Experience

• Shawn Gooden prevailed in a hearing loss case.  Claimant filed a Petition seeking specific loss benefits for hearing loss related to his job as a police chief and fire arms instructor.  However, the evidence presented by Claimant consisting of two (2) doctors failed to establish that he suffered occupationally related hearing loss.  Specifically, one of the doctors that testified on Claimant’s behalf testified that he did not know how to reduce the Claimant’s hearing loss into percentages and the other doctor did not utilize the 4^th Edition of the AMA Guides.  Accordingly, the Judge denied the Claim Petition in its entirety.

• Prevailed in a termination petition where the employee suffered a work-related injury when his ankle was crushed by a telephone pole.  The employee's treating providers released him to return to work, but he sought treatment with a new provider. His condition improved and his new provider released him to return to work without restrictions. He returned to his treating doctor and asked to be taken back out of work. The Judge discredited the employee’s testimony anywhere in which it conflicted with any other evidence. The Judge found that the employee was dissatisfied with his employment and utilized his injury as an opportunity to quit. During the pendency of the termination petition, the employer paid in excess of $50,000 in indemnity benefits plus ongoing medical benefits which will now be recoverable from the Supersedeas Fund.