The New York City Employees' Retirement System [CERS] appealed a Supreme Court's ruling annulling CRER's decision to deny Plaintiff's application for duty disability retirement benefits and directed CERS to provide such benefits retroactive to February 24, 2015.
The Petitioner, a former correction officer with the New York City Department of Correction, had alleged that he sustained disabling injuries to his neck and back on December 29, 2013, during an altercation with an inmate. CERS denied Plaintiff's application after adopting the recommendation of the Medical Board of the New York City Employees' Retirement System [Medical Board] The Medical Board had determined that the Petitioner's disabling condition was not causally related to the December 29, 2013 incident.
The Appellate Division reversed the Supreme Court's ruling, on the law, with costs, denied Plaintiff's petition and dismissed the proceeding.
The Appellate Division, Judge Dowling dissenting in part, explained that an applicant for accident disability retirement benefits has the burden of establishing that a disability is causally connected to a performance of duty accident, citing see Matter of Giuliano v New York Fire Dept. Pension Fund, 185 AD3d 812, and as a general rule, the decision by CERS will not be disturbed unless its factual findings are not supported by substantial evidence* or its final determination and ruling is arbitrary and capricious".
The court opined that the conclusions of the Board, adopted by CERS were supported by "... credible evidence consisting of the Medical Board's independent interviews and examinations of the Petitioner, its review of the medical records and reports of the Petitioner's treating physicians, and the report of a radiologist consulted by the Medical Board, interpreting MRI studies of the cervical region of the Petitioner's spine." Further, said the Appellate Division, the resolution of conflicting medical evidence was within the province of the Medical Board.
Finding that there is no evidence supporting Petitioner's contention that the December 29, 2013 incident precipitated the development of a latent condition or aggravated a preexisting condition, the Appellate Division concluded that "Supreme Court should have denied the petition and dismissed the proceeding."
* Substantial evidence has been construed in disability cases, as requiring some credible evidence. Credible evidence has been described as evidence that proceeds from a credible source, which reasonably tends to support the proposition for which it is offered.
Click HEREto access the Appellate Division's decision posted on the Internet.
See, also, Matter of Young v DiNapoli, posted on the Internet HERE, addressing similar issues.
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