IN THE WORKERS’ COMPENSATION COURT OF THE STATE OF MONTANA 2016 MTWCC 17
WCC No. 2015-3667. JOSE “LEO” JIMENEZ vs. LIBERTY NORTHWEST INSURANCE CORPORATION.
Summary: Respondent moved to dismiss Petitioner’s Petition for Hearing, wherein Petitioner asks this Court to award him a lump sum of his PTD, medical, and domiciliary care benefits, the total of which is approximately $3.5 million. Respondent argued that the Workers’ Compensation Act does not allow for a lump-sum conversion of medical and domiciliary care benefits on a claimant’s demand, and Petitioner failed to adequately plead the statutory requirements for a lump-sum conversion of PTD benefits.
Held: The Workers’ Compensation Act does not allow this Court to grant Petitioner a lump-sum conversion of his medical and domiciliary care benefits on his demand and those claims are dismissed. However, Petitioner sufficiently pleaded his demand for a lump-sum conversion of his PTD benefits, which the Workers’ Compensation Act allows under certain circumstances. Respondent’s Motion to Dismiss is therefore granted in part and denied in part.
Judgment: Liberty’s Motion to Dismiss is granted in part and denied in part.
READ FULL DOCUMENT AT ORIGNAL SOURCE: http://wcc.dli.mt.gov/j/Jimenez_2016MTWCC17.pdf