the trial court erred in not holding that, prior to his injury, Banta had agreed that his exclusive remedy was to be under the Workers' Compensation Act of Indiana.
At the commencement of his employment, in 1965, Banta signed a document entitled "Supplement to Contract of Hire" (see Appendix). This document was not filed with the Industrial Commission of Ohio until after the accident, and no other pertinent document was filed. Brada Freight maintains that this is an "agreement" in compliance with R. C.
"Every employee, who is injured * * * is entitled to receive * * * from the state insurance fund, such compensation for loss sustained on account of such injury * * * as are provided by sections
"Whenever, with respect to an employee of an employer who is subject to and has complied with sections
"If any employee or his dependents are awarded workmen's compensation benefits or recover damages from the employer under the laws of another state, the amount so awarded or recovered, whether paid or to be paid in future installments, shall be credited on the amount of any award of compensation or benefits made to the employee or his dependents by the industrial commission." (Emphasis added.)
This section must be construed in conjunction with R. C.
R. C.
Appellant argues that the filing of the agreement with the commission is purely procedural; and, therefore, its failure to file its "agreement" with the commission until after Banta's injury is without significance. We cannot agree. The Industrial Commission was given broad supervisory powers over the administration of the Workers' Compensation Act. *Page 81
R. C.
It must further be recognized that if proposed agreements are not filed with the commission, the opportunity is open to employers, by the simple expedient of not filing an agreement, to preserve an option to pick which state they wish to handle a particular claim — until after an accident occurs.
It could be argued that the sentence in R. C.
That the statute contemplates that an injured employee may have rights in another state, in addition to his rights in *Page 82 Ohio, is evident from the statute's provision that payments pursuant to the laws of another state are to be credited against any award under Ohio law. The first two assignments of error are overruled.
Appellant's third assignment of error asserts error in the trial court's failure to find that Banta had waived his right to receive benefits under the Workers' Compensation Act of Ohio. This proposition is based upon Banta's signature on Indiana Form No. 12, dated April 15, 1975, and entitled "Agreement Between Employee and Employer As to Compensation."3 *Page 83
Appellant relies on the court's holding, in State, ex rel.Weinberger, v. Indus. Comm. (1941),
The document shows that all Banta agreed to was that he would receive $90 per week until such payments were "* * * terminated in accordance with the provisions of the Workmen's Compensation Law of * * * Indiana." He did not agree that such payments were to be in full payment for his injuries; and, he did not release any claims for further compensation, nor did he release any claims he had under the laws of Ohio. The document is no more than an acknowledgement by Banta that he was receiving the payments therein set out. It cannot be considered a contract of settlement as contemplated by Weinberger, supra.
It should also be noted that in its decision inWeinberger, though holding that contracts of settlement could be valid, the court held that the contract therein, in settlement of a claim for injury to one leg, did not bar an award for later complications which developed in the claimant's other leg. Similarly here, Banta's agreement to accept payments in Indiana is not a bar to his assertion of his rights under Ohio law. The assignment is overruled. We affirm the judgment. *Page 84
Judgment affirmed.
PALMER, J., concurs.
(Reporter's Note: A copy of the actual Form C-112 involved was reproduced in the court's decision. However, the form has been deleted from the reported decision.)
This form has been deleted from the reported decision; however, the relevant portion of the form provides as follows:
"Russell E. Banta * * * Employee "Brada Miller Freight System, Inc. Employer "Self-Insured Insurance Carrier "We Russell E. Banta * * * Name of Employee or Dependents "* * * "and Brada Miller Freight System, Inc. Name of Employer "* * * "have reached an agreement in regard to compensation for the injury sustained by said employee and submit the following statement of facts relative thereto: "Date of injury March 14, 1975 Date disability began March 17, 1975 "Nature of injury Twisted left ankle and injury to the left side of low back. "* * * "* * * "Place of accident Hamilton, Ohio "Cause of accident Driver was attempting to pull the tarp off his load when he stopped [sic] on a wooden block and turned his ankle and twisted his back. "Probable length of disability Unknown at this time. "The terms of this agreement under the above facts are as follows: "That the said Russell E. Banta shall receive compensation at the rate of $ 90.00 per "week based upon an average weekly wage of $ 169.00 and that said compensation shall be payable "* * * "from and including the 17th day of March month 19 75 until "terminated in accordance with the provisions of the Workmen's Compensation Law of the State of Indiana "