Hudson v. Trillium Staffing, A16-2017

• Citation: 896 N.W.2d 536
• Decision Date: 07 June 2017
• Docket Number: A16-2017
• Parties: Eddie HUDSON, Respondent, v. TRILLIUM STAFFING and XL Insurance, with Claims Administered by CorVel Corporation, Relators, and Medica Health Plans/Optum, Center for Diagnostic Imaging, Hennepin County Medical Center & Physicians, Park Nicollet Health Services, and Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital, Intervenors.
• Court: Supreme Court of Minnesota (US)

896 N.W.2d 536

Eddie HUDSON, Respondent,
v.
TRILLIUM STAFFING and XL Insurance, with Claims Administered by CorVel Corporation, Relators,
and
Medica Health Plans/Optum, Center for Diagnostic Imaging, Hennepin County Medical Center & Physicians, Park Nicollet Health Services, and Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital, Intervenors.

A16-2017

Supreme Court of Minnesota.

Filed: June 7, 2017

Eddie Hudson, Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, pro se.

Douglas J. Brown, Brown & Carlson, P.A., Minneapolis, Minnesota, for relators.

Considered and decided by the court without oral argument.

OPINION

STRAS, Justice.

This case requires us to determine whether the Workers' Compensation Court of Appeals (WCCA) erred in granting respondent Eddie Hudson's petition to vacate an award of workers' compensation benefits. Hudson, who was injured while working for Trillium Staffing, filed a workers' compensation claim that the parties later settled. About a year after the settlement, Hudson filed a petition to vacate the award with the WCCA, which granted Hudson's petition on the ground that his medical condition had substantially

896 N.W.2d 538

changed in a way that clearly was not, and could not reasonably have been, anticipated. Because the medical opinion underlying the WCCA's decision lacked foundation, we reverse.

FACTS

The essential facts in this case are undisputed. On April 16, 2014, respondent Eddie Hudson was injured in the course of his employment with Trillium Staffing when the semi-trailer truck that he was driving jackknifed and veered into a ditch. Hudson was treated for three general categories of injuries after the crash: (1) injuries to his neck and low back; (2) a traumatic brain injury ; and (3) psychological injuries.

For his neck and low-back injuries, Hudson was treated by Dr. Victor Van Hee, who diagnosed neck and low-back strains. Dr. Van Hee assigned a permanent partial disability (PPD)¹ rating of 12% and 10% for the low-back and neck strains, respectively, and a PPD rating of 21% for the whole body. He noted, however, that the whole-body PPD rating he assigned did not include the concussion that Hudson had suffered, which was within the purview of another doctor.

Hudson was treated by a team led by Dr. Sarah Rockswold for the traumatic brain injury, which included such symptoms as photosensitivity and headaches. Based on Hudson's recovery, she assigned a 0% PPD rating for the traumatic brain injury, noting that a PPD rating for the psychological injuries would need to be assigned later.

Finally, for the psychological injuries, Hudson was treated by Dr. Jane Roskowski, a member of Dr. Rockswold's treatment team. Dr. Roskowski diagnosed Hudson with an adjustment disorder with mixed depression and anxiety, but was unable to assign a PPD rating because their therapeutic relationship ended before she could do so. Hudson also underwent neuropsychological testing conducted by Dr. Jackie Micklewright, who did not assign a PPD rating to Hudson's psychological injuries.

Hudson additionally saw two independent examiners at Trillium's request. The first examiner, Dr. Paul Wicklund, disagreed with Van Hee's evaluation of Hudson's low-back and neck injuries. Dr. Wicklund concluded that the injuries were temporary and had resolved, requiring no further medical treatment and no work restrictions. He accordingly assigned a 0% PPD rating. The second examiner, Dr. Stanley Ferneyhough, attempted to conduct a neuropsychological exam, but discontinued the exam after 40 minutes due to Hudson's allegedly aggressive and uncooperative behavior. Based on the failure to complete the exam, Dr. Ferneyhough did not assign a PPD rating.

In September 2014, Hudson filed a workers' compensation petition seeking benefits for low-back, neck, and concussion injuries arising out of the work accident. See Minn. Stat. §§ 176.271, 176.291 (2016) (providing procedures for the filing of workers' compensation petitions). In February 2015, Hudson amended his petition

896 N.W.2d 539

to include a claim for psychological injuries.

Two months later, Hudson and Trillium began negotiating a settlement of Hudson's claim. Voluntary mediation led to a stipulated settlement, under which Trillium agreed to pay Hudson a lump sum of $125,000 in exchange for settlement of all of Hudson's claims of neck, low-back, brain, psychological, and other injuries for which Hudson claimed PPD, with the sole exception of future reasonable medical expenses for his low-back and neck injuries. The compensation judge reviewed the stipulation, found it "to be in substantial accord with the terms and provisions of the Minnesota Workers' Compensation Law," and approved it. See Minn. Stat. § 176.521, subd. 1(a) (2016) (requiring approval of proposed settlements, as in this case, "where one or more of the parties is not represented by an attorney"). The compensation judge awarded benefits to Hudson in accordance with the stipulation.

Following the settlement, Hudson began seeing Dr. Savina Ghelfi, a psychiatrist, who diagnosed Hudson with severe major depression, generalized anxiety disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. She assigned a 75% PPD rating to Hudson for the traumatic brain injury. The evaluation also resulted, for the first time, in a medical opinion that Hudson was unable to work due to his injuries.

Based primarily on Dr. Ghelfi's opinion, Hudson filed a petition to vacate the award under Minn. Stat. § 176.461 (2016). The WCCA found, also relying on Dr. Ghelfi's...