Gibbs v. State Department of Industrial Relations, Second Injury Trust Fund

MONROE, Judge.

In 1992, Roy A. Gibbs, Sr., while working for Jim Walter Resources, Inc., suffered a work-related injury. He had suffered a previous work-related injury. Because of this second injury, he was determined to be entitled to benefits under the Second Injury Trust Fund (SITF). He received benefit payments from the SITF, until he died in 1998. He died of a cause unrelated to his work-related accidents.

After his father’s death, Roy A. Gibbs, Jr., and other dependents filed a declaratory judgment action seeking a continuation of the workers’ compensation benefits, claiming they, as…