Queen v. G.D.C. Contractors, Inc., 032421 VAWC, VA00001782607

• Case Date: March 24, 2021
• Court: Virginia

JOHN QUEEN v. G.D.C. CONTRACTORS, INC. COMMONWEALTH CONTRACTORS GROUP SELF-INSURANCE ASSOCIATION, Insurance Carrier THE LANDIN COMPANIES, Claim Administrator Jurisdiction Claim No. VA00001782607 Virginia Workers Compensation Virginia In The Workers’ Compensation Commission March 24, 2021           Date of Injury: October 15, 2020          Claim Administrator File No. 602-3203-00-20-002           K. Brent Jones, Esquire For the Claimant.           Joseph T. McNally, Jr., Esquire For the Defendant.           REVIEW on the record by Commissioner Marshall, Commissioner Newman, and Commissioner Rapaport at Richmond, Virginia.           OPINION           RAPAPORT Commissioner          The defendant requests review of a Staff Attorney’s February 2, 2021 rejection of its Employer’s Application for Hearing. We AFFIRM.          I. Material Proceedings          On January 15, 2021, the defendant filed an Employer’s Application for Hearing seeking termination of the claimant’s outstanding award. The defendant alleged that the claimant was released to pre-injury work on January 15, 2021 pursuant to the report of Dr. Owolabi Shonuga. The defendant submitted a document entitled “Patient Instructions” in which Dr. Shonuga checked a box indicating that “[p]atient may return to work full duty, weight bearing as tolerated.” The claimant timely opposed the application.          By letter dated February 2, 2021, a Staff Attorney examined the application and the claimant’s response. She determined that the evidence was insufficient to suspend benefits and docket the application. The Staff Attorney elaborated:

The employer relies upon a January 15, 2021 form entitled Patient Instructions signed by Dr. Shonuga. The doctor checked the following box: “Patient may return to work full duty, weight bearing as tolerated.” As this release included a limitation and there are no other medical records in the Commission’s file to demonstrate that Dr. Shonuga was familiar with the claimant’s preinjury job, there is no reasonable probability that the employer would prevail on the merits of the

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