DENG v. FARMLAND FOODS INC (2022)

Supreme Court of Iowa.

Mary DENG, Appellant, v. FARMLAND FOODS, INC. and Safety National Casualty Corporation, Appellees.

No. 21-0760

Decided: April 01, 2022

Christensen, C.J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which all participating justices joined. Mansfield and McDermott, JJ., took no part in the consideration or decision of the case.

Jennifer M. Zupp of Zupp and Zupp Law Firm, P.C., Denison, for appellant. Kathryn R. Johnson and Eric T. Lanham of McAnany, Van Cleave & Phillips, P.A., West Des Moines, for appellees. Andrew W. Bribriesco, Bettendorf, for amicus curiae League of United Latin American Citizens of Iowa. Jason D. Neifert of Neifert, Byrne & Ozga, P.C., West Des Moines, for amicus curiae Workers’ Compensation Core Group of the Iowa Association for Justice. Jay M. Smith of Smith & McElwain Law Office, Sioux City, for amicus curiae Iowa Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO, and the United Food and Commercial Workers’ International Union.

Mary Deng sought workers’ compensation benefits for injuries she sustained to her infraspinatus muscle and labrum during the course of her employment. Deng's infraspinatus muscle injury, which is part of the rotator cuff, is the only injury at issue. Specifically, the parties raise the same legal issue addressed in Chavez v. MS Technology, LLC, 972 N.W.2d 662 (Iowa 2022), filed today: whether a rotator cuff injury is a scheduled “shoulder” injury under Iowa Code section 85.34(2)(n) (2018) or an unscheduled whole body injury under section 85.34(2)(v) for compensation purposes. Upon consideration of the issue and for the reasons set forth in Chavez, we affirm the district court judgment classifying the rotator cuff injury as a scheduled “shoulder” injury under section 85.34(2)(n).

AFFIRMED.

CHRISTENSEN, Chief Justice.

All justices concur except Mansfield and McDermott, JJ., who take no part.

Was this helpful?

Why was this helpful?

Easy to understand

Solved my problem

Other

Why was this not helpful?

Missing the information I need

Too complicated / too many steps

Out of date

Other

Thank you for your feedback!

Welcome to FindLaw's Cases & Codes

A free source of state and federal court opinions, state laws, and the United States Code. For more information about the legal concepts addressed by these cases and statutes visit FindLaw's Learn About the Law.

Go To Learn About The Law