- Court: Oregon Court of Appeals
- Area(s) of Law: Workers Compensation
- Date Filed: 04-20-2016
- Case #: A157092
- Judge(s)/Court Below: Duncan, P.J. for the Court; DeVore, J. & Flynn, J.
Employer appealed the Workers’ Compensation Board’s determination that Employer’s expert witness’s testimony was not legally sufficient to meet Employer’s burden of proof under ORS 656.266(2)(a) because the expert witness only addressed the cause of an existing condiction and not the cause of the combined condition. The Board’s understanding of Employer’s second expert witness’s written opinion, however, was not reasonable because it relied on a misinterpretation that the witness was only adressing the existing condition. The context of the question was clear that the attorney was asking about the cause of the combined condition at issue in front of the Workers' Compensation Board. Therefore, the Board's decision was unreasonable and not supported by substantial reason. Reversed and remanded for reconsideration.