Philip L. Thompson, Jr. v. Millard Wire Company

Syllabus

The petitioner, Philip L. Thompson, Jr., petitioned the Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari to review a December 4, 2017 final decree of the Appellate Division of the Workers' Compensation Court which had the effect of denying him workers' compensation benefits for his neck injury. The Supreme Court granted Mr. Thompson's petition on February 26, 2019 and issued a writ of certiorari. Mr. Thompson argued before the Court that the Appellate Division erred in affirming the trial judge because the trial judge committed reversible error by: (1) stating that Dr. Thomas Rocco was not qualified to opine on an orthopedic issue due to the fact that he was a board certified general surgeon, not a board certified orthopedic surgeon and (2) finding Dr. Rocco's testimony to be inconsistent. The Supreme Court held that, although the trial judge was in error in stating that Dr. Rocco was not qualified, the Appellate Division clearly considered Dr. Rocco's testimony and weighed it in the course of reviewing the decision of the trial judge. The Court further held that legally competent evidence existed to support the determination of the Appellate Division that the trial judge did not err in finding Dr. Rocco's testimony to be inconsistent. Accordingly, the Supreme Court affirmed the final decree of the Appellate Division.