Griffin v. Dale Willey Pontiac-Cadillac-GMC Truck, Inc.
| Decision Date | 29 October 1999 |
| Docket Number | No. 79,505.,79,505. |
| Citation | 991 P.2d 406,268 Kan. 33 |
| Parties | DANE GRIFFIN, Appellant, v. DALE WILLEY PONTIAC-CADILLAC-GMC TRUCK, INC., et al., Appellees. |
| Court | Kansas Supreme Court |
Judy A. Pope, of Dickson & Pope, of Topeka, argued the cause and was on the briefs for appellant.
Jeffery D. Slattery, of Slattery & Rawson, P.C., of Kansas City, argued the cause and was on the brief for appellees.
The opinion of the court was delivered by
This is an appeal from the Workers Compensation Board (Board). The Court of Appeals affirmed the Board's ruling in part and reversed in part. We granted the employer's petition for review of the Court of Appeals' determination that the Board erred in finding that Dr. Brady's treatment of the claimant was not authorized.
The parties have stipulated to the following facts: (1) Dane Griffin (hereinafter claimant) was injured on or about November 23, 1992, in Douglas County, Kansas; (2) claimant's accidental injury arose out of and in the course of his employment; (3) claimant was the employee of Dale Willey Pontiac-Cadillac-GMC Truck, Inc., (hereinafter employer) on the date of his injury; (4) claimant gave his employer timely notice of the injury; (5) claimant's injury is covered by the Kansas Workers Compensation Act; (6) the written claim was timely; (7) employer was self-insured at all material times.
The application of the correct standards of review is determinative of the narrow issue before us.
A good discussion of the standards of review in workers compensation appeals is set forth in Gleason v. Samaritan Home, 260 Kan. 970, 975-76, 926 P.2d 1349 (1996), and may be summarized as follows:
The 1993 amendments to the Workers Compensation Act specifically adopt the Kansas Act for Judicial Review and Civil Enforcement of Agency Actions (KJRA), K.S.A. 77-601 et seq., for workers compensation appeals. K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 44-556. The Workers Compensation Act further states that such review shall be limited to questions of law. K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 44-556(a). The determination of whether the Board's findings of fact are supported by substantial competent evidence is a question of law. In workers compensation cases, substantial evidence is evidence possessing something of substance and relevant consequence and carrying with it fitness to induce conviction that the award is proper, or furnishing a substantial basis of fact from which the issue tendered can be reasonably resolved. The substantial competent evidence test reviews the evidence in the light most favorable to the prevailing party.
Additionally, Kansas appellate courts have stated the following:
The appellate court does not reweigh the evidence or determine the credibility of witness testimony. Guerrero v. Dold Foods, Inc., 22 Kan. App.2d 53, 56, 913 P.2d 612 (1995).
The appellate court will affirm the Board's ruling absent proof of an arbitrary disregard of undisputed evidence or some extrinsic consideration such as bias, passion, or prejudice. Bradford v. Boeing Military Airplanes, 22 Kan. App.2d 868, 870, 924 P.2d 1263, rev. denied 261 Kan. 1084 (1996).
The Board has the power to review both questions of law and fact. The Board's determination is then appealable to the Court of Appeals, which is limited to reviewing questions of law in accordance with the KJRA. Nance v. Harvey County, 263 Kan. 542, 551, 952 P.2d 411 (1997).
Summarizing, the Board reviews questions of law and fact. The appellate court reviews questions of law. Whether a decision is supported by substantial competent evidence is a question of law. The appellate court does not reweigh the evidence or determine the credibility of the witnesses.
There was conflicting evidence before the Board. In reversing the administrative law judge's award, the Board found, inter alia:
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...and Civil Enforcement of Agency Actions, K.S.A. 77-601 et seq., K.S.A. 2005 Supp. 44-556. See Griffin v. Dale Willey Pontiac-Cadillac-GMC Truck, Inc., 268 Kan. 33, 34-35, 991 P.2d 406 (1999). The Court of Appeals and, in turn, this court on review of the Court of Appeals decision do not hav......
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