Bob Bollinger wins case at Court of Appeals

On December 31, 2014, the NC Court of Appeals filed its decision in Clark v. Summit Contractors Group, Inc., COA14-698.   This 3-0 decision was written by Judge Robert C. Hunter.  The case involved a statute of limitations question.   Mr. Clark was injured in NC, but his employer filed the claim under Florida jurisdiction.  Mr. Clark hired the Bollinger Law Firm a little more than two years after the injury to pursue a claim under NC law.  Mr. Clark had received workers’ comp benefits under Florida law, and was still getting medical care from Florida.  NC law provides that an injured worker must file his claim in NC within 2 years of his accident, or within two years of his last receipt of “medical compensation” when no other compensation has been paid under the NC Workers’ Compensation Act.    Here, Mr. Clark’s claim was filed more than two years after the accident, but well within the two years of the last medical compensation paid in the Florida case.   The Industrial Commission, in a dismissal order written by Chairman Andrew Heath, ruled that his claim was not timely filed.  Bob appealed.  The Court of Appeals agreed with Bob’s arguments and overturned the Full Commission decision.