Williams v. Hidden Harbor, 92-1176
| Decision Date | 16 August 1993 |
| Docket Number | No. 92-1176,92-1176 |
| Citation | 622 So.2d 626 |
| Parties | 18 Fla. L. Week. D1835 William WILLIAMS, Appellant, v. HIDDEN HARBOR and Liberty Mutual, Appellees. |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
Bill McCabe, Longwood, for appellant.
Nancy A. Blastic, O'Riorden, Mann, Hootman, Ingram & Dunkle, Sarasota, for appellees.
Claimant William Williams appeals an order finding no permanent impairment and therefore denying permanent total disability benefits and permanent wage loss benefits.
Williams is a 68-year-old married man with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology and a Masters Degree in Divinity. His work history includes three years as a minister, seven years as an employee for the State of Florida doing human relations work, three years as an employee for the State of Illinois, and nine years as a faculty facilitator for the University of Illinois. In 1974, he retired from the university at age 49 and built a boat with his wife. For the next ten years, they sailed between Fort Lauderdale and the Bahamas, engaging in free-lance writing and coastal trade. After their boat sank, Williams and his wife moved to Florida. He went to work for a boat manufacturer as a hardware installer. In July 1984, he began working for the employer herein as a finish carpenter. During this employment, claimant was exposed to fumes from various solvents and other chemical substances and began developing symptoms he attributed to toxic exposure.
In a compensation order of August 22, 1989, Judge of Compensation Claims Gary E. Frazier found that claimant had diffuse brain damage, visual pathway cerebral dysfunction, fatigue, depression and decreased vibration sensibility in his legs, all of which was causally related to industrial exposure to toxic fumes and that claimant suffered a permanent impairment. On appeal, this court affirmed as to causation and reversed and remanded as to the remaining issues of permanent impairment, permanent total disability benefits and deemed earnings because the record lacked medical testimony that claimant had reached maximum medical improvement. Hidden Harbor Boatworks v. Williams, 566 So.2d 595 (Fla. 1st DCA 1990).
After remand a final hearing on the merits of the claim took place on December 9, 1991. Judge of Compensation Claims (JCC) Joe E. Willis found "[i]n this case, not only Dr. Lewis, but also Glenn Larrabee, Ph.D, felt that there was no permanent impairment." The JCC concluded that "claimant does not have a permanent physical impairment as a result of the exposure to toxic substances while at work." The order further contends that "[n]o doctor has indicated that claimant has been incapable of working at any time since his exposure to the toxic substances while working for the employer herein." The JCC denied permanent total disability benefits and permanent wage loss benefits on the basis that claimant is not permanently and totally disabled and that claimant is "capable of working at the present time and is essentially semi-retired for reasons unrelated to the exposure with the employer herein." The order does not address psychological impairment.
We reverse the order because competent substantial evidence does not support the JCC's findings. None of the medical experts testified that claimant has no permanent impairment. The JCC relied heavily upon the testimony of Dr. James A. Lewis and Dr....
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