Workers’ Compensation – Causation – Hearing Loss – Perjury – Intrinsic Fraud

Samonsky v. BellSouth Telecommunications, Inc. (Lawyers Weekly No. 011-060-11, 3 pp.) (Per Curiam) Appealed from Aiken County Circuit Court. (Doyet A. Early III, J.) S.C. App. Unpub. Click here for the full text of the opinion.

Holding: Claimant’s doctors could not causally relate claimant’s vertigo, hearing loss, tinnitus or hernia to his job, and the appellate panel of the Workers’ Compensation Commission found that claimant’s testimony was not credible. Therefore, the Appellate Panel properly denied the claims for vertigo, hearing loss, and tinnitus.

We affirm the denial of the claims.

Claimant’s assertion of mere perjury and use of a fraudulent document is insufficient to set aside the appellate panel’s decision because that conduct constitutes intrinsic fraud. Moreover, claimant failed to introduce any evidence that defense counsel knew or was involved in any fraudulent or perjurious conduct relating to the noise problems of claimant’s work van. Consequently, claimant failed to introduce evidence of extrinsic fraud and fraud upon the court. The appellate panel properly declined to set aside the single commissioner’s decision.