SSA Terminals & Homeport Ins. v. Carrion

Robert Carrion sustained a severe knee injury while working as a chassis mechanic, and continued to work at his physically demanding job for the next fifteen years before retiring early. After Carrion’s former employer ceased paying for treatment, he filed for disability under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA or the Longshore Act), 33 U.S.C. 901 et seq. The court affirmed the BRB’s decision upholding the ALJ’s conclusion that Carrion timely filed his claim against SSA where the ALJ and the BRB, in determining whether the one-year statute of limitations on disability claims was met pursuant to 33 U.S.C. 913(a), correctly looked to the date when Carrion became aware that his work for SSA caused a second, cumulative traumatic injury resulting in an impairment of his earning power. The court held that the prospect of a hypothetical future surgery and its anticipated benefits can not transform an otherwise permanent disability into a temporary one for purposes of the Longshore Act. In this case, Carrion's knee injury is a permanent disability. The court explained that evaluating an individual’s condition based on the presumed effect of a theoretical future treatment makes scant sense. Accordingly, the appropriate question to ask is not whether a future surgery would ameliorate Carrion’s knee condition, but whether there was actual or expected improvement to his knee after a normal and natural healing period. Finally, the court concluded that the doctrines of exhaustion and waiver are inapplicable because Carrion presented his claim of permanent disability well before the conclusion of the administrative process and neither SSA nor the agency were blindsided by the argument. Accordingly, the court denied SSA's petition for review of the BRB's decision and granted Carrion's cross-petition for review. View "SSA Terminals & Homeport Ins. v. Carrion" on Justia Law