Massie v. University of Florida, AY-12
| Citation | 463 So.2d 383,10 Fla. L. Weekly 235 |
| Decision Date | 24 January 1985 |
| Docket Number | No. AY-12,AY-12 |
| Parties | 23 Ed. Law Rep. 437, 10 Fla. L. Weekly 235 Emmett MASSIE, Appellant, v. UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA and Division of Risk Management, Appellees. |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Florida (US) |
Terence J. Kann of Davis, Tabano, Weiss & Kahn, Gainesville, for appellant.
James E. Clayton of Clayton, Johnston, Quincey, Ireland, Felder & Gadd, Gainesville, for appellees.
Massie appeals from a workers' compensation order finding that he is not entitled to PTD for his disabling condition of multiple sclerosis because there is no evidence that during his employment by the University of Florida he was exposed to hazards greater than those to which the public is generally exposed. We affirm.
Massie contends the evidence shows that his job subjected him to a greater than normal stress level and that his nondisabling pre-existing multiple sclerosis was aggravated or accelerated by this factor which is peculiar to his employment by the University of Florida.
The University of Florida argues that the evidence shows that stress was not peculiar to Massie's job and that generally job stress is not unusual.
Festa v. Teleflex, Inc., 382 So.2d 122 (Fla. 1st DCA 1980) established the factors necessary to prove injury by repeated exposure: (1) prolonged exposure, (2) the cumulative effect of which is injury or the aggravation of a pre-existing condition, and (3) the claimant is subject to a hazard greater than the general public.
Massie argues that the deputy acted contrary to cumulative, uncontroverted evidence in finding that he had not shown exposure to an extraordinary hazard. The cases relied on by Massie to support this argument are ineffective in this case. McCandless v. M.M. Parrish Construction, 449 So.2d 830 (Fla. 1st DCA 1984), stands for the proposition that "it is an abuse of discretion for the deputy to reject uncontroverted medical testimony without a reasonable explanation." Weaver v. Gold Kist, Inc., 449 So.2d 829 (Fla. 1st DCA 1984), held that "the deputy should offer a sufficient reason for rejecting expert medical testimony, especially if such testimony is unrefuted." However, there was no medical testimony stating that Massie's job stress was an extraordinary hazard uncommon to the public in general. The medical testimony went primarily to the element of causation, i.e., could the particular stress Massie underwent exacerbate his multiple sclerosis. Assuming that unrefuted medical testimony demonstrates...
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Massie v. University of Florida, BN-98
...reference to claimant's expert witness, Alan Pappas. 1 The deputy commissioner's order was affirmed on appeal in Massie v. University of Florida, 463 So.2d 383 (Fla. 1st DCA), pet. for rev. denied, 472 So.2d 1181 (Fla.1985), upon the reasoning that Massie's evidence showed that the stress t......
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University of Florida v. Massie
...to have difficulty, we must hold that the deputy's holding was supported by competent substantial evidence." Massie v. University of Florida, 463 So.2d 383, 384 (Fla. 1st DCA), review denied, 472 So.2d 1181 (Fla.1985) [hereafter Massie I ]. In reaching this decision the district court noted......
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