Michael Makris v. City of Wheeling

Summary

The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia affirmed a decision awarding Michael Makris 3% permanent partial disability benefits for a compensable workplace injury. The court held that the higher impairment assessment offered by a later independent medical examiner was unsupported by the record and did not comply with West Virginia impairment-evaluation requirements.

Holdings

1. The Board of Review did not err in affirming the 3% permanent partial disability award.
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 Board of Review erred in affirming a 3% permanent partial disability award rather than adopting the 17% impairment assessment of Dr. Trangle.
2. Whether Dr. Trangle's impairment evaluation complied with West Virginia Code of State Rules § 85-20 and was supported by the evidentiary record.

Disposition

affirmed