MICHAEL WOOD, Claimant
v.
JMJ EQUIPMENT TRANSPORT, INC., Employer,
and
ELOLE INSURANCE COMPANY, Insurance Carrier, Defendants.
No. 5063827
Iowa Workers Compensation
Before the Iowa Workers' Compensation Commissioner
February 7, 2021
Head
Note: 2303
RULING ON INTERLOCUTORY APPEAL
JOSEPH
S. CORTESE II WORKERS' COMPENSATION COMMISSIONER
STATEMENT
OF THE CASE
Defendants
JMJ Equipment Transport, Inc. (JMJ), employer and Elole
Insurance Company, insurer, both as defendants, appealed a
ruling, filed in this matter on May 31, 2019.
Defendants'
motion for interlocutory appeal was granted on December 17,
2019.
The
evidentiary record in this matter consists of Claimant's
Exhibits 1-17, Defendants' Exhibits A through B, and
Defendants' Response to Claimant's Exhibit 17.
Claimant, Michael Wood, and Jason Jones, JMJ's owner,
testified via video conference.
The
detailed arguments of the parties have been considered and a
review of the evidence has been reviewed de novo.
ISSUES
The
issue on interlocutory appeal is whether the Iowa
Workers' Compensation Commissioner may exercise personal
jurisdiction over defendants in this matter under Iowa Code
section 85.3(2).
FINDINGS
OF FACT
Claimant
was employed by JMJ as a semi-truck driver. As a driver for
JMJ, claimant moved farm equipment, truck chassis, garbage
bodies, and other large equipment across country. (Hearing
Transcript, pages 18-19) When in Iowa claimant picked up
loads consisting of tractors and other equipment from John
Deere and J I Case in Waterloo, Davenport, and Dubuque. (Tr.
p. 24)
On
September 12, 2016, claimant was traveling in his truck to a
John Deere plant in Dubuque, Iowa, to pick up a load for JMJ.
Claimant had a motor vehicle accident on his way to the
Dubuque plant. (Tr. pp. 26-28; Ex. A, deposition pp. 14-15)
The
accident occurred within the Dubuque city limits. (Tr. p. 28)
Before the accident, claimant had spent the weekend in
Davenport, after delivering a load in Illinois. (Tr. pp.
26-27)
After
the accident, claimant was transported to Mercy Hospital in
Dubuque. He was eventually flown to the University of Iowa
Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC), in Iowa City for further care.
(Tr. p. 29) Claimant was inpatient at the UIHC for
approximately three weeks. (Tr. p. 30; Ex. A, deposition p.
17)
After
he was released from UIHC, claimant returned to Arizona.
Claimant is a resident of Arizona. All medical care after
claimant's stay at UIHC has been in Arizona. (Tr. p. 41)
Claimant has a claim for workers' compensation benefits
in Arizona and has been receiving benefits. (Tr. pp. 43-44)
JMJ is
headquartered and incorporated in Arizona. (Tr. pp. 61, 63)
JMJ's bank accounts are in Arizona. (Tr. p. 63) JMJ has
never had a physical office in Iowa. (Tr. pp. 62-63) JMJ has
no contracts with customers located in Iowa. (Tr. pp. 62-63)
JMJ is
a regional and long-distance trucking company. This requires
the company to travel through Iowa. (Tr. p. 67)
Between
March 2014 and March 2016, JMJ truckers traveled more than
200,000 miles in Iowa. (Ex. 1) This was due, in part, to many
of JMJ's deliveries in Minnesota and other states
surrounding Iowa. (Ex. 3, p. 45; Ex. 17; Tr. pp. 21-22)
JMJ's
employees made numerous stops in Iowa for fuel, food, and
other items. This resulted in thousands of dollars being
spent by JMJ in Iowa every year. (Ex. 5, pp. 66-71, 73-82)
JMJ's drivers, when in Iowa, are bound by Iowa traffic
laws. Claimant and other JMJ drivers have been cited by the
Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT), while driving within
Iowa. (Ex. 7-9) JMJ drivers use Iowa weigh stations. JMJ has
received permits from the Iowa DOT...