Fredette v. Connecticut Air National Guard

Summary

The Supreme Court of Connecticut held that a dependent may timely file a workers' compensation claim for benefits under General Statutes § 31-306 when the employee did not file a claim during his lifetime and died more than two years after the first manifestation of an occupational disease. The court interpreted the proviso in General Statutes § 31-294c(a) as establishing a modified limitations period for certain dependent claims, rather than as imposing a condition precedent requiring death within two years of the disease's first manifestation. The court affirmed the compensation review board's decision affirming the commissioner's grant of the plaintiff's motion to preclude the defendant from contesting compensability.