Wallace v. Watkins-Carolina Express, Inc.
Wallace v. Watkins-Carolina Express, Inc.
Opinion of the Court
Plaintiff’s evidence was sufficient to support a finding that he suffered a compensable injury. Even so, the Commission was not bound to accept plaintiff’s evidence as true or to infer from it that plaintiff had suffered a compensable injury; for the Commission is the sole judge of the credibility of the witnesses and the weight to be given their testimony. Anderson v. Construction Co., 265 N.C. 431, 144 S.E. 2d 272. The Commission is not required to accept even the uncontroverted testimony of a witness. Anderson v. Motor Co., 233 N.C. 372, 64 S.E. 2d 265; Morgan v. Furniture Industries, Inc., 2 N.C. App. 126, 162 S.E. 2d 619.
However, where affirmative findings of fact upon which the Commission bases a decision are unsupported by any competent evidence, such findings must be set aside. 5 Strong, N.C. Index 2d, Master and Servant, § 96, pp. 488, 489. Plaintiff assigns1 as error two findings made by the Commission which are unsupported by any competent evidence.
The Commission found “ [p] laintiff had been involved in a vehicle accident on April 27, 1967, for which he received treat
The second finding attacked by plaintiff is that “Plaintiff continued to haul for Watkins-Carolina, using his own tractor, beginning May 30, 1967 and continuing for about six weeks.” The only evidence concerning when plaintiff returned to driving his truck was his testimony that “[o]ne week after the accident [of 29 May 1967] was when I went back on the truck for the first time.” Hence, a positive finding to the effect plaintiff returned to work the day following his accident is unsupported by the evidence.
Defendant argues that although these findings are erroneous, they are not crucial to the Commission’s decision and should therefore be disregarded. The difficulty with this approach is that we are unable to say to what extent, if any, these findings influenced the Commission’s final conclusion that any injuries sustained by the plaintiff were minor, requiring no medical treatment and causing no disability.
We further note that the Commission found that Dr. Weaver was of the opinion plaintiff had sustained a sprain of his neck and lumbosacral spine and had him hospitalized from 25 July 1967 to 4 August 1967; also, that Dr. Carr had plaintiff hospitalized from 26 October 1967 to 17 November 1967 for conservative treatment of his sprained back. A crucial question
For the reasons given the case is remanded and the Industrial Commission is directed to make new findings of fact, based on the competent evidence in the record and determinative of all questions at issue.
Error and remanded.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- JAY LEE WALLACE, Employee v. WATKINS-CAROLINA EXPRESS, INC., Employer, and AMERICAN MUTUAL LIABILITY INSURANCE CO., Carrier
- Cited By
- 4 cases
- Status
- Published