Maria Monteiro Pires’s Case, No. 13-P-985, 2014 WL 1236006 (Mass. App. Ct. Mar. 27, 2014)
Mar 27, 2014OUTCOME: The Appeals Court affirmed the administrative judge’s conclusion that the employee’s inability to work was caused by her pre-existing condition and not by her work-related injury.
The case involved the “combination injury” defense under the Massachusetts Workers Compensation Act, G. L. c. 152, § 1(7A). The employee-claimant received benefits from a 2009 work injury. Her 2009 inj ... ury resolved, but she alleged that an unreported 2006 work incident was contributing to her current disability. Smith Duggan, on behalf of the self-insured hospital, proved that the combination injury defense governed the parties’ legal rights and barred the claim.
