Susan J. Marl v. Marshall County Board of Education

Summary

The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals affirmed the Board of Review’s denial of Susan J. Marl’s motion to file a late protest of a claims administrator’s decision rejecting her workers’ compensation application. The court held that the protest was filed well beyond the statutory time limits and that the Office of Judges lacked jurisdiction to accept it.

Holdings

1. A claims administrator's decision becomes final unless protested within sixty days of receipt, and the protest period may be extended for good cause only for an additional sixty days; because Marl's protest was filed outside that maximum period, the Office of Judges lacked jurisdiction to accept it.
2. The Board of Review's decision was not in clear violation of a constitutional or statutory provision, was not clearly the result of erroneous conclusions of law, and was not based on a material misstatement or mischaracterization of the evidentiary record.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Workers' Compensation Office of Judges could accept Marl's late protest of the claims administrator's decision.
2. Whether the Board of Review's affirmance of the denial of the late protest should be reversed.

Disposition

affirmed