Elrod v. Prairie Valley, Inc.
| Citation | 335 N.W.2d 317,214 Neb. 697 |
| Decision Date | 17 June 1983 |
| Docket Number | No. 82-739,82-739 |
| Parties | Doris ELROD, Appellee, v. PRAIRIE VALLEY, INC., Appellant. |
| Court | Nebraska Supreme Court |
Syllabus by the Court
1. Workmen's Compensation: Appeal and Error. Findings of fact made by the Nebraska Workmen's Compensation Court after rehearing will not be set aside on appeal unless clearly wrong.
2. Questions of Law. This court is obligated to make its own determinations as to questions of law.
3. Workmen's Compensation: Seasonal Employment. Seasonal employment refers to occupations which can be carried on only at certain or fairly definite seasons or portions of the year, and does not include such occupations as may be carried on throughout the entire year.
Walter E. Zink II and Diane Bevans Carlson of Baylor, Evnen, Curtiss, Grimit & Witt, Lincoln, for appellant.
John A. Wagoner, Grand Island, for appellee.
In this workmen's compensation case the defendant-appellant, Prairie Valley, Inc., urges that the Workmen's Compensation Court erred by failing to find that the plaintiff-appellee, Doris Elrod, was a seasonal employee. We disagree with that contention and affirm the compensation court's award on rehearing.
On September 28, 1981, the plaintiff suffered injuries as the result of an accident arising out of and in the course of her employment by the defendant. As a consequence of said accident and injury she incurred hospital and medical expenses and suffered disability.
The amount of the disability benefits is dependent upon plaintiff's average weekly wage. Neb.Rev.Stat. § 48-121 (Cum.Supp.1982). The formula for computing the average weekly wage depends upon whether plaintiff was engaged in an occupation involving seasonal employment or nonseasonal employment. Neb.Rev.Stat. § 48-126 (Reissue 1978). The question is a mixed one of fact and law. To the extent the determination involves the former, findings of fact made by the Nebraska Workmen's Compensation Court after rehearing will not be set aside on appeal unless clearly wrong. Novotny v. Electric Hose & Rubber Co., 214 Neb. 216, 333 N.W.2d 406 (1983). On the other hand, to the extent that a question of law is involved, we are obligated to make our own determination. See, Ranger Division v. Bayne, 214 Neb. 251, 333 N.W.2d 891 (1983); Phelps County Savings Co. v. Dept. of Banking & Finance, 211 Neb. 683, 320 N.W.2d 99 (1982); The 20's, Inc. v. Nebraska Liquor Control Commission, 190 Neb. 761, 212 N.W.2d 344 (1973).
The defendant engages in the seed corn business throughout the year. Plaintiff obtained her employment by responding to a newspaper advertisement placed by the defendant which read, "TEMPORARY HELP WANTED Applications are now being taken for corn sorters needed during harvest...." Defendant's production manager testified that corn sorters are needed only during the corn harvesting season, roughly the period from September to late October of each year. A sorter basically separates the less desirable or malformed ears from the regular ones and removes husks from those ears on which that had not been done previously. According to the employer, the job cannot be performed at any other time of year. It must be completed soon after the corn ear has been picked in order that the corn may then be dried and further processed for future sale. Removal of the husks makes drying less expensive.
The law in this state regarding what constitutes seasonal...
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Bryant Heating & Air Conditioning Co., Inc. v. U.S. Nat. Bank of Omaha
...trial court would be obligated to make its own determination on all questions of law involved in the instant case. Elrod v. Prairie Valley, 214 Neb. 697, 335 N.W.2d 317 (1983); Staley v. City of Blair, 206 Neb. 292, 292 N.W.2d 570 Bryant also urges as error the overruling of its alternative......
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Yager v. Bellco Midwest
...This court is obligated in workers' compensation cases to make its own determinations as to questions of law. Elrod v. Prairie Valley, 214 Neb. 697, 335 N.W.2d 317 (1983). Although this court has never defined the terms in question, definitions from other jurisdictions are instructive. In E......
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Bortolotti v. Universal Terrazzo & Tile Co.
...143 (1985). See, also, Neb. Rev. Stat. § 48-185 (Reissue 2010).3 Hare v. Watts Trucking Service , supra note 2.4 Elrod v. Prairie Valley , 214 Neb. 697, 335 N.W.2d 317 (1983).5 Id. at 698, 335 N.W.2d at 318.6 Clifford v. Harchelroad Chevrolet , 229 Neb. 78, 80, 425 N.W.2d 331, 332 (1988).7 ......
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Bice v. Abbott Enterprises, No. A-06-583 (Neb. App. 2/20/2007)
...524 N.W.2d 816 (1994). Yet another case characterized the determination as a mixed question of fact and law. See Elrod v. Prairie Valley, 214 Neb. 697, 335 N.W.2d 317 (1983). We consider the issue in this case to be a factual one because this case does not require us to interpret the defini......