RONNIE SLATER v. ADECCO USA, INC., et al. - Articles

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RONNIE SLATER v. ADECCO USA, INC., et al.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Aug 20, 2025

Court: TN Workers Comp Appeals Board

Attorneys 1: Carmen Y. Ware, Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the employee-appellant, Ronnie Slater.

Attorneys 2: Charles E. Pierce, Knoxville, Tennessee, for the employer-appellee, ADECCO USA, Inc.

Judge(s): CONNER

In this interlocutory appeal, the employee alleges the trial court erred in declining to order the employer to authorize additional medical treatment, including left knee surgery. The employee initially injured his low back while working in the course and scope of his employment. After the employee underwent lumbar surgery, the employer offered him a transitional light duty position at a local nonprofit organization, which he accepted. While working in that position, the employee reported a fall that he claimed caused a left knee injury. Following a previous expedited hearing, the trial court ordered the employer to provide a panel of physicians for evaluation and treatment of the left knee. The panelselected physician initially offered an opinion that the employee’s left knee condition was primarily caused by the work-related fall the employee had described. He subsequently recommended left knee surgery. Later, in response to a questionnaire from the employer, the physician appeared to rescind his original causation opinion. During his subsequent deposition, the physician testified that the left knee condition could have been caused by the incident the employee described, but that causation was difficult to ascertain under the circumstances. Following receipt of all evidence, declarations, and briefs filed by the parties, the trial court issued a decision on the record in which it found the employee had not come forward with sufficient evidence indicating he was likely to prevail at trial in proving the cause of the need for additional left knee treatment, and the employee appealed. Upon careful consideration of the record, we affirm the trial court’s order and remand the case.

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